EMG X Series?

JMZ93

Member
So, has anybody tried the X series humbuckers yet? Do they, as advertised, have more headroom and perhaps a little more traditional sound?

More importantly, do you have any opinions on the solderless install EMG are now advertising? I'm worried about that - if something breaks or goes intermitant, what do you do, just replace the whole thing - pickup, pot etc.?

thanks
Chris
 
i have only heard good things about the pickups, one thing to note is that they do have less output then their original counterparts. I switched to Duncan Blackouts and i love them most of the time. They have alot more bass frequencies and have alot more output. The great thing about them they never get fuzzy they always stay crunchy even in the neck pickup, while still having a brown midrange. also check out Alexi laihos passive emg with active gain boost. The cool thing about that pickup is that you can tailor the frequencies within the pickup. Dont worry about the solder connections it can only be a good thing.
 
I have changed to the X series a few months ago!

I have a 89-X, a SA-X and a 89-R-X in an Ibanez RG, with 2 push pull pots (one for tone and one for vol and they independantly switch the 89 pups between humbucker and single coil) The combos I can get are fantastic. HSH HSS SSH SSS and with the 5 way switch, all the in between combos too!

The solderless wiring is amazing IMO, I was dubious at first as my previous EMGs were soldered. If I ever want to change/add anything, it be very hassle free, the initial wiring was quite easy - but I did it on the bench first and tapped the pickups to make sure it was all good first. I could have just done a straight swap, but I am glad I switched over to the solderless.

Soundwise, they really beat the non X Series they replaced, certainly do sound more "natural" and I love 'em!!! Beautiful cleans through to screaming leads and all in between. Output wise, yes a little less, but a non issue really. I use a filter block to reduce/increase the "amp input slam" any way...oh and quiet doesn't even begin to cover it - no noise from these babies.

I know some people don't like EMGs, but I would be hard pressed to even bother to try anything else, passive or active...that said I do have guitars with passive pups too!


11/10 IMHO!
 
Thanks for the replies guys and the feedback re. the X series!

Wow ... that youtube clip is amazing!
Off to find out who the heck the artist is ...

In the last month I've heard him and OZ Noy ... makes me want to just quit playing. *LOL*
b
 
re. the clip

google "Animals as Leaders" Best album i've heard this year. Completely amazing album from front to back. Hypnotic and brutally melodic, Tosin redefines instrumental music. This is not self serving shred, but real honest to goodness music. Progressive, Heavy, and Beautiful.

Can't wait for the next one.
 
I have the traditional series, the X series, as well as Blackouts. Some general impressions:

Output - Blackouts are by far the hottest (a bit too much IMO), followed by original EMGs, and finally the new X series. Still, I think the X series have plenty.

Clean tone - definately better cleans with the Blackouts and the EMG X series as compared to the original EMGs. I like the cleans on the X better than the SD's - probably due in part to the extremely high output of the SD's. I think the X's have a clearer, chimier top end.

Dirty - they all work pretty well in this regard. I would pick the X's if buying new, but I wouldn't replace all the traditional EMG's in my other instruments. The originals are still pretty cool for gainy stuff. Blackouts are cool as well, but I prefer the high end on the X's. I prefer the original 85 in the neck (seems smoother - more "woman" tone), to the new 85X, and I was least impressed with the SD neck pickup.

I find the X's to be the quietest of all three pickups.

The tone control on the X series seems very subtle - I don't care because I don't use them, but they don't seem to do much.

Solderless install works well though one of the plastic parts of the pot to pot connector cracked. I don't mind soldering so I would prefer the original system just to eliminate any possibility of bad connections/durability. I like being able to use the same system for the EMGs and Blackouts - I wish you could do that with the X series. They aren't drop-in replacements if you have tone controls.

In summary, the X's are cool, but I think they may get overlooked due to the fact that they came out as a response to the Blackouts, and therefore may be viewed as inferior. They sound killer in my PRS (check out my Youtube clip), and I plan to put them in another SC 245 I have on the way. It's nice to have choices, and you will notice differences, the biggest being in the clean tones.

JR
 
emperor_black said:
How long do the batteries typically last?

The main thing to remember is to not leave the cord plugged in when you aren't using playing. The EMG site says battery life is 3000 hours. I've gone years before replacing, so I wouldn't say it is a concern.
 
I know this is an old thread but I'm thinking of trying the SA-X's on one of my Strats but I'm troubled by the published spec for battery life when using the VLPF (active tone control) that is supposedly required with all of the X-Series pickups.
They say the batteries will only last for 250 hours when using the VLPF.
That's WAY to short for battery life.

I'll also be using their SPC mid-boost which also has a much shorter battery life (925 hours) than the pickups themselves (3000 hours).

With such a short battery life I'm not sure if it's even worth trying.

I hear that the old passive 25k tone control will not work with the X-Series.

What were they thinking?

Or, am I missing something?
 
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