The_Sentry Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 This is a topic that has been rolling in the back of my head ever since I got my Burstbuckers for my Epi custom. As far as hard rock/metal goes, there seems to be 2 sets of pickups that have been offered as far "something to slap into a Gibson or Epiphone" for a lot of crunch.... The Gibson Tony Iommis or the EMG 81/85 pickups (or, the ZW set). I have to admit I almost ended up with the Iommis, as they were about 10 dollars more apiece vs. the Burstbuckers I bought. Based on reviews it seems like people either love these pickups or they hate them...there just doesn't seem to be a lot of inbetween. As far as the EMG's go? Well, both Epiphone and Gibson sell guitars with these pups. Although active, the battery lasts a long time and it seems to hit the spot for a lot of players who delve into this type of guitar playing. So....my question: Is there anyone out there who has guitars, or who has owned Epiphones or Gibsons (or tried them out) with both sets? Which ones did you like better, and why? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muskank Sally Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 I have a friend who took the EMG set and placed it in a Gibson Les Paul Studio Vintage Mahogany (LPVM) and that guitar sounds really wicked distorted but lo and behold it cleans up beautifully too. He went on about how easy it was to place the battery pack in the back control plate area in that he didn't have make mods for that. Not sure about the Iommi pickups. Can't say I've heard much about them really. The EMG set gets lots of attention. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Sentry Posted July 8, 2008 Author Share Posted July 8, 2008 I have a friend who took the EMG set and placed it in a Gibson Les Paul Studio Vintage Mahogany (LPVM)and that guitar sounds really wicked distorted but lo and behold it cleans up beautifully too. He went on about how easy it was to place the battery pack in the back control plate area in that he didn't have make mods for that. Not sure about the Iommi pickups. Can't say I've heard much about them really. The EMG set gets lots of attention. I guess that's the info I'm sort of after....but at the same time, yeah...someone who uses the EMG's, and has tried out the Iommis or owns 'em. (I know what you mean about those EMG's, though. I worked on an ESP not too long ago that sounded really nice after I reset the height on those pups, and I saw a blues/rock guy just tear it up with a set of those...and nah, he wasn't even using a lot of crunch, either. Borderline clean.....ah well...wish they came in nickel or gold, though...) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Everdying Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 i've got iommi's and EMGs...but both are in different SGs. i very much prefer the EMGs with distortion. cleans tho, depends which EMG. my preference is for a EMG85 bridge / EMG60A. the 60A really makes it sound fuller when clean. as for nickle or gold, well none available. but you can source for the EMG81 25th anniversary set which was made a few yrs ago, those came in chrome covers. i have a set which i dont really use cos of my prefered 85/60A combo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Sentry Posted July 8, 2008 Author Share Posted July 8, 2008 i've got iommi's and EMGs...but both are in different SGs.i very much prefer the EMGs with distortion. cleans tho' date=' depends which EMG. my preference is for a EMG85 bridge / EMG60A. the 60A really makes it sound fuller when clean. as for nickle or gold, well none available. but you can source for the EMG81 25th anniversary set which was made a few yrs ago, those came in chrome covers. i have a set which i dont really use cos of my prefered 85/60A combo. [img']http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/Glampyre/Guitars/EMG25th.jpg[/img] Thanks for posting that. I think it's a fair enough question because it seems that both sets sort of have the same buyer in mind. Nice chrome pups, btw...... (Real nice, actually. Dang...would you even WANT to toss something like those into an Epiphone?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rpach10115 Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 I have a set of Bursbucker pros on my 1275, they sound amazing. I have a set of 81/85's on my Custom shop SG and, IMHO sound MUCH better both on clean and distorted. It's a tough choice: Burstbucker pros, or EMG 81/85's. I saw the Kirk Hammet setup the other day with the EMG 81/81's and the sound expander hooked up also. WOW, now they sounded amazing for distortion. I was VERY impressed. I never used to be a big fan of the EMG's but I'm slowly being sold on them. I am going to put a set of the Emg 81 and 85's on my Dean ML1979. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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