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EMG-85: one of the most popular active EMG pickups

EMG, Inc. is the current legal name of a company based in Santa Rosa, California which manufactures guitar pickups. Founded in 1976, the company was originally called "Dirtywork Studios". The name was changed to "Overlend" (spelled "Overland" in some sources^[1]) in 1978 and then to the current name in 1983. However, its products have always been called EMG pickups. "EMG" stands for "Electro-Magnetic Generator".^[2]

[edit] Overview

EMG pickups are standard equipment on some models from guitar manufacturers such as BC Rich, ESP, Ibanez, and Jackson Guitars. EMG active pickups tend to have much higher output than passive pickups of similar design because of the on-board preamp. The high output has made them popular with hard rock and heavy metal guitarists because they overdrive the input stage of guitar amplifiers more dramatically than a lower output pickup could.

In addition to pickups, EMG inc also have a line of guitar/ bass accessories, mainly for altering the guitars EQ settings, and designed to work with EMG pickups. This can be seen in companies such as Schecter, who ship almost all of their basses with EMG EQ shaping circuitry,

Players and bands who use or endorse EMG pickups include: James Hetfield, Kirk Hammet, Zakk Wylde, Alexi Laiho, Atreyu, Shadows Fall, Cannibal Corpse, Dethklok, Opeth, Dimmu Borgir, Shinedown, Lacuna Coil, Parkway Drive, Black Stone Cherry, Steve Lukather, Reb Beach, Prince, Metallica, Slayer, Machine Head, Les Claypool, Judas Priest, Deftones, Rammstein, Killswitch Engage, Trivium, Vince Gill, Slipknot, Nevermore, Nickelback, Tom Morello, David Gilmour, Jean-Claude Demetri, Eric Roche , Eye For An Eye and others.

[edit] Active EMGs - Advantages & Disadvantages

Advantages

• Because active electronics have an internal preamp, lower strength magnets are required within the pickup. While this requires the pickups to be raised higher than their passive alternatives, there is less magnetic pull on the strings, allowing the strings to sustain a little longer and clearer than when using passive pickups.
• Because it's fully encased and epoxy potted housing, dust, sweat and forms of dirt are kept away from the magnets and electronics, preventing corrosion. The potting also helps increase the durability of the pickup.
• Because of their relatively high output, active EMGs are ideal choices for heavy metal and hard music in general. They have a warm and rich tone when used without distortion, being good choices for other music styles as well.
• More recent models include a "Quick Connect" plug which allows the player to change pickups relatively quickly and without soldering.

Disadvantages

• Active pickups are more expensive than their passive counterparts, and most luthiers will charge extra to install them due to the extra electronics.
• Active EMGs sound dirty and undefined with certain string brands/models.^[3]

• Because they boost the output of the guitar, they require extra power. This means that batteries (usually 9v) are used to power them. This also means that when the batteries run down the guitar becomes noticeably quieter.

[edit] Product Range

EMG Inc. have two distinct product ranges. Standard series are active pickups, except for the HZ series, which are passive.

The Select series (sold as 'Select, designed by EMG') is the low cost, entry level pickup. They are similar in design to the standard series, but with less precise manufacturing, lower quality materials, and a slightly different design. All the pickups in this series are passive.

EMG has also collaborated with ESP guitars, creating the ESP-EMG series of pickups, these are manufactured by ESP and are similar to the Select series of pickups. ESP uses these pickups on some of the lower-end LTD models.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official website