<--Valid-->
- Thread starter Validity
- Start date
Cant comment on the sound of the mahogany bodies with maple tops,
but will say that the sound also depends on what pickups the people you speak of are using,
Also a guitar will sound different depending on the person playing it and their style and attack,
So if you do go for a warmoth build with such components dont be dis heartend or anything if it doesn't sound exactly the same as you thought it would,
as there is the part of the sound that depends on the players skill level and style.
Welcome to the forum, ask any questions you need to about warmoth, someone here is bound to know, if not then their are workers/ex workers of warmoth here aswell to help.
So welcome aboard.
but will say that the sound also depends on what pickups the people you speak of are using,
Also a guitar will sound different depending on the person playing it and their style and attack,
So if you do go for a warmoth build with such components dont be dis heartend or anything if it doesn't sound exactly the same as you thought it would,
as there is the part of the sound that depends on the players skill level and style.
Welcome to the forum, ask any questions you need to about warmoth, someone here is bound to know, if not then their are workers/ex workers of warmoth here aswell to help.
So welcome aboard.
dmraco
Master Member
- Messages
- 4,652
I am a member of the club that tone is mostly a factor of your amp and pickups. Wood does play a factor but if math were involved, I "wood" :laughing3: guess the guitar body accounts for about 10-15% of your tone.
Since you asked...the Mahogany/Maple combo has been the standard for the Gibson Les Paul since the beginning and still is the most common configuration.
Since you asked...the Mahogany/Maple combo has been the standard for the Gibson Les Paul since the beginning and still is the most common configuration.
rockskate4x
Hero Member
- Messages
- 1,601
For metal you can't go wrong with emg pickups. The classic combo is 81 bridge 85 neck (zakk wylde/kerry king) but there are plenty of other winners like 81/81 (kirk hammett), and 81/60 (james hetfield). Some guys bash the clean tone, because they don't sound very traditional, but I think they have their own great clean sounds.
rockskate4x
Hero Member
- Messages
- 1,601
Oh I almost forgot, don't go with emg's if you don't want to change batteries. If you like what I have told you about the sound and you don't want to change batteries, the dimarzio d-activators are an excellent choice.
dmraco
Master Member
- Messages
- 4,652
I have the emg 81/85 combo and works real well. However I do not like them in combo with some amps. I have a Mesa ta-15 and an orange dual terror and they seem to fall short. I have a Dimarzio BREED in the bridge position on another guitar and it rocks. I prefer it over the 81/85 combo.
dmraco
Master Member
- Messages
- 4,652
chanyiksean said:
Dimarzios make both high and vintage output stlye pickups. Their website has decent info. Check it out.
http://www.dimarzio.com/pickups/humbuckers/high-power
The breed is the lowest output of their high out models. The X2N is their highest....
rockskate4x
Hero Member
- Messages
- 1,601
chanyiksean said:
They make clean sounds just fine. Whether you like the tone is up to you. It just isn't very traditional sounding which is why lots of guys might say that the cleans are awful. Go to your nearest guitar center or sam ash try out an emg equipped guitar for yourself.
The truth is...the place I live don't happen to have any Guitar Centers or Sam Ashes LOL,,
Though there are some places where they sell guitars...I tried an ESP eclipse with EMGs and the sound was pretty good....though I must say the tone wasn't what I was looking for
Though there are some places where they sell guitars...I tried an ESP eclipse with EMGs and the sound was pretty good....though I must say the tone wasn't what I was looking for
Death by Uberschall
Master Member
- Messages
- 4,162
Truths from my experiences with EMG:
Batteries last for years if you unplug the guitar like you're supposed to.
EMGs have strong clean signals, most of the clean distortion people complain about comes from their amp breaking up due to the higher output.
EMGs are really low output/underwound coils on smaller/weaker magnets that get pre-amped to bring the level back up and then some. Same as a low output pickup with a boost pedal.
That weaker magnetic field allows for less string pull and longer sustain.
Woods, build construction, hardware and set-up will affect how they sound. I have several different guitars by different manufacturers and they all sound different when using the same EMGs. The woods, etc. will come through.
Most people complain about their tone because they are very evenly voiced from low end to top end. They don't make your guitar sound like something else. They make your guitar sound like result of the woods and hardware. They produce what they pick up. A great example would be Fender Strats, their sound is a result of the woods and hardware in tandem with pickups that are designed to have that Strat sound. Same with Teles. The 81/85 combo in my Les Pauls sound nothing like they did in my PRS Custom 24. Basically the same woods (mahogany/maple), but different sounds due to different design and construction.
EMG's retain their character and tone when backing the volume down.
My favorite combination is mahogany body/maple top and maple neck/board. Hard to beat for a rock/metal machine.
Batteries last for years if you unplug the guitar like you're supposed to.
EMGs have strong clean signals, most of the clean distortion people complain about comes from their amp breaking up due to the higher output.
EMGs are really low output/underwound coils on smaller/weaker magnets that get pre-amped to bring the level back up and then some. Same as a low output pickup with a boost pedal.
That weaker magnetic field allows for less string pull and longer sustain.
Woods, build construction, hardware and set-up will affect how they sound. I have several different guitars by different manufacturers and they all sound different when using the same EMGs. The woods, etc. will come through.
Most people complain about their tone because they are very evenly voiced from low end to top end. They don't make your guitar sound like something else. They make your guitar sound like result of the woods and hardware. They produce what they pick up. A great example would be Fender Strats, their sound is a result of the woods and hardware in tandem with pickups that are designed to have that Strat sound. Same with Teles. The 81/85 combo in my Les Pauls sound nothing like they did in my PRS Custom 24. Basically the same woods (mahogany/maple), but different sounds due to different design and construction.
EMG's retain their character and tone when backing the volume down.
My favorite combination is mahogany body/maple top and maple neck/board. Hard to beat for a rock/metal machine.
O
OzziePete
Guest
What DbU has put above is pretty much spot on and as you see in his signature section in his Profile, he has a few very yummy guitars that have the same pickup configuration to qualify his comments.
I had a Carved Top Tele on the bench just yesterday, and it has an EMG system of dual EMG 89s. Now: the 89 are not the usual choice for those heading in the direction of metal, but what DbU has posted rings very true from the sound I was getting out of the EMG system on my CT Tele. I also find it ironic that one of the detractions from you wanting an EMG system (which are quite prolific through the metal music scene) is that you won't appreciate it's clean tone.....clean tones and metal kinda don't spring immediately to mind as two buddies in that music genre...though I guess you want more flexibility than a metal tone monster.
Previously the 89s were in a body that was a solid maple body, weighing a ton. And the EMG 89s sounded very sterile, which is why I then looked at a mahogany body with the maple cap. Also the neck on the CT Tele is a koa neck with ebony fretboard, that will colour my tone a bit too - far more than the body will. The previous neck was a maple/ ebony config and that added/aggravated the sterile sound too. By using a koa neck, and a mahogany body with a maple cap I have changed the tone of these pickups to a more workable sound.
I will add that the EMG system is now a good option for those not exactly sure if they want that pickup or another EMG, as they use a solderless system which means you can replace pickups and pots that much easier.
I had issues with trying to cram an 18v mod into the CT Tele, and the use of two tone EQ circuits (EXG & SPC), I was getting a lot of interference noise. But with the pickups and the tone circuits all being active, I had 4 power lines - each carrying 18v - inside that cavity and it appeared that the EQ pots were picking up the interference. I removed them (and the two power lines) tidied up the cavity by placing the power lines in one area of the cavity and the wires from the pickups in another and things have been much quieter. Because of the solderless system, I was able to replace the EQ pots with passive tone pots in about half the time......
But I will say, that the EMGs do have a style of tone to them right through out their range and while I find it hard to describe, my ears detect some sort of difference to the passive pickups that are available in the market. My ears are damaged but still I can hear some sort of processed effect to the EMG tone, which is probably the preamp within the pickups doing their work. It may be the quietness of the pickups too, or it may be that they push the amps a bit harder at the preamp stage with a steady, almost line level quality from the preamped pickups as opposed to a more inconsistent output from a passive pickup. :dontknow:
Oh, one last thing..... active pickup systems work well in an environment where there are a lot of pedals and a decent length of guitar cord - some passive pickups lose considerable tone being processed through a lot of stomp pedals and a long cable line.
I had a Carved Top Tele on the bench just yesterday, and it has an EMG system of dual EMG 89s. Now: the 89 are not the usual choice for those heading in the direction of metal, but what DbU has posted rings very true from the sound I was getting out of the EMG system on my CT Tele. I also find it ironic that one of the detractions from you wanting an EMG system (which are quite prolific through the metal music scene) is that you won't appreciate it's clean tone.....clean tones and metal kinda don't spring immediately to mind as two buddies in that music genre...though I guess you want more flexibility than a metal tone monster.
Previously the 89s were in a body that was a solid maple body, weighing a ton. And the EMG 89s sounded very sterile, which is why I then looked at a mahogany body with the maple cap. Also the neck on the CT Tele is a koa neck with ebony fretboard, that will colour my tone a bit too - far more than the body will. The previous neck was a maple/ ebony config and that added/aggravated the sterile sound too. By using a koa neck, and a mahogany body with a maple cap I have changed the tone of these pickups to a more workable sound.
I will add that the EMG system is now a good option for those not exactly sure if they want that pickup or another EMG, as they use a solderless system which means you can replace pickups and pots that much easier.
I had issues with trying to cram an 18v mod into the CT Tele, and the use of two tone EQ circuits (EXG & SPC), I was getting a lot of interference noise. But with the pickups and the tone circuits all being active, I had 4 power lines - each carrying 18v - inside that cavity and it appeared that the EQ pots were picking up the interference. I removed them (and the two power lines) tidied up the cavity by placing the power lines in one area of the cavity and the wires from the pickups in another and things have been much quieter. Because of the solderless system, I was able to replace the EQ pots with passive tone pots in about half the time......
But I will say, that the EMGs do have a style of tone to them right through out their range and while I find it hard to describe, my ears detect some sort of difference to the passive pickups that are available in the market. My ears are damaged but still I can hear some sort of processed effect to the EMG tone, which is probably the preamp within the pickups doing their work. It may be the quietness of the pickups too, or it may be that they push the amps a bit harder at the preamp stage with a steady, almost line level quality from the preamped pickups as opposed to a more inconsistent output from a passive pickup. :dontknow:
Oh, one last thing..... active pickup systems work well in an environment where there are a lot of pedals and a decent length of guitar cord - some passive pickups lose considerable tone being processed through a lot of stomp pedals and a long cable line.
Patrick from Davis
Hero Member
- Messages
- 2,197
I have tried EMG's and don't like them. Recorded, they sound great, I did this with my guitar and the pickups I put into it. But standing next to the amp, they lacked the dynamics that the passives had. If I was playing a on distorted channel on the amp, it made distorted amp noises with the EMGs, if I lightened up or hit it hard. With the passives I could, to some degree, control to amount of whomp better with the passives. It suits my playing style better so I go for them. I understand DbU's comment about the batteries, and he is correct. Very little strain is placed on a battery by the EMG's. Nothing like what an analog chorus will do to a 9V. However, I am paranoid about these things as well, so I personally do better without the option of worrying about it.
As far as the woods go, it depends what kind of maple top you are describing. The veneers impart very little if anything to the guitar sound. The caps, like a Les Paul have a larger effect. The one wood that comes up often when describing a Mahogany like sound is Korina. I have a tele made out of this, and it sounds very nice. As far as necks go, the unfinished necks that Warmoth offers are addictive. There are many that are all in the same sort of range as mahogany or maple, and quite a number in between the two. However, the feel of playing unfinished necks is something that can be described as law breaking. Very fun.
Troubled Treble on this board made me a set of seven string pickups for a guitar I have and I love them. They have a lot of detail for fast distorted stuff, the neck pickup has just this great ballsy slank tone, and they clean up incredibly well and sound great for clean parts. I really love the way they sound, the bridge is kinda like a Nailbomb with a bit less mids, and the neck is ballsy without the mud. The neck pickup really makes that position a lot more useful for me. Good luck on finding a fun build.
Patrick
As far as the woods go, it depends what kind of maple top you are describing. The veneers impart very little if anything to the guitar sound. The caps, like a Les Paul have a larger effect. The one wood that comes up often when describing a Mahogany like sound is Korina. I have a tele made out of this, and it sounds very nice. As far as necks go, the unfinished necks that Warmoth offers are addictive. There are many that are all in the same sort of range as mahogany or maple, and quite a number in between the two. However, the feel of playing unfinished necks is something that can be described as law breaking. Very fun.
Troubled Treble on this board made me a set of seven string pickups for a guitar I have and I love them. They have a lot of detail for fast distorted stuff, the neck pickup has just this great ballsy slank tone, and they clean up incredibly well and sound great for clean parts. I really love the way they sound, the bridge is kinda like a Nailbomb with a bit less mids, and the neck is ballsy without the mud. The neck pickup really makes that position a lot more useful for me. Good luck on finding a fun build.
Patrick
Similar threads
