EMGs.....81 v. 85 in bridge

[some_dude]

Well, I finally got around to swapping an 85 into the bridge of my LP.

First impressions were some dissapointment. I rather like the tone of the 81 that was in there before and I missed the aggressive attack of that pickup. The 85 is much more mellow sounding. It lacks the punch and upper mids of the 81. It has much more bass and a more even tone, but it has much less output. It sounds somewhat scooped to me, though that could be a misconception because I'm used to the strong midrange of the 81.

On the positive side it's an almost perfect match in terms of tone and output to the 60 I have in the neck. If you like switching between the two pickups alot this would be a good option for you.

The whole point of swapping was to see if I could get more sludge into my tone (I've been listening to alot of doom, grunge, and stoner music lately). I'm undecided as to whether that worked or not.....mostly due to the gap in the upper mids.

Overally, I'm not sure what I think yet. Don't get me wrong here as I don't dislike the way it sounds. I'm just not sure that I like it as much as I like the 81. I'm going to leave it in for a month or so to see what I think of it after I've tweaked my amp and EQ to better compliment this pickup. Maybe it'll grow on me...maybe I'll hate it. I donno yet.

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: EMGs.....81 v. 85 in bridge

You need the EMG SPC mid-boost knob.

 

[some_dude]

Re: EMGs.....81 v. 85 in bridge

You need the EMG SPC mid-boost knob.

I was thinking about that earlier, but I use all my knobs. I don't really have any pots I can remove to stick an SPC in there, and I use the knobs too much to want anything on a dual pot. If I go this route I'll probably use a Boss GE-7.

I am thinking about adding a PA-2 however. Right now my rhythm tone is coming with the guitar's volume at 10 and when I roll off the volume the amp is cleaning up far too fast for my taste. I'd much rather the rhythm tone be at 7 so I can boost with my just volume knob. I'm thinking I'll add the PA-2 and set the boost so that it sounds the same boosted at 7 that it does unboosted at 10.

Sorry for the long post....just working out some ideas out-loud.

 

[HarrisonDavid]

Re: EMGs.....81 v. 85 in bridge

It's strange but the way you describe the 81 to me is what my 85 sounds like. I have my 81 in the bridge right now. I find the 85 to be a little more Mid sounding and fuller. I remember getting P.H off the ying yang. The 81 sounds more percussive and trebly to my ears. I like them both in the bridge.....my vote is for the 85 though.

 

[Metalman_666]

Re: EMGs.....81 v. 85 in bridge

People have always said the 81 is more aggressive than the 85, and that the 85 is smoother, with less of a spike in the mids. But should it not still give a sound CLOSE to the 81, I mean with percussiveness and the like?

 

[fenderiarhs]

Re: EMGs.....81 v. 85 in bridge

I am a big fan of the 85 in the bridge position. It is definately not scooped...it has a lot of low mids but what you might hear as scooped is that it has less upper mids than the 81. It is indeed more mellow sounding, has more bass, less treble and is much much warmer than the 81. On the other hand i play completely different music(from blues to hard rock) than the one you state you are playing and i think the 85 is more suited to that kind of music than to doom, grunge, and stoner music.
I cannot think of a reason someone would need an spc or pa2 booster on an emg humbucker that has already plenty of output.....

 

[some_dude]

Re: EMGs.....81 v. 85 in bridge

It's strange but the way you describe the 81 to me is what my 85 sounds like. I have my 81 in the bridge right now. I find the 85 to be a little more Mid sounding and fuller. I remember getting P.H off the ying yang. The 81 sounds more percussive and trebly to my ears. I like them both in the bridge.....my vote is for the 85 though.

I agree that it's much fuller sounding, and more present in the bass and lower mid range. I figure it's only sounding scooped in comparison to the 81, which is pretty dominant in the upper mids and treble.

Pinch harmonics are one of the first things I noticed. I have to be really technical to get them out of the 81, and they still aren't the greatest. With the 85 PHs are effortless and scream compared to the 81.

People have always said the 81 is more aggressive than the 85, and that the 85 is smoother, with less of a spike in the mids. But should it not still give a sound CLOSE to the 81, I mean with percussiveness and the like?

I really don't find they sound anything alike. As for percussiveness, we're talking alnico vs. ceramic mags....the 85 is way more rounded and a little less focused in it's attack.

I cannot think of a reason someone would need an spc or pa2 booster on an emg humbucker that has already plenty of output.....

Need......more......power...... :firedevil



I could turn up the gain on my amp, but that increases the background gain hiss alot. I'd rather rely on a hotter signal and keep the noise down.

 

[Mephis]

Re: EMGs.....81 v. 85 in bridge

I think the 85 is alot better for playing the big sounding 80's hard rock, and the 81 is for playing the 80's heavy metal.

I like them both equally.
85 will do Van Halen
81 will do Metallica

Thats pretty much it in a nutshell.
Get an 89, and you can play 70's classic rock, by spliting the coils.

Everyone thinks my B.C. Rich a strat when they hear it, I'd even put money down that it'll do better cleans than a lespaul !