EMGs?

[Fiorenza2]

Basically, I'm getting more into slap bass and "modern" bass tones, so I thought it would probably be time to move on from my current P-Bass + Flats combination to something a bit more suitable. I was told EMGs sounded great, and after giving them a listen on the EMG website however, they sound pretty fantastic. I'm not sure if that's down to Bobby Vega, the guy who does the samples, and his setup, or the actual pickups themselves.

I'm also debating whether or not the "X-series" are worth £30 more than the normal ones. Judging by the clips on the website, I feel they are, but the pickups were put in two different basses with different setups, so other factors may have affected the sound. And not wishing to sound cynical, but EMG may have made the X-Series sound better than the plain EMGs on purpose so that punters pay the premium for the improved preamp and what not...

Is it worth getting EMGs, or should I just get a new bass (Jazz/Stingray/etc) already?

Links:

[url="http://www.emginc.com/products/category/23/2"]EMG P[/url]

[url="http://www.emginc.com/products/category/243/2"]EMG PX[/url]

Thanks guys,
Phil

[MythSte]

Personally, I dont think your ever going to get a good modern slap sound from a P bass. You'd be better suited with a Jazz or a Stingray

[zero9]

[quote name='MythSte' post='1135404' date='Feb 21 2011, 01:13 PM']Personally, I dont think your ever going to get a good modern slap sound from a P bass. You'd be better suited with a Jazz or a Stingray [/quote]

You can if you add a bridge pick-up IMHO (I did, although mine's equipped with Villex pups).

[robocorpse]

[quote name='MythSte' post='1135404' date='Feb 21 2011, 01:13 PM']Personally, I dont think your ever going to get a good modern slap sound from a P bass. You'd be better suited with a Jazz or a Stingray [/quote]

+1

[Dood]

[quote name='Fiorenza2' post='1135367' date='Feb 21 2011, 12:48 PM']Basically, I'm getting more into slap bass and "modern" bass tones, so I thought it would probably be time to move on from my current P-Bass + Flats combination to something a bit more suitable. I was told EMGs sounded great, and after giving them a listen on the EMG website however, they sound pretty fantastic. I'm not sure if that's down to Bobby Vega, the guy who does the samples, and his setup, or the actual pickups themselves.

I'm also debating whether or not the "X-series" are worth £30 more than the normal ones. Judging by the clips on the website, I feel they are, but the pickups were put in two different basses with different setups, so other factors may have affected the sound. And not wishing to sound cynical, but EMG may have made the X-Series sound better than the plain EMGs on purpose so that punters pay the premium for the improved preamp and what not...

Is it worth getting EMGs, or should I just get a new bass (Jazz/Stingray/etc) already?

Links:

[url="http://www.emginc.com/products/category/23/2"]EMG P[/url]

[url="http://www.emginc.com/products/category/243/2"]EMG PX[/url]

Thanks guys,
Phil[/quote]

I'm a big fan of active EMG pickups and electronics. I've been using them for years, including P style soapbars. My current basses have DC soapbars in. If I were to upgrade either of my P basses, I'd certainly not hesitate in saying that they can do a modern slap sound with said pickups on board. EMGs have a nice sparkly top end and can do a real fat bottom end.

Mine aren't the X version - though I'd like to give them a try to see what the difference is.

[Fiorenza2]

Thanks for the reply,

I'm kind of between a rock and a hard place at the moment as I've got a few gigs lined up, which could really do with a more modern tone/edge, and I'm thinking about sticking in some odd slap parts.

My original plan was to buy a Fender Jazz bass, and having saved up enough money, I was stunned to find they had risen in price by about £100 pounds (MIM Standard) since the VAT increase for no apparent reason. Since I've had next to no luck finding a used one, I'm probably going to go with EMGs as a compromise between what I want and what I can afford.

The EMG X-Series doesn't seem to be discussed much on the internet, which seriously raises questions as to how much of an improvement they are.

At the moment, unless a nice used Jazz bass with a maple fretboard pops up in the London area, I'm probably going to end up buying some EMGs for my Precision. Unless anyone has any better suggestions?

Cheers!
Phil

[Jean-Luc Pickguard]

I put an EMG in one of my precisions in the mid 80s, but took it out as it sounded a bit characterless and muffled almost as if there was a compressor killing all the attack and dynamics. I put it back in a few years ago after reading that they can take more than a single 9v battery. Powered by 18v it sounds transparent and almost like a passive pickup but bigger,. Its worth trying the double battery trick - you can make a harness from 3x9v battery snap-clips for mere pennies from Maplin. I found that I couldn't actually fit two of the usual 9v batteries in my precision and I didn't want to route it out at all, so I stuffed a load of button cells (obtained by opening up a couple of 12v car alarm 'plipper' batteries) into an AAA holder and soldered on a snap-clip.

[mikhay77]

[quote name='dood' post='1143962' date='Feb 27 2011, 10:34 PM']I'm a big fan of active EMG pickups and electronics. I've been using them for years, including P style soapbars. My current basses have DC soapbars in. If I were to upgrade either of my P basses, I'd certainly not hesitate in saying that they can do a modern slap sound with said pickups on board. EMGs have a nice sparkly top end and can do a real fat bottom end.

Mine aren't the X version - though I'd like to give them a try to see what the difference is.[/quote]
+1 I have 3 basses with Emgs,ones an SB700 with a 45dc and a 45p.If you like that top end sparkle at good tight lows,for the money you can't go wrong,would say the P's would have some good slappable sound,if you can hook one up with a BTC controller too,you will be laughin!

[Fiorenza2]

[quote name='Jean-Luc Pickguard' post='1145091' date='Feb 28 2011, 09:49 PM']I put an EMG in one of my precisions in the mid 80s, but took it out as it sounded a bit characterless and muffled almost as if there was a compressor killing all the attack and dynamics. I put it back in a few years ago after reading that they can take more than a single 9v battery. Powered by 18v it sounds transparent and almost like a passive pickup but bigger,. Its worth trying the double battery trick - you can make a harness from 3x9v battery snap-clips for mere pennies from Maplin. I found that I couldn't actually fit two of the usual 9v batteries in my precision and I didn't want to route it out at all, so I stuffed a load of button cells (obtained by opening up a couple of 12v car alarm 'plipper' batteries) into an AAA holder and soldered on a snap-clip.[/quote]

Having done some research, I've come to the conclusion that the EMG X series sound pretty much the same as the standard series does, but if the standard EMGs were run at 18v instead of the standard 9v. So as I see it at the moment, I'll be paying £30 extra for the luxury of not having to rout out a spare channel for an extra 9v battery, or having to use the button cells from a 12v battery.

So my question is, does the extra 9v really make THAT much difference? As after some reading, some people claim it does, whilst others some to think there's no difference at all. TBH, I would purchase the X-series P in a hearbeat, were it not for the ridiculous price of £100, money that I feel could be spent far more effectively towards a nice used MIM Jazz or equivalent...

Cheers,
Phil

[nick]

[quote name='Jean-Luc Pickguard' post='1145091' date='Feb 28 2011, 09:49 PM']I put an EMG in one of my precisions in the mid 80s, but took it out as it sounded a bit characterless and muffled almost as if there was a compressor killing all the attack and dynamics. I put it back in a few years ago after reading that they can take more than a single 9v battery. Powered by 18v it sounds transparent and almost like a passive pickup but bigger,. Its worth trying the double battery trick - you can make a harness from 3x9v battery snap-clips for mere pennies from Maplin. I found that I couldn't actually fit two of the usual 9v batteries in my precision and I didn't want to route it out at all, so I stuffed a load of button cells (obtained by opening up a couple of 12v car alarm 'plipper' batteries) into an AAA holder and soldered on a snap-clip.[/quote]

Thats interesting, powering them with 18v. Not that familiar with this pickup, but an old Antoria fretless P-Bass I've recently acquired has got an EMG in it - really like the tone, suits this bass.
However, rather than put another battery in there, think I might try it with a tiny DIY voltage doubler, will easily fit anywhere under the pickguard.

[Mikeg]

I actualy quite like p bass slap tone :L
But I wouldn't call it modern

[Bernmeister]

Wow!!! I'd never heard of the "X" series emgs until reading this.

I use emgs in all of my 4 string basses, of which i have 3 squires which have been customised.
2 of them have emg active pj pickups & the other has an active p bass pickup, they also all have the btc preamp installed too.

But even using them all with the preamp set flat they sound very clear, articulate with lots of punch, & as most of the guys have said
the p bass pickup sounds great slapped. Oh! mine all have a 9v batteries installed.

I would be interested in trying the "X" series emgs, but i'm currently happy with the performance of the emgs i already have installed.

I'm sure you'd be happy with the results, standard emgs installed in your p - bass woud give you.

[JTUK]

If you are only just short of the money required for a new Jazz..I would pursue that line of thinking and wait around for a decent one here, IMV.

I agree a P-bass isn't a modern slap sound but in context with the track, it is capable of working well...as oppsoed to a solo sound which works less well, IMV
Not sure I would buy a Jazz just to put slap in the song but a good Jazz is worth having.

I'd be inclined to see what crops you here for your budget and leave the P-bass as a P-bass.

[moonbass]

I've owned (and sold) a set of JVXs. They sounded good, but I think they sounded more like the standard J series than JVs. I would certainly check them out if you you like the sound of EMG Js if only cos they look cooler with the exposed pole pieces. If you're after a vintage tone (without the vintage hassle) I'd stick to standard JVs though. If you do a search on here I did upload some before and after sound clips of my 75 Reissue Jazz a while back.
A

[JTUK]

[url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=123421"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=123421[/url] maybe..??

[Fiorenza2]

Hi guys,

Thanks for all the advice on the EMGs. In the end I bit the bullet and went for a brand spanking new Fender Standard Jazz with a maple neck. After the prices dropped to a more reasonable £510, I thought the time was right. Plus trying out a Stagg Jazz bass in a band situation further cemented the fact that a Precision bass really wasn't for me (I could hear myself clearly for the first time in a band situation with the cheapo Jazz).

I'm really happy with this MIM Jazz, and I wish I'd figured out earlier it was a Jazz tone I was after, as I probably could have saved money by not investing so much into my P with new Wizard pickups and various different string configurations.

Having said all this, I'm really tempted to try out some EMGs some time in life, if not only to see what all the hype is about . But for now, I'm more than happy with the stock pickups in my Jazz, which really surprises me, as those are usually the first thing people change when they buy anything MIM. The bridge on the other hand is a totally different story...(any suggestions for cheap bent metal style bridges which don't have saddle screws that bottom out constantly?)

Once again, I am grateful for the great responses of the Basschat community.

Phil