EMG81 vs Chinese clones

[idsnowdog]

After finding out that the used Artec humbucker that I bought off ebay used incompatible pot values (500K) with the Dragonfire singles (25K) I had earmarked for a new H/S/S build I bought a set of no name active pickups off AliExpress. I received them from China yesterday and they took roughly three weeks to arrive. I wired them using a 25K volume pot but the middle/neck singles could use 50K pots instead.

Thoughts after testing:
Their tone is similar but not exactly the same as EMGs. These Chinese pickups are higher output and more raw sounding. The wiring harness they include is also similar to EMGs. The only real difference is the way they are wired. With EMGs the little silver connectors face upwards while the connectors are face down on the copies. So the pinout of the two is backwards but still compatible. I saw lots of horror stories on Youtube about noisy and microphonic phony EMGs but I haven't notice a huge difference.

If I was to rate the actives I have in terms of noise from quietest to noisiest it would be EMG>GFS Red Label Active>SD Blackouts>GFS Gold Label Active>Dragonfire>SD Original Livewire>Artec. If I do a tap test with these pickups they are a bit more susceptible to noise than EMGs which are very dead sounding. Even then I only noticed the tap test when running these pickups at 18V instead of 9V. So I'm not sure if they would be microphonic at high volume or not? When plugged into an amp I don't notice a big difference between the various active pickups I have but when plugged into my USB interface using amp sims there's more noise. However the amp sims I am using are just plain noisy even with passive pickups.

You can see the pickups demonstrated here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHcu6P6ZQUo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxsOpOh7ZjY

[idsnowdog]

For $17 you get two humbuckers, two pickup rings, battery box, enclosed stereo jack, two push on connector cables, battery clip, screws, and springs.

[Benjy_26]

Pretty neat! Thanks for the info!

[DavidRavenMoon]

EMGs have a specific way the two coils are connected to the op amp. They use a differential connection. Op amps have a plus and minus input. The two inputs have opposite polarity.

By connecting each coil in the humbucker to one of those inputs they get very low noise. They can also tune the response of the pickup this way.

EMGs are also fully shielded. These days they use a conductive plastic cover.

I doubt these Chinese knock offs are the same internally. It’s probably just a humbucker and some kind of active boost circuit. The fact that they are noisy proves this.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[idsnowdog]

EMGs have a specific way the two coils are connected to the op amp. They use a differential connection. Op amps have a plus and minus input. The two inputs have opposite polarity.

By connecting each coil in the humbucker to one of those inputs they get very low noise. They can also tune the response of the pickup this way.

EMGs are also fully shielded. These days they use a conductive plastic cover.

I doubt these Chinese knock offs are the same internally. It’s probably just a humbucker and some kind of active boost circuit. The fact that they are noisy proves this.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

They aren't that noisy. They are less noisy than the original SD Livewires. Through an amp you don't notice it much but through my USB interface it's noisy, but so is everything else including passives. Still perfectly usable. But I will agree that who knows how they are constructed and what materials they use?

[JB_From_Hell]

It’s more than $17, but I paid like $50 for a used 81 on Reverb the other day, including the wiring. Also, FYI, EMG sells new B-stock pickups sans wiring for $60 on their Reverb page. Again, I’m aware it’s more expensive, but they’re still pretty inexpensive relative to most of the other pickups du joir.

I’m curious about hearing a more raw 81, but not so much a hotter one.

[JB_From_Hell]

81X?

I have a set of 808X on the way for my 8 string. Everybody hates the 707, 808, and 909, but the X versions are allegedly really good.