better than a sh4 but not an EMG 85 :)
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Archer250
Well-known member
Re: better than a sh4 but not an EMG 85 
no because i don't like cold sound
what i have noticed is that my Steinberger with maple body has a good sound with distortion : harmonics and power
and with my San dimas Charvel, it's not amazing
i have the same settings with my pedal+amp +buffer and other thing
so, when i play guitar, i can know which guitar sounds the best for blues, for funk, for harmonics, for sustain
for the clean sound
for feedback too
for example, my 498t does not give me a feedback in 5 seconds : problem
so, i look for more! for the bridge position
no because i don't like cold sound
what i have noticed is that my Steinberger with maple body has a good sound with distortion : harmonics and power
and with my San dimas Charvel, it's not amazing
i have the same settings with my pedal+amp +buffer and other thing
so, when i play guitar, i can know which guitar sounds the best for blues, for funk, for harmonics, for sustain
for the clean sound
for feedback too
for example, my 498t does not give me a feedback in 5 seconds : problem
so, i look for more! for the bridge position
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Nostalgic Distortion
New member
Re: better than a sh4 but not an EMG 85
Are we talking about the same JB. You do mean the guitar humbucker right? If so I'll take it, I'd love to try out a magical JB that somehow traded in it piercing shrillness for darkness? Sounds dark in Maple & Alder, I think the words your looking for is loose & MUDDY? I can't get JB's to sound dark in dark guitars???
Are we talking about the same JB. You do mean the guitar humbucker right? If so I'll take it, I'd love to try out a magical JB that somehow traded in it piercing shrillness for darkness? Sounds dark in Maple & Alder, I think the words your looking for is loose & MUDDY? I can't get JB's to sound dark in dark guitars???
Gibson 1964
New member
Re: better than a sh4 but not an EMG 85
And when you add in a bright pickup like a jb, unless you have a trifecta of exceptions I would check for broken stuff (burned out pot maybe?) or user error.
Also, no two guitars sound just alike, so identical gear settings will likely be sub-optimal for multiple guitars,
Just almost always. I have never really heard of one being actually dark just not bright. I have also never heard anyone describe a solid maple body as dark. In context, if one person describes several things that most of the time are somewhat shrill, as dark, it begins to look less and less like it is the guitar, but something else in the chain.
And when you add in a bright pickup like a jb, unless you have a trifecta of exceptions I would check for broken stuff (burned out pot maybe?) or user error.
Also, no two guitars sound just alike, so identical gear settings will likely be sub-optimal for multiple guitars,
Re: better than a sh4 but not an EMG 85
it's good to talk about amps : but some people think what they think with a solid state amp with no tubes at all when other guys have another warm or bright sound
it's good to talk about pedals but some people use cheap guitar cables and with a bad amp too or the bad guitar or settings
if i had a cold sound with a Blackstar ht 1 or a Vox it would be totally different from a very warm and pure LANEy or a DSL with a lot of high ends
it 's the same with pickups and guitar
all is subjective
nobody makes the good comparison because you need the same settings with the same amp and the same guitar
a maple body (what i have with my cheap Steinberger) is good, a little bit warm but not crystal
i can't have a very good funk sound or les paul
but i have a lot of harmonics to play heavy metal
if i want a bright clean sound/warm i will play with a strat or another i don't know yet and with the good settings, enhancer too
the jb is not a bright pickup : it's a cold sound because it depends on the guitar too
i have 2 JB and it's not bright at all
i have a norton and it's bright but my guitar has a baswood body and it's an expensive guitar
that's the difference
it's good to talk about amps : but some people think what they think with a solid state amp with no tubes at all when other guys have another warm or bright sound
it's good to talk about pedals but some people use cheap guitar cables and with a bad amp too or the bad guitar or settings
if i had a cold sound with a Blackstar ht 1 or a Vox it would be totally different from a very warm and pure LANEy or a DSL with a lot of high ends
it 's the same with pickups and guitar
all is subjective
nobody makes the good comparison because you need the same settings with the same amp and the same guitar
a maple body (what i have with my cheap Steinberger) is good, a little bit warm but not crystal
i can't have a very good funk sound or les paul
but i have a lot of harmonics to play heavy metal
if i want a bright clean sound/warm i will play with a strat or another i don't know yet and with the good settings, enhancer too
the jb is not a bright pickup : it's a cold sound because it depends on the guitar too
i have 2 JB and it's not bright at all
i have a norton and it's bright but my guitar has a baswood body and it's an expensive guitar
that's the difference
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harmonix1234
New member
Re: better than a sh4 but not an EMG 85
I was the same as you. I had an 85 in the neck and loved it, but it just fell short on blues feel.
I found the solution, and now I'm very happy.
I got an EMG89r.
Essentially, it's an EMG85 when in Humbucker mode, but the beauty is that you can split it with a push pull pot and turn it into a single coil.
The single coil is perfect, it's not too single coily like a vintage and still feels a bit like a Humbucker, but has a soul and bluesy 'neck' feel whilst still retaining the smooth and flat quality of the 85.
Give me five minutes and I'll post up two soundbytes of the 89 in split mode.
https://m.soundcloud.com/the-harmonics-project/hyper-d
This one is in split mode, not too much gain, but you can hear theres just a bit of single coil spank but still airy and spacey and articulate like an 85.
https://m.soundcloud.com/the-harmonics-project/time
This one has a lot less effects so you can really hear the bluesy tone of the pickup and that 'neck' tone.
Honestly, the EMG89r is one of the most overlooked neck pickups. I love it.
I was the same as you. I had an 85 in the neck and loved it, but it just fell short on blues feel.
I found the solution, and now I'm very happy.
I got an EMG89r.
Essentially, it's an EMG85 when in Humbucker mode, but the beauty is that you can split it with a push pull pot and turn it into a single coil.
The single coil is perfect, it's not too single coily like a vintage and still feels a bit like a Humbucker, but has a soul and bluesy 'neck' feel whilst still retaining the smooth and flat quality of the 85.
Give me five minutes and I'll post up two soundbytes of the 89 in split mode.
https://m.soundcloud.com/the-harmonics-project/hyper-d
This one is in split mode, not too much gain, but you can hear theres just a bit of single coil spank but still airy and spacey and articulate like an 85.
https://m.soundcloud.com/the-harmonics-project/time
This one has a lot less effects so you can really hear the bluesy tone of the pickup and that 'neck' tone.
Honestly, the EMG89r is one of the most overlooked neck pickups. I love it.
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EDX
New member
Re: better than a sh4 but not an EMG 85
if you find the jb dark then you might look at the dimebucker, hotter than the 85 and lots of actives, only surpased in output by blackouts line yet the sound even clean is far from what a lot would think a modern high output pickup sounds, in fact is probably the only stupid hot pickup in wich you can play country n' texas blues with a right nailed tone instead of a very close or on ballpark tone, the dime goes with a 59 bridge on the neck slot
but from your description, what you seem to want tonally is a Perpetual Burn, the thing is hotter than the 59 but lower output than the jb, so if you normally use hot pickups an onboard preamp will please you (the blue jason becker carvin has an onboard preamp as stock, and that preamp really throws fire), bluesy very dynamic, well toned pickup, also it's mate pickup is either a 59n or another perpetual burn
by the way thats a dimebucker doing some bluesy music
if you find the jb dark then you might look at the dimebucker, hotter than the 85 and lots of actives, only surpased in output by blackouts line yet the sound even clean is far from what a lot would think a modern high output pickup sounds, in fact is probably the only stupid hot pickup in wich you can play country n' texas blues with a right nailed tone instead of a very close or on ballpark tone, the dime goes with a 59 bridge on the neck slot
but from your description, what you seem to want tonally is a Perpetual Burn, the thing is hotter than the 59 but lower output than the jb, so if you normally use hot pickups an onboard preamp will please you (the blue jason becker carvin has an onboard preamp as stock, and that preamp really throws fire), bluesy very dynamic, well toned pickup, also it's mate pickup is either a 59n or another perpetual burn
by the way thats a dimebucker doing some bluesy music
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