EMG 81/85 or 81/60 ?

[firefromhell666]

Which combo is better the EMG 81 in the bridge and an EMG 85 in the Neck or the EMG 81 in the bridge and an EMG 60 in the Neck?

[Yppolitia]

Id personally go for the 81 in the bridge and the 85 in the neck.

[pilot996]

well, they are both bridge pickups despite how most people use them. i prefer the 85/60A to the 81/60, but i like that deep smooth fullbodied sound. if you want more high end, go with the 81/60

the 81 in the neck is crap for cleans. it does clean up, yeah, but its sterile and still sounds too high output. the 85 is very bassy in the bottom strings in the neck position.

[deadline666]

I'd, go with 81/85, that's what I'm getting soon.

[pilot996]

and thats good reasoning too. he should get it becuase you are, nice

[espf-250htd06]

idk ive got 81/60 and i get harmonics good and all and get good rythum tone, idk what the 81/85 sounds like really cause ive never tryed them,

zakk wylde - 81/85
kerry king - 81/85
jeff lommis - 81/60


from what i hear if you dont do much clean stuff go with the 81/85
if you do, do some clean or alot go with the 81/60
but thats just what ive heard

[pilot996]

well, since people seem to be speaking on hearsay, ill give a mini review.

81 bridge - very popular, i dont like it. i think its sterile and lacks character. i also found it to be too trebly for me, but thats the way its voiced. it has a lot of highs and high mids, but no lows or low mids. the nice thing about this pickup is that it maintains clarity and deffinition extremely well, even while distorted heavily.

81 neck - its not bad, but there is a lot better for the neck posistion. it does clean up well, but like i said, there is just a lot better otu there. distorted, it gives some nice bluesy lead tones.

85 bridge - basically the opposite of the 81. the 85 has a lot of lows and lower mids with smooth (not peircing) highs. has a lot more character than the 81 and has a full bodied sound. great for rythm and i love the lead tone on it though if you were wanting to stand out a bit more in the mix, youd probably want to get an 81.

85 neck - clean:to bassy/boomy. the high 3 or 4 strings sound pretty good actually clean, but the bottom 2 or 3 is just too bassy/boomy. distorted: same thing, too much low end for a neck pickup, but then its nto a neck pickup, so there you have it. the only time i found it acceptable in the neck is when i ran it at teh same time with the 81 in the bridge. then the bassynes of the 85 neck helped counter the piercing/shrill highs of the 81, but even then i wasnt a fan. while it wasnt muddy, i couldnt get it to stand out either.

60 or 60A - match the 81 and 85 respectively in the neck position. both pups will give you great cleans, bluesy leads, and even a decent crunch without getting muddy. the 60a is a hair warmer sounding do to the magnet difference, but both are great in the neck.

edit: ive tried thes combos in a bunch of guitars, and a few different amps so its not like i had one bad experience and wrote a pickup off as sucky or had one great experience and claimed another to be gods gift to the pickup world. currently ive the 85/60A in an ESP standard series viper and a mesa boogie recto as my weapons of choice. if i get this band thing going like im trying, im either gonna pickup a brighter sounding guitar (all mine are deep sounding) and keep the 85/60a combo or imma have to go back to the 81/60 combo.

[Sph]

currently ive the 85/60A in an ESP standard series viper and a mesa boogie recto as my weapons of choice. if i get this band thing going like im trying, im either gonna pickup a brighter sounding guitar (all mine are deep sounding) and keep the 85/60a combo or imma have to go back to the 81/60 combo.
Wow, nice setup. TS, both the 81 and 85 are great as a bridge pickup, it usually comes down to personal preference. For the neck however, there is the previously mentioned 60, 60a, 85 and 81. I suggest avoiding the 81 for the neck. If you need good cleans as well as heavy distortion use the 89. When coil tapped it's one of the most versatile P/Us i've used. It works like a 85 and SA single coil combined.

[pilot996]

^totally forgot about the 89, good call. i second everything you siad about it.

[dan_plus_o]

I should be getting a 81 and 85 soon. I put in a order for them and my local store should have them in a couple of more days.

When I get them I am going to see which pickup I like better for the bridge (81 or 85). Then if I like the 85 in the bridge I will decide if the 81 is all that bad in the neck (like some of you said). If it sounds like crap I might save up for a 60 later on. Ill see what I like. One thing about pickups is that it shure takes a lot of cash and a lot of experimenting.