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Hatsubai « Most famous active pickup »
Published on 04/05/11 at 10:18The EMG 81 is one of the pickups that helped make EMG a name for itself. It’s a pickup with an active preamp inside it. That means it requires a power source. In this case, it’s a 9V battery. It’s housed in a special cover with no pole pieces and has a ceramic magnet.
The EMG 81 is a pickup that’s getting a bit dated today, but it is still a great pickup. Overall, the pickup really pushes the amplifier, despite the pickup itself actually being low output. This is mainly thanks to the built in active preamp. It’s a quiet pickup that doesn’t need a buffer for long cable runs, and it doesn’t interfere with nasty RF waves like most regular pickups do. This is what helps make EMGs more appealing, especially in a live situation.
The pickup is very tight, has some good midrange and some screaming high end, but it’s also a bit bright. It has some awesome grind going on, but this can lead to it being overly bright in the wrong piece of wood. I find it works great in more neutral to mid heavy woods such as alder and mahogany. Basswood can be a bit iffy, depending on the tone you’re going for. I don’t recommend using this in a body made of a dense wood such as maple. The pickup can be used in both the neck and the bridge. Some find it works great in the neck, but I simply find it to be too bright for the lead tones I usually go for.
The biggest issue with EMGs is that they can sound a bit “linear.” They’re very compressed, and this can lead to some guitars sounding more similar than if they’d have passive pickups. Some argue this case, but it’s true to an extent. The guitars won’t sound identical, but they’ll sound a bit more similar than if they might have a pickup that’s more picky about woods such as the Seymour Duncan JB.
Overall, the pickup is great, especially for those who play metal. It can be a bit dated sounding thanks to the boutique market, but I still feel this is one of the best active pickups on the market.
The EMG 81 is a pickup that’s getting a bit dated today, but it is still a great pickup. Overall, the pickup really pushes the amplifier, despite the pickup itself actually being low output. This is mainly thanks to the built in active preamp. It’s a quiet pickup that doesn’t need a buffer for long cable runs, and it doesn’t interfere with nasty RF waves like most regular pickups do. This is what helps make EMGs more appealing, especially in a live situation.
The pickup is very tight, has some good midrange and some screaming high end, but it’s also a bit bright. It has some awesome grind going on, but this can lead to it being overly bright in the wrong piece of wood. I find it works great in more neutral to mid heavy woods such as alder and mahogany. Basswood can be a bit iffy, depending on the tone you’re going for. I don’t recommend using this in a body made of a dense wood such as maple. The pickup can be used in both the neck and the bridge. Some find it works great in the neck, but I simply find it to be too bright for the lead tones I usually go for.
The biggest issue with EMGs is that they can sound a bit “linear.” They’re very compressed, and this can lead to some guitars sounding more similar than if they’d have passive pickups. Some argue this case, but it’s true to an extent. The guitars won’t sound identical, but they’ll sound a bit more similar than if they might have a pickup that’s more picky about woods such as the Seymour Duncan JB.
Overall, the pickup is great, especially for those who play metal. It can be a bit dated sounding thanks to the boutique market, but I still feel this is one of the best active pickups on the market.