NEMGD - New EMG Day

[fitz]

The red/black zebra EMG pups arrived earlier than expected.
I was originally planning to put these in the wine red Studio, but I think they look better with the cherry V.



Already wired up for EMG.
New red zebras are the same Retro Active Fat 55's as the ones that were in there.
Just some screws out, unplug one set, plug in new set, put the screws back - done.
Taking the strings off and putting them back on may have taken longer than the pup swap.



Two bridge pups from the EMG Factory Direct Outlet on Reverb.
The one in the bridge is F-spaced and the other one is standard spaced.
F-spacing is 52mm, which is the same as a lot of standard Gibson bridge (treble) pups.
Neck pup is inverted for polarity, so the logo is upside down, but IDGAF.



Here's a full view.



Close up of the string spacing over the poles.

 

[fitz]

And the other set of Fat55's are going in the Studio.
I'm still waiting on some curved bottom chrome pup rings - should be here Monday.
Did a mock-up with some flat chrome rings from the stash.



Long shaft LP wiring kit came a few days ago and has already been istalled.
Waiting on an EMG 3-way switch that should be here today from Ambazon.
The standard wiring kit does not have a 3-way, but there are screw terminals on the wiring hub to hook in an existing switch without any soldering.



Here's a screen clip of the wiring diagram if to show how easy all the connectors plug together.
With the EMG 3-way, there's a 4-wire ribbon that plugs into the switch and the connection hub.



I also have this black pearl PG that I'm considering instead of the brushed aluminum black one.

 

[C-Grin]

Looks really cool but good god now I want to try those pickups.

 

[fitz]

Looks really cool but good god now I want to try those pickups.

I'm becoming an EMG convert.

The Fat 55's are passive A5 pups with an active preamp that works with the standard EMG active wiring system.

Fat 55

The EMG Retro Active Fat 55 humbucker set was inspired by the ingenuity, tone, and feel of the original Classic Humbucker, evoking the iconic sounds of the 1950s and 1960s. Free from the limitations of vintage technology, this classic-looking humbucker set incorporates a newly designed external...

www.emgpickups.com

I also have a classic 81/85 active set in my Squier Strat.

And if you want to stay with a completely passive setup, they have passive pups with a passive solderless wiring system.

 

[syscokid]

The red/black zebra EMG pups arrived earlier than expected.
I was originally planning to put these in the wine red Studio, but I think they look better with the cherry V.

View attachment 112699

Already wired up for EMG.
New red zebras are the same Retro Active Fat 55's as the ones that were in there.
Just some screws out, unplug one set, plug in new set, put the screws back - done.
Taking the strings off and putting them back on may have taken longer than the pup swap.

View attachment 112700

Two bridge pups from the EMG Factory Direct Outlet on Reverb.
The one in the bridge is F-spaced and the other one is standard spaced.
F-spacing is 52mm, which is the same as a lot of standard Gibson bridge (treble) pups.
Neck pup is inverted for polarity, so the logo is upside down, but IDGAF.

View attachment 112701

Here's a full view.

View attachment 112702

Close up of the string spacing over the poles.

View attachment 112703

That looks pretty darn good… . I’m wondering how it all sounds? If you have a favorite video demo, whether it’s you or somebody else doing the wanking, please post it…

 

[dmatthews]

Great colour match for the V! Looks awesome!

 

[fitz]

That looks pretty darn good… . I’m wondering how it all sounds? If you have a favorite video demo, whether it’s you or somebody else doing the wanking, please post it…

Thanks, I can't wait to try them in the LP.
I used to think EMG pickups were only for down tuned death metal stuff, but they work well for cleans and crunchy stuff too.
Here's a vid from the EMG site.

 

[fitz]

Great colour match for the V! Looks awesome!

Thanks,
The red looked darker in the stock photo.
Once I got them in the light, I wasn't too thrilled with how they looked with the Studio.
Didn't take long to think of swapping them into the V.

 

[Seamus OReally]

I’ve played EMG active pickups for 30 years and they, frankly, do everything well. Most of the negative stuff you hear is from people who never played a set and are just repeating what they’ve seen on the web.

I also blame EMG’s marketing. Metal guys loved them for the silent operation and punchy tones, so their Artist Relations guys courted Metal players. Pretty soon it looked like EMGs were “only good for Metal,” one of the popular canards in the echo chamber. If EMG would put me in their marketing chair, I’d make them as popular as Seymour Duncan in two years.

 

[Mike_LA]

EMGs sound good to me but I can't get behind an instrument that NEEDS a battery to operate. I have two instruments that need a battery and I can't count how many times I pick one up and the battery was dead and I didn't have a $14 nine volt sitting in the drawer.
I think guitars that have batteries in them should disconnect the battery when you turn the volume off on the guitar. If you leave it plugged in your battery runs down.

Fender tried to get around that with their american-made acousticsonics they have a battery that is charged by USB in the body.
The trouble is, it's a proprietary battery and what happens in 5 years when the battery s the bed and you can't get a replacement?
Knowing Fender's, new CEO. They'll probably charge you an arm and a leg for it, if it's available at all.

 

[fitz]

EMGs sound good to me but I can't get behind an instrument that NEEDS a battery to operate. I have two instruments that need a battery and I can't count how many times I pick one up and the battery was dead and I didn't have a $14 nine volt sitting in the drawer.
Fender tried to get around that with their american-made acousticsonics they have a battery that you can plug a USB into in the body. The trouble is it's a proprietary battery and what happens in 5 years when you can't get that? Knowing Fender's, new CEO. They'll probably charge you an arm and a leg for it

They have an external power supply that uses a TRS cable to the guitar, and a TS cable out.
It can run on batteries, wall plug, or pedalboard power supply.

ES-918

The ES-918 is an external 18 Volt power supply for EMG Pickups. If you have an instrument that doesn’t fit a battery or you don’t want to install a battery in your guitar, the ES-918 is perfect for you. You can easily power your EMG pickups with 9 or 18 volts using a stereo cable. In addition...

www.emgpickups.com

Could probably make one of those for about $20 in parts...

 

[Mike_LA]

They have an external power supply that uses a TRS cable

Could probably make one of those for about $20 in parts...

Yeah, but luckily for me I love my Phat Cat P90s enough not to bother with all of that.
I did do a very similar thing to my Strat V5 that takes four AA batteries. (This is an american-made strat with Roland onboard effects. No midi no nothing all self-contained ) I made a side battery pack of five nicads cuz nicads are only 1.2 volts. So I took 2 of those packs, doubling the power capacity at the same voltage and extending play time for the whole night.

I then had a buddy of mine 3D print a new back cover for the guitar and I found mock-up batteries to fill the space to make the connections. Plugged it to the guitar ran a wire along the back of the guitar, then taped the wire to the back of the guitar with low tack black crepe paper tape and put the battery pack on the strap.,

 

[fitz]

3-way switch & battery clip delivered.
The switch cavity joins up with one of the weight relief chambers, so fishing the wires is a piece of cake.



Plenty of room for mounting the battery in a spring clip in the control cavity above the pots.
Removing 4 screws on the cover is a lot easier than removing a front pickguard like a Strat or the V, so no need for a hack job battery compartment install.



Decided not to wait for the chrome pup rings - they can go on later...
I wanted to try this out, so I put it back together with the stock black plastic rings for now



Strung it back up and ran it through the 2204 / 2266 rig for a trial run.
The active A5 pups are a bit crisper than the A2's in the 490 T&R set that got yanked.
Thumping tight low end and clear highs without getting screechy with drive pedals.
Very responsive to volume and tone controls on the guitar.



I think the chrome rings will look nice when they get here, but at least I was able to make sure everything was functioning for now.
No regrets with the cascade of changes on this ax since the bargain Bigsby showed up.

 

[Mike_LA]

Now buy an aftermarket cover, cut it in half and make a flap so you can get to your battery quick enough.
Cut off the top strap and run a little velcro strap.

 

[DirtySteve]

I'm becoming an EMG convert.

The Fat 55's are passive A5 pups with an active preamp that works with the standard EMG active wiring system.

Fat 55

The EMG Retro Active Fat 55 humbucker set was inspired by the ingenuity, tone, and feel of the original Classic Humbucker, evoking the iconic sounds of the 1950s and 1960s. Free from the limitations of vintage technology, this classic-looking humbucker set incorporates a newly designed external...

www.emgpickups.com

I also have a classic 81/85 active set in my Squier Strat.

And if you want to stay with a completely passive setup, they have passive pups with a passive solderless wiring system.

You going to make me choose the white one with the active pickup in it if you keep talking like this.

I've already changed my mind about the Floyd, after some thought I have no idea why I wanted that, I don't play that kind of stuff anymore.

 

[fitz]

You going to make me choose the white one with the active pickup in it if you keep talking like this.

I've already changed my mind about the Floyd, after some thought I have no idea why I wanted that, I don't play that kind of stuff anymore.

Pop an 81/85 set in the Tribute and stain it black. It'll sound nothing like it used to and look bad@$$.

 

[DirtySteve]

Pop an 81/85 set in the Tribute and stain it black. It'll sound nothing like it used to and look bad@$$.

That's not a bad idea, but I'm pretty set now on selling the Tribute and getting something else. Every time I played I just wanted to switch over the Classic. I'll always compare it to my Classic and it doesn't compare. That's the reason I decided to let it go.

The ESP comes with an 81 already.