Question About Active Pickups, Does the signal degrade as the battery weakens? Options

[AK Rich]

Hey guys,
This has always made me wonder since I started playing with my EMG's.
Does the output signal slowly degrade as the battery gets weaker or do they maintain a constant level until the battery wears down to a certain point?

[Mudbone]

Hey guys,
This has always made me wonder since I started playing with my EMG's.
Does the output signal slowly degrade as the battery gets weaker or do they maintain a constant level until the battery wears down to a certain point?

It maintains a constant level for a long time. It then starts to degrade slowly, and the degradation begins to speed up. There will be a period where its degrading but you won't notice it because it happens so slowly. Just remember to always unplug your guitar after you're done playing, because otherwise the battery will stay on.

To quote the EMG website, "Even if you play eight hours a day, this small amount of current drain means that a battery will last up to a year. A single 9 Volt battery will power as many EMG Pickups and Accessory Circuits as you can fit in your guitar. Power to the pickups is turned off by unplugging the guitar cable from your instrument."

Here's plenty of information on EMG pickups:

http://www.emgpickups.com/pages/whyemg

[AK Rich]

Hey thanks alot for the info and the linkup to EMG Mudbone, very informative, I dont think my battery is quite 1 year old but its probably close , I guess I should just try a new battery and see if there is any noticable differance.

[Azzaboi]

I have EMG JH Set, which are active pups 85/81, but still keep the passive qualities. I had a weak battery in them, but not noticable, just after a while it cuts in and out (this is the sign to change the batt) - turned into a passive tone and suddenly lost it's bite (i freaked a little thinking it might of been the wiring at first). It has a flip open battery pack, so easy to replace the 9v battery and it instantly got it's full mojo back.

[Narzsa]

I have EMG JH Set, which are active pups 85/81, but still keep the passive qualities. I had a weak battery in them, but not noticable, just after a while it cuts in and out (this is the sign to change the batt) - turned into a passive tone and suddenly lost it's bite (i freaked a little thinking it might of been the wiring at first). It has a flip open battery pack, so easy to replace the 9v battery and it instantly got it's full mojo back.

I just got the EMG JH set, and they are sweeeeeeeet
I came from seymore duncans and i have to admit i prefer the EMGs. They feed back so much less and are razor sharp and aggressive

[Azzaboi]

Yeah they are good, got lots of pros if your stuck picking between actives and passives (get the best of both worlds), only con I can say about them is the finish on them stains and marks easily.

[Cosmin Lupu]

The only thing that I dislike about the active pups is the fact that the dynamic range is not that great, otherwise, I like me a good ol' aggressive tone

[thefireball]

This is good information.

[Mudbone]

The only thing that I dislike about the active pups is the fact that the dynamic range is not that great, otherwise, I like me a good ol' aggressive tone

If you put the 85 in the bridge and do the 18 volt mod, you'll reduce the compression and increase the dynamic range. You'll lose some of the qualities the EMG 81 is known for, but you get something between an active and passive pickup

Also, the new James Hetfield set is supposed to sound somewhere between active and passive. I haven't tried them out yet but would like to

[Azzaboi]

Same Cosmin - that's what the EMG JH Set is for, they are active pickups, which still keep the passive dynamic range.
You can play lighter or really dig them for a range of tones - plus a larger range in palm muting control. Turn down the guitar volume and they become even more passive. The cleans are good too. Correction to the above post - it's similar to the EMG 81/60.



This post has been edited by Azzaboi: Jul 13 2012, 08:12 PM

[Alex Feather]

Hey guys,
This has always made me wonder since I started playing with my EMG's.
Does the output signal slowly degrade as the battery gets weaker or do they maintain a constant level until the battery wears down to a certain point?

Yes it does! Not by a lot it will keep the signal stable for a long time! I am not too crazy about those pickups because they take a lot of wood sound away so all you hear are the pickups! But I am actually thinking of putting them on my Gibson! Which EMG you have?

[Todd Simpson]

Sadly yes! Like anything battery powered, they die! I swap my EMG batts out once a month but I know thats way early for some folks. Maybe solar panels on a guitar strap would help?

If you leave your guitar plugged in, they drain much quicker. Also my 8 string EMGs seemed to drain faster than my 6 string set.

Todd

Hey guys,
This has always made me wonder since I started playing with my EMG's.
Does the output signal slowly degrade as the battery gets weaker or do they maintain a constant level until the battery wears down to a certain point?

[Nihilist1]

If you put the 85 in the bridge and do the 18 volt mod, you'll reduce the compression and increase the dynamic range. You'll lose some of the qualities the EMG 81 is known for, but you get something between an active and passive pickup

This is why I want Bareknuckle Nailbombs. They are amazingly agressive and completely passive. Talk about dynamic. These things are killer! More people are getting them and posting videos on YouTube. Do a bit of digging and really check these things out!

[AK Rich]

Yes it does! Not by a lot it will keep the signal stable for a long time! I am not too crazy about those pickups because they take a lot of wood sound away so all you hear are the pickups! But I am actually thinking of putting them on my Gibson! Which EMG you have?

I have the 60X in the rhythm position and the 85 in the bridge position. this is on my Ibanez S-series, S-470DXQM

[Todd Simpson]

BINGO! I am started to fall out of LOVE with my EMG's and did wads of research looking for a Spiff ALNICO pickups that was nearly as hot as the EMG but still passive. And yup! Found the same exact result! NAIL BOMB!

This is why I want Bareknuckle Nailbombs. They are amazingly agressive and completely passive. Talk about dynamic. These things are killer! More people are getting them and posting videos on YouTube. Do a bit of digging and really check these things out!

I have the 60X in the rhythm position and the 85 in the bridge position. this is on my Ibanez S-series, S-470DXQM

I have had the 81/85 set in several guitars and I'm considering selling my Minarik to help pay for my current EBAY BINGE. It's got the KERRY KING 81/85 with 20 DB BOOST SWITCH making it a bit of a RAGING MONSTER. But it sounds way better with a TUBE AMP and I don't use Tube Amps.



This post has been edited by Todd Simpson: Jul 14 2012, 08:13 AM

[Cosmin Lupu]

Well, I won't bee going after my initial thought of replacing the pickups on the MMM with the Cold Sweat set from Bareknuckle, as I am selling the MMM ...to get the PRS baritone I have made the demo video for.

Just got a super offer from the dealer, but I need the money to get it so I have to say goodbye to the Ibanez MMM.

[Todd Simpson]

It seems like I'm sellings wadds of guitars this month and last

8 STRING LTD: Sold
Kramer Focus 1000: Sold
Ibanez Accoustic: Sold
Rogue 6 string bass: Sold
Minarik EMG : Consinged
Hamer Californian: Consigned

On the BOUGHT side

Ibanez Xiphos 700
Line 6 Vetta Head

Hope it was all worth it

Well, I won't bee going after my initial thought of replacing the pickups on the MMM with the Cold Sweat set from Bareknuckle, as I am selling the MMM ...to get the PRS baritone I have made the demo video for.

Just got a super offer from the dealer, but I need the money to get it so I have to say goodbye to the Ibanez MMM.