Clean Amps and EMG's

Yeah I don't want to mod my guitar, or have to really do anything to the pick ups, because I like the way it sounds with the distortion, the input trim still did not clean it up 100%.

I didn't get a chance to try the LOG 5 method as described earlier. I will have some time tonight to mess around with the AXE FX II. I will let you know. My Charvel SoCal doesn't break up when with the hardest whacks on cleans. I will also try DI as someone mentioned earlier.

Thanks guys,

Dave
 
Well 11.01 did something and my cleans are there again but still no where as pristine as 11b. I went back to 10.12 and checked and its completely pristine, so I don't know.... Anyways I got gigs coming up and can't wait so I ended up redoing my clean amps, interestingly enough every other clean amp is great except the deluxe reverb model for me.

Either way, I've moved on.
 
Luke 2 here .... I use Input trim and activate the Bass cut in the amp parameters. I think a lot of the amps are quite bass heavy now by default in FW11 (hence distortion/flub in lower strings) - the cut option seems to work best for me to give me back control on the bass dial without needing to go deeper into advanced stuff.

I've also turned off the treble bright switch in some amps to suit the EMGs.
 
dkenin said:
Yeah I don't want to mod my guitar, or have to really do anything to the pick ups, because I like the way it sounds with the distortion, the input trim still did not clean it up 100%.

Dave
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You don't have to mod your guitar to try the 18v MOD. I know that you don't want to change your sound, but if you want to just "see" how it sounds you can do it that way. It's an inexpensive reversible mod.

Maybe it suits you.

EMG18VoltMod.jpg


From EMG FAQ: "If you’ve got room for multiple batteries in your guitar, you can use two batteries wired in series to power your onboard circuitry at 18 volts. The output level will not appreciably increase, but you’ll have increased headroom and crisper transients. This is especially useful for percussive/slap bass styles where you can generate enormous instantaneous power levels across the entire frequency spectrum.
You can also wire two batteries in parallel to provide a regular 9 volt supply but with
much longer lifespan between battery changes."

eljodon said:
Try the 24 volt mod! I got it on ebay and it's great. It uses 2 12 volt batterries and it's smaller than a 9 volt! I think it has made my tone better. I'm getting great clean sounds out of my Axe Fx 2.

Lol! A friend of mine told me about it and I thought that that's quite high but apparently they can be powered up to 27 volts if I'm not mistaken.
Click to expand...

About up to 27v from EMG FAQ:"Although most of our products are rated for 27 volts, we recommend a maximum of 18 volts. The additional benefits of 27 vs. 18 volts are negligible."


flyingfadr said:
It has nothing to do with the input trim, or needing an 18 volt mod... I've been using EMG's in all of my guitars since 1985... I have never had a problem with clean amps.
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Yeah, I don't need the mod to get the cleans, just showing different options.
 
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When using EMG 81s i add a TAPE drive in front of the clean amp, then lower the input trim and drive, it adds sparkle and tend to approach SC sound (i said tend ^^)
 
dkenin said:
Hey guys,

Has anybody successfully managed to play pristine (no break up) on a clean patch with a guitar with EMGs? No matter how hard I try to lower gain on amps and roll back the volume enough on my guitar, I still get break up for doing funky rhythm work or reggae on my guitar. I have other guitars with passives that would work better, but I like the EMGs with high gain settings on other patches I have.

Being in a cover band, I need to cover a lot of ground, but I don't want to keep switching guitars. Any suggestions? I tried the Jazz Chorus with the gain on .1 and the mixer volume increased drastically, but as I slam a chord I still get break up. I tried the compressor still getting break up

I will beat some of you to the punch... Yes I know that some guitars aren't meant for specific types of music, but I'd like to TRY and break the mold here and find a workable solution where I can cover a lot of genres with a guitar I really like to play.

Thanks in advance,

Dave
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I'm in Atlantic City but when I get back on Friday I'll check out my HSH configured guitar with EMG Active X pickups with split coils::

Neck=89R Middle=SLV Neck=89

I get beautiful pristine cleans with the guitar volume rolled back to 2-3. But break up if I dig in hard with the pick attack. I'll see if I can clean that up and get back to you.

UPDATE: Dave - try it now with FW12. I just got home tonight and tried it with FW11.05 and confirmed I am able to get pristine clean tones with the guitar's MV at 6 and below using modified Preset 365 with a Suhr Badger 18 in the amp block and a factor #20 Brit cab. Then I read Cliff's release FW12 thread, loaded it up, and my modified Preset 365 is even cleaner - country clean - with mild break-up starting at guitar MV 7.5 and above. You should be good with the right amp and cab sims behind your EMGs. :)
 
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I actually only use the EMG's in my Fenix superstrat. It's the best metallica clean sound i'll ever get. And I love that.
 
yeah the coil split gives you a little more cleanliness, but with EMGs I haven't had luck getting the funky dynamic muting and notes without break up
 
dkenin said:
yeah the coil split gives you a little more cleanliness, but with EMGs I haven't had luck getting the funky dynamic muting and notes without break up
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With FW12 I'm getting clean palm mutes even with my EMG loaded guitar's MV at 10. Update to FW 12, dial up a really clean amp and cab pair and give it a whirl. :encouragement:
 
Fl7x said:
You don't have to mod your guitar to try the 18v MOD. I know that you don't want to change your sound, but if you want to just "see" how it sounds you can do it that way. It's an inexpensive reversible mod.

Maybe it suits you.

View attachment 17357


From EMG FAQ: "If you’ve got room for multiple batteries in your guitar, you can use two batteries wired in series to power your onboard circuitry at 18 volts. The output level will not appreciably increase, but you’ll have increased headroom and crisper transients. This is especially useful for percussive/slap bass styles where you can generate enormous instantaneous power levels across the entire frequency spectrum.
You can also wire two batteries in parallel to provide a regular 9 volt supply but with
much longer lifespan between battery changes."



About up to 27v from EMG FAQ:"Although most of our products are rated for 27 volts, we recommend a maximum of 18 volts. The additional benefits of 27 vs. 18 volts are negligible."




Yeah, I don't need the mod to get the cleans, just showing different options.
Click to expand...

Be very careful with multiple batteries. I recall discussing the issue with EMG techs when I was designing the HSH EMG Active-X circuit in one of my guitars. You'll need to be mindful of the polarity when you are wiring-up/installing/replacing batteries as frying your EMGs becomes more of a risk as you move from a 9volt to an 18 or 27volt system.
 
I've NEVER had a problem getting pristine clean sounds using my EMG equipped guitars.
In my opinion they can achieve cleaner and richer sounds than most passive pickups. Recently though I've been drifting towards deliberately using cleans presets with a bit more grit in there, just to cut through better in a live environment. Pristine clean sounds are perfect for the studio, but live they can just fall off the end of the stage.
 
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