Blackouts.... EMTY vs Loomis or EMG Het Set

[Inflames626]

I watched that video last week, and it's actually what led me here to ask the question.
I love the EMTY's very much.
Seems like nobody can really give me insight into the Loomis or the het set. You've vids are kind of hit and miss with sound quality....

at $260 a set for these pickups I don't want to be wrong very much ha ha.

Price is one reason why more people don't have these newer artists sets and tend to go with common production models on the used market. Wait a few years and the market will be flooded with Het sets. Then they'll have a Het set 2.0.

I'm sure EMG will accept a return if you don't like them. They might even have a used version on their Reverb shop, which is how I usually get their stuff these days.

As another example, I would like to try the Glen Tipton 81 variant, but it seems to be only a slightly clearer 81 and thus not worth it. I think a lot of these endorsed pickups are only slightly tweaked versions of production model recipes, much like the EMTY was to the AHB1 or the Het to the 81.

One thing that keeps me out of these endorsed pickups:

***They are not the equipment the artist originally used when they recorded classic tones from the 80s-00s.***

I could care less what Het uses these days. He's not using his Triaxis/Dual Rec/EMG 81 live rig anymore. Plus the live tone is in Eb now and through a Fractal Axe FX3 and Matrix power amp, mainly for reliability purposes and the old stuff is no longer made/able to be repaired easily, at least for the Triaxis.

I'm happier using what they originally used than a slightly tweaked, more expensive version they use now. The new pickups may get them closer to their ideal sound in fewer steps, but we've come a lot farther in preamp technology than with pickups over the last 20 years. Pickups are still a "baked in" sound. Preamps and impulse responses produce unlimited variations that a specific pickup can't match. The closest I've seen are those discontinued Dialtone pickups that would let you adjust onboard knobs and thus the frequency, Q, and gain settings for each pickup.

The thing with pickups is they're like gloves--if the feel is off the playing is off. That said, if I like how a pickup feels, I can dial in my rig to compensate for the pickup without being fully conscious of it.

 

[JOLLY]

I wish I still had my EMTYs.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

***They are not the equipment the artist originally used when they recorded classic tones from the 80s-00s.***

Totally agreed!

Still worth checking out if you want, though. They're kinda like Blackouts were originally going to be: fatter and louder EMG's. These are just not as over-the-top fat, though.

That being said, yeah. Agreed. James' tone has been pretty bad for decades now.

 

[Phantasmagoria]

What about an AHB2 in the neck non-jumped and a jumpered one in the bridge?

Could work if it's not too bassy/muddy I guess..

But then you'd have to forget about any kind of cleans (if that's something you want from the guitar). The AHB-2 doesn't do cleans... at all

 

[Inflames626]

Could work if it's not too bassy/muddy I guess..

But then you'd have to forget about any kind of cleans (if that's something you want from the guitar). The AHB-2 doesn't do cleans... at all

I was thinking hot, pushed tones from the neck for solos. Not something I usually do but it's growing on me a bit as I try to branch out.

 

[Phantasmagoria]

Well then.... as long as the bass does'nt get overpowering in the neck...you're golden :bigthumb:

 

[Inflames626]

Well then.... as long as the bass does'nt get overpowering in the neck...you're golden :bigthumb:

Invaders/Duncan Designeds with the tone knob rolled full dark is too dark/overpowering in the neck.

 

[RanchManSandy]

despite the unfortunate size of the bridge pickup, the Loomis blackouts should not be overlooked. They're not flubby like the regular model (frankly the standard blackouts bridge is one of the worst active pickups I've heard). Loomis is tight without being overly rolled off, and with lots of articulation and bite without having an annoying upper mid spike. they're the best actives I've ever used, surpassing my 81X + 60X set in one of my other guitars

 

[80's_Thrash_Metal]

I wish I still had my EMTYs.

Ha ha ha ..... Theeeeeeese EMTY'S?





They are sounding amazing in my best sounding guitar !

 

[Top-L]

I think the trend to make EMG's that sound more PAF-like was ridiculous too.

However! I will say that it's only nominal because that's kinda like where the whole romantization of vintage and mid output offerings started (for Metal), I think.

The EMG 57 sounds NOTHING like a PAF. It just soundsl ike a slightly different take on the EMG classic recipee. It's fatter than the 81 in the low mids, but also has some more added sparkle up top. It is not more dynamic. If anything, it's the opposite. The preamp is not different, and the wind/maget is hotter, so it clips more internally. Sometimes people just hear what they want to hear. But you just gotta look at a DI recorded with one vs. the 81, you don't have to look hard to see it's more compressed. However, because it has exposed poles, it does do something nice to the attack which makes it feel a bit more responsive. Or maybe not more responsive, but responsive in a different/less smooth/even way than the 81.

I personally like to think of the EMG 57 more of an 85 that has been de-mudded and made less smooth and a lot clearer. Like the best from an 81 and 85 smashed together, and then +1'd with some high-end sparkle thrown on top (keep in mind, this is comparing all EMG's, but comparing it to passives, it's pretty much the same EMG EQ curve with the hipass/lopass effect).

The EMG Het is closer to the 81 in terms of EQ, just with a touch more low mid content, some more aggresion to the attack, and A LOT more output. It's pretty much Blackout levels of output at that point, just more compressed because it runs on that same old EMG preamp. It's a cool pickup. Think of the Het as the middle ground in EQ between the 81 and the 57. But when it comes to output, it goes 81, 57, Het from lowest to highest. Well, "output" is the wrong word, because they all technically have the exact same output when ran at 9V. It's just the Het is hotter, then the 57, and last the 81 before the signal hits the preamp.

I will say, though. Back when I had the AHB-1, I saw in the DI's that the AHB-1 at 9V had the exact same headroom than the Hets at 18V. So you just gotta compensate running them at a higher voltage to reach Blackout levels of dynamics. The voicing will still be different, though.

I like all of the classic EMG's, personally, that I've tried. I have always found an application for all of them.

Researching the loomis blackouts. How do they compare to the emg 57 and 81?

Your description of the 57 is exactly how I would describe it, relative to other actives, but I still found the top a bit chopped compared to many passives. It is still an emg. I think of it as a better version of the 85.

Idk how they came up with describing a 57 as a PAF when it has 3x the output.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

Researching the loomis blackouts. How do they compare to the emg 57 and 81?

Your description of the 57 is exactly how I would describe it, relative to other actives, but I still found the top a bit chopped compared to many passives. It is still an emg. I think of it as a better version of the 85.

Idk how they came up with describing a 57 as a PAF when it has 3x the output.

Never tried the Loomis Blackouts. They seem interesting, though.

 

[RanchManSandy]

I love my 81+ 1 SA guitar to death, and my Loomis Blackouts guitar is a close second. It doesn't quite have that attack and tightness of the EMG, but they are tighter than my Fluence Modern set. Both have a smoother and more balanced EQ than the 81, which is fine. The 81 just has that special vibe. The original Blackouts are a terrible, woofy mess with too much output imo.

I do want to try the Metal Blackout and alt.metal set soon, but $$$ isn't flowing at the moment

 

[Top-L]

I love my 81+ 1 SA guitar to death, and my Loomis Blackouts guitar is a close second. It doesn't quite have that attack and tightness of the EMG, but they are tighter than my Fluence Modern set. Both have a smoother and more balanced EQ than the 81, which is fine. The 81 just has that special vibe. The original Blackouts are a terrible, woofy mess with too much output imo.

I do want to try the Metal Blackout and alt.metal set soon, but $$$ isn't flowing at the moment

Is it one of the Loomis signatures? That is the guitar I'm considering, but depends on how hot and disgusting the pickups are. I want something that is not completely off the rails.

 

[jeffb1979]

I would just do blackouts. I've done both and blackouts were a major upgrade for me, hell, an artec pickup would have been an upgrade. I know a lot of our favorite bands use them and they sound great in a recording, but I've tried twice, both the solder free, and soldered and they, not kidding, are one of the shittiest pickups I've ever used. Thin, lifeless, etc etc, Yes I've done the 18 and 24v mods. I've tried everything to try and like EMGs and get them to work, 2 different sets, but I don't have to do anything and Blackouts just sound great. Like me and a buddy both plugged in, he had some cheap $20 bridge pickup from Amazon and I had a EMG 81 and instantly my buddies like "dude, whats up with your guitar? This one sounds way better" and we were both plugged into identical Helix presets and identical FRFR. But if you're an 80s thrash metal guy I would just get a Duncan Distortion or the BH-103 which is the Duncan Design version which sounds just as good IMO and no batteries.

 

[RanchManSandy]

Is it one of the Loomis signatures? That is the guitar I'm considering, but depends on how hot and disgusting the pickups are. I want something that is not completely off the rails.

Nah, it's in a basswood Warmoth Soloist body. The Loomis BOs are not as insanely high output like the original BOs.

 

[80's_Thrash_Metal]

I forgot about this thread.

I actually picked up a guitar with the het set. Very pleased with their output, bark and bite.

I ended up putting a DD in the Gibson explorer and am very pleased with that decision.... Hard to go wrong with my tried and tested favorite.