Im relatively new to guitar playing and Im looking to buy a new guitar. I listen to death metal black metal thrash anything with a crunch. What pickups do u think would be best for me? 81-60? 81-85? 81-81? 81-7/707? Im looking at the emgs because Im told theyre more for metal than others but Im open to other brands as well. Ive also heard two 81's in a guitar is a waste? What are you guys' experiences?

By the way, Im deciding between the esp/ltd guitars w/out locking tremelos and these are the pickups offered so whatever you guys say is best, Ill match up with the coolest looking guitar and get it. Thanks for any help you guys can give! Later..

I forgot to add that Im using a Line 6 Spider II amp if it makes a difference and no pedal. (really dont know what pedals are out there and havn't really looked i just turn up the drive on the amp..)

81/85 i've been told

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For starters a 707 is a 7 string p/u,and it looks like your after 6-string.You probally want the 81/85,most common configuration.60's are better for clean though IMO.And BTW the position of the pickup greatly influences the sound,hence having two 81's will sound different.EMG's are active and will sound very similar no matter what guitar you have.Have a look at passive seymours and dimarzio's ect,but stay away from passive emg's(hz's).Try out some guitars,because emg's might not be the tone for you.

Besides your music tastes, this is kinda like what I'm looking for. I've heard the 81/85 comb. and I'm already convinced it sounds nice, but I'm also wondering how good the 81/60 config. is.

60 has better cleans than the 85,nice midrange and smooth,warm leads,IMO.

Like Insert said , Hetfield uses the 81/60 , the 60s get good nice clean chordal type of things you can also can get a nice warm solo tone, with the 81/85 Dudes like Zakk ,Slayer use them ,Alot of peeps think the 85 is to bassy in the neck , I personally dont think so , even some switch it around put the 85 in the bridge and the 81 in the neck ,i never did that , so I couldnt tell ya how that sounds.
81/81 alot of lead players like Kirk Hammett use that
Then you got the JB/59 Duncans alot of cats use that. like Mustaine etc
I have guitars with all of those combos above ,

IMHO its more the player than the guitar or PUs, while PUs have something to do with your tone more has to do with your technique , Van Halen would sound like Van halen whether he played a Charvel fender gibson or jackson.
the point being its your ability and the way you attack the strings that are more important if you are using decent stuff.

If you want to be able to play nice cleans, then the 81/60 combo is the best combo. But if you don't care or you play music with no cleans, then i'd recommend the 81/85 combo.

Are hz's really that bad, people tell me that all the time, haven't been able to try them out really. I know there are a few jacksons i have my eyes on that have them, should i just put in some new pickups right when i buy it.

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I agree with Insert , I think HZs suck , if you want passives get duncans or dimarzios or what not , the HZ tends to be put in cheaper guitars , I honestly think they suck , some here may tell you different but go to harmony central 9 out of 10 peeps who have HZs replace em . JUST MY OPINION

I wanted a jackson because of their fast necks but Ive decided I gotta have 81/85 or 81/60 emg pickups, neck thru, and no locking system. Ive never seen a jackson with that stuff, only esp ltds. Anyone got a jackson with those things?

Yeah they are pretty bad.Its stupid that esp and jackson and whoever put hz's in their lower end guitars,becuase they get swapped anyway.So yes you should definately think about replacing them if you dont like them,and install something more suitable for you.

would it be hard to buy a dkmgt or soloist jackson and replace the pickups with the 81/60 combo? Ive never took pickups out of a guitar before. Im hoping you just unscrew them then unplug them from the guitar? Or do you have to sodder?(sp??lol)

There will be soldering involved, but the good news is that replacing pickups is easier then changing a tire on a car. Anyone with even a little knowledge of soldering and that can read instuctions can do it.

Btw, I'm a 81/85 man myself, but 81/60 is nice too.

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thats why i want one is because how fast and easy the are to play, i know you can a damn good guitar for a lot less money than other brands would charge, but yeah the lower end ones either have hzs or their own brand, the higher end ones have seymours ( i have heard about active emgs before too, but never seen one at a store). anyone know if the seymours you find in jacksons are any good?

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The only thing I know about EMG pickups is that the 707's are the best for 7-string. I haven't yet tried the 81-7 but I hear it sounds nice.

ok

Do you run the 85 by the neck or by the bridge? Also if i use an 85 instead of a 60 would my cleans absolutely sound like shit? What does Kirk Hammett use for pickups in the song Nothing Else Matters?

Id go listen to all these pickups myself but guitar center is the only store near my house and everything they have with emgs has HZ's..

Pickups are GEAR talk!

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Seymour Duncans.

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85s generally go in the neck , hammett uses dual 81s , Hetfield uses 81/60s
No the 85s clean wouldnt sound like shit but the 60 is probably more suited for the cleans , Zakk uses a 81 B 85 N, some peeps reverse it and do the opposite , Me I have guitars with dual 81s , 81/60s 81/85 ,Duncans JB/59 JB/Jazz
And for Nothing else Matters thats largely Hetfield even the solo < ive seen Metallica gosh about 20 times its Hetfields showcase song
Either way you will be ok EMG are good quality pick ups , read Harmony central reviews on pick ups you will get alot out of that dont be afraid to ask questions , there are fuckwads on this forum that will start shit with ya unless you agree a thousand percent but fuck em,

maybe this will help
off the top of my head Slayer uses 81/85
Hetfield 81/60 Hammett 81/81 Zakk 81/85
Mustaine and a shit load of others JB/Jazz

Thanks Foxguitar. Anyone know what pickups/guitars the guys in Dissection used on Storm of the lights Bane?

Also, is set neck just as good as neck thru?

Dont know about the dissection question , but one thing I think thats important to know , I have 20 guitars Les Pauls flying Vs , Explorers , ESPs with EMGs with duncans what have you , The point im making is not to go over my inventory because no one gives a shit but to illustrate a point.
If eddie van halen played your guitar he would sound like Eddie Van Halen Hendrix sounded like Hendrix whether he played his strat or when he did surprise surprise play gibsons ,which he did on occasion .

the reason for this rambling is several fold
if you have a decent guitar and a shit amp you will sound like shit, if you have a ok guitar with a good amp you will sound good. While pick ups have something to do with your sound for sure , as long as theyre decent and your amp is decent you will sound good,
There is some here who will argue with me and thats fine , but I think your sound has more to do with your technique and ability, Sure theres a difference between 81/85s and 60s But unless your a sound engineeer , most people wont be able to tell the difference , how many peeps can say Oh yeah thats a xdn2 that the guitar player from scumnuts is using on his CD.
Point being , and sorry to ramble , The sound will be more influenced from your amp and your technical ability,

case in point I taped myself the other day playing a LTD truckster , A LTD DV-8 and a LTD Mh1000 , all of which have different pick ups . If I didnt say on the tape what axe I was using < id probably wouldnt be able to tell the difference , sure there are differences , but unless your a top Pro its hard to tell the difference especially at hi gain , If you play all clean then you can tell easier if a person is using single coils or Humbuckers ,
Some are going to argue tooth and nail, And I respect that , This for all you snipers is just my own opinion based on my own observation.

That is not completely true. Now I don't mind correcting people or help guide them with issues, and some here are more dedicated to certain gear then others, but to make the gear heads here out to be Nazis is wrong. Just FYI

I can get a sweet "Nothing else matters" tone out of either 81/81 or 81/85. the EMG 60 had not yet been invited when that song was recorded, but who is to say that it wasn't recorded with Fender or SD pickups? Metallica doesn't exclusivly use EMG for everything, nor does Slayer or ZW in the studio, or even live.

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Bro I wasnt talking about every one , so no offense meant .
But live when James does it and that what I was referring to , He does it with 60s, And for sure alot of peeps here are kool , But theres a few And I think you can agree start shit just to start shit. See and case in point I didnt hurl shit at you. And lastly I dont mind being corrected , thats how one learns
peace

I can get a sweet "Nothing else matters" tone out of either 81/81 or 81/85. the EMG 60 had not yet been invited when that song was recorded, but who is to say that it wasn't recorded with Fender or SD pickups? Metallica doesn't exclusivly use EMG for everything, nor does Slayer or ZW in the studio, or even live.[/QUOTE]

Granted < So would you agree with my premise of what I tried to communicate in the post above your response.?

I agree with you, but it seens to come off as to a generalized attack on everyone. That gives an oppertunity to those that are lurking to E-slay trolls. A big witch hunt, you see?

Back on topic though, James does use EMG 81/60 on most guitars now but during the Black album the 60 didn't exist. What he really used is a mixure of many guitars and pickups over dubed each other, but 81/81 or 81/85 will get you really close to the tone.

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point well said , But like I said , it was meant for a chosen few and they know who they are , most dudes here its been give and take and have been cool, Like I said I dont mind being wrong , there are cats in here alot more knowing of the technical side than I ever will be.
ok peace out.

I asked a question about the ran , your the dude with one right ?

So foxguitar, are you saying that it will be hard to tell the difference between dual EMG HZs and dual EMG 81's? If thats the case Ill just stick with a jackson soloist with the HZs for instance. Actually the only pickups Ive ever had on a guitar were the HZs and Duncan Designed if it makes a difference.

Also, set-neck(EC-1000) and neck thru(MII).. is there a difference on say, sustain or anything else?

Yup, I was the first here to own a Ran. What was the question. I missed it somehow.

And Hell yes there will be a heard diffenece between HZ and active ENG and between Duncan Design and regular Duncan pickups. Play them and you will see. There is a reason why those pickups are put on those cheaper guitars. Cheaper guitars can be very well made and sound great with good pickups but it is hit or miss. Why put good pickups on a possiblly not as good guitar? There is no quality control at foreign plants. If it is one of the better made one then it is worth putting good pickups on; like in the case of the Epiphone I found. Some Epi's sound and play better then most Gibsons made, but you got to look and find them.

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Pickups won't sound much differen't on your line 6 spider II since it's amp modeling.

But anyways 81 best bridge pickup in emg pickups

for neck
The 60 is better sounding then the 85, 89 sounds like the 85 but has coil tapping and sounds like the emg-s/emg-sa in single tap so it's like two pickups in one in a sence.

Agreed Im referring to good quality PUs HZs and active EMGs arent the same what Im saying between real EMGs its harder to tell them apart , True 60s are great neck pick ups , But 85s arent bad IMHO .

But what was the question about Ran guitars?

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Lol, that changes things.. Amp modeling? My amp has smart control fx but no amp modeling.. i dont think..? It doesnt have a selector for different amps and their individual sounds.. Will this amp not sound good for death metal, black metal, and 80s thrash even if I have a distortion pedal, active EMGs and a neck thru? What amp should I get that is around the same size? I was going to get a Marshall but people told me they dont have the signature marshall sound unless theyre the high dollar ones..By the way everyone thanks for the help so far