Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

[Low_fidelity2100]

I've never actually heard any of emgs single coil (sized) designs in person. Just in sound clips. And I know the duncan sound clips aren't really an accurate representation of they're pickups (none that I've tried anyways), So I wonder if its the same with emg? Anyone know?
I'm planning on getting another tele (wherenever I get money. Which shouldn't be for awhile, haha.), an I know I'll probably end up replaceing the pickups eventually. So I'm trying to plan ahead. And Emg's Seemed like they might be a kool idea (prince uses them an He's why I got into tele's to begain with). They're sound clips sound kool, But not nessicarily anything like single coils (to me at least). Same with the duncan vintage stack, It sounds really kool in the clips, but not really like a true single coil. An I'm really goin for a single coil sound this time. I just hate the hum when recording (doesn't bother me otherwise though). An I've actually tried the duncan vintage stack in person before (my unlce has a tele with them, an they sound really really good, and way more single coilish than the clips on the duncan site). But I was just wondering if anyone knows about the emg's? cause prince's tone live sounds way more single coilish than the emg clips, So I'm confused. Anyone know?

 

[Archer_of_Fish]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

Yes they sound like single coils. But be warned that they DONT sound like any set of good passive singles. EMG pickups have an EMG sound that tends to either work for people or fail miserably.

I like the way EMG singles sound, especially the SA models.

 

[fenderiarhs]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

emg SA's do sound like single coils and they have a very nice clean signal.....be warned though that they do not sound like most classic strat pickups and i do not think that they are too good in giving you those clean but dirty mild overdriven sounds. Many people agree that they get much better and can cover much more ground when associated to the SPC and EXG controls (DG set.)
Unfortunately i didn't have the chance to try the other EMG single coils like the SV...........i've heard though that these are the strattiest of the pickups emg makes
You can be sure though for one thing.......whichever emg you choose it will be dead quiet and perfect for recording

 

[Matt Blackett]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

And I know the duncan sound clips aren't really an accurate representation of they're pickups (none that I've tried anyways), So I wonder if its the same with emg? Anyone know?

How pickups sound is a subjective thing, to be sure, but I (and my friend Tom Watters who did all the installs) did everything possible to make the Duncan clips as accurate as I could. Here's what you need to keep in mind when you listen to them: We didn't change the amp settings AT ALL. That was intended to make it easier to hear the differences between the various models. If you have a bright Strat, for example, you can easily tell that the SSL-5 is darker than the SSL-1 and might be a good starting point for you. What we didn't do was to optimize the amps for each pickup, which might sound nicer but would make the differences less noticeable.
If you put any Duncan Strat pickup in a Strat, plug into a Fender Super (for clean) or a Marshall 800 (for dirty), set the controls the way we did, mic it up with a Shure SM-57, and record it to an Alesis ADAT (the industry standard when we did the clips) it'll pretty much sound like the clips.
As for your EMG question, they don't really sound like single-coils but are sort of single-coil-esque--bright, chimey, with tremendous cluck in the middle positions. They always have that "active" high-tech quality to them which people either love or hate. They'll get that Steve Lukather sound all day long, though.

 

[vinterland]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

SA's are very, very bell like in tone. Extremely clear and clean sound. You'll either love em or hate em.

 

[ParameterMan]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

I could be mistaken, but I believe that Prince uses the FT in his guitar, not the SA. That would be the Alnico Tele neck pickup they make.

 

[mattleesc]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

slight OT here but, with emg pickups, does it mean i cannot get any feedback from my guitar, not even intentional ones?

 

[pinto79]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

The EMG Tele set is supposed to be their best product. I installed a set of the Alnico magnet ones into a customer's guitar who is an absolute Tele purist and it very quickly became his number 1 recording guitar for his own stuff and sessions. He says that they have all the snap of a good Tele set, but no noise and they are very controlable.

Feedback is still available at higher volume levels.

 

[Low_fidelity2100]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

Thanks for all the replys guys...

So....So far what I'm getting outta what everyones said is....."they sound semi-singlecoilish, But not exactly like a true singlecoil"?
If thats the case, Then thats pretty much as close to a true single-coil as a stacked pickup?





(p.s.......Matt Blackett, I wasn't tryin to put ya down or anything. I understood the deal with the sound clips, with the amp settings and all that. I already knew the amps were set the same on all of them. An Those clips are helpful when you compare them to a pickup you already know well (like for me its the dd, or 59 both of which I'm familiar with). In that case the clips are massively helpful. But, I'm not really familiar with any emg pickups enough for they're clips to be helpful to me. I don't know anyhting of they'res well enough to have sumthing to compare too. So I hear one pickup as being overly bright, while I hear another as extremely dark. If I've never used either pickup, then I really don't have any idea whether the dark on sounds fine on my rig, thus making the overtly bright one way to bright for my uses. Or If the bright one sounds a tad brighter than I want on my rig, meaning the darker one may be a better fit for me. Ya see waht I'm sayin? If no ones used a duncan/emg/dimarzio/whatever long enough to know it well, then clips are useless to them really. IMO of couse.)

 

[MattPete]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

And I know the duncan sound clips aren't really an accurate representation of they're pickups (none that I've tried anyways),

In defense of the Duncan sound clips, I found that through a decent set of speakers, the Duncan clips do a pretty good job of telling the pickups apart. For example, when I was first looking for pickups several years ago, I listened to the clips, and the JB clip sounded exactly like a JB to me. Considering that their JB was in a Les Paul and mine was in a Kramer, and both were played through different rigs, then I'd say they did a pretty good job. Based on those clips and my experience with a JB, I was able to pick out the Custom as the pickup I wanted.

 

[Screaming In Digital]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

I currently play an EMG-SA in the neck position of my Strat and I absolutly love it. The cleans are amazing. It has sounded superb through several amps. It's so clean and beautiful. It really works for me. When I kick on the high gain I get a great single-coil kind of dig. It also has a John Petrucci warmth when I kick on the BD-2 and do some tremolo picking runs. I can roll off my gain and get a great bluesy sound. So far the SA has served me well.

 

[guitarslinger213]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

SA's are good enough for David Gilmour. His tone is stratty and HUGE.

I've always wanted some.

 

[Perry D]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

has anyone ever heard what the emg s sounds like. i am really wondering. i want to put them in my ibanez sa. i see that kirk hammett uses them so they obviously cant be crap. can anyone help me out?

 

[guitarslinger213]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

kirk hammett uses them so they obviously cant be crap.

oh contrare (spelling?)

 

[Screaming In Digital]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

How could I have forgotten Gilmour? I love the sound he had early 90's and late 80's.

Momentary Lapse of Reason

Delicate Sound of Thunder (Live)

The Division Bell

P.u.l.s.e (Live)

How about that version of "Sorrow" from the Pulse vid. Insane over drive. Love the intro and solo.

 

[Perry D]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

what did i spell wrong?

 

[Screaming In Digital]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

EMG markets a Kirk Hammet 81/S/S set. Although he rarely ever used that setup if at all during the late 1980's. He's almost always had an 81/81 set ever since.

 

[Perry D]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

well then back to my question. do they sound good. im using them for purposes of metal music and rock. i mean i know that single coils arent a real metal thing but thats whats on my guitar so im gonna use it.

 

[guitarslinger213]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

what did i spell wrong?

nothing, I was inserting a disclaimer b/c of my own lack of spell check for the "oh contrare" comment. BTW, I was just messing with you. Some people would've chimed in about how much they dislike Kirk.

 

[Perry D]

Re: Do Emg's single coils Sound like Single Coils?

oh i know people dont like him but i dont really care what some people think. i love metallica so in turn i obviously have to like hammett. i mean hes not my favorite guitarist by far but he dosent suck.