Members Mind Riot Posted October 17, 2012 Members Share Posted October 17, 2012 A friend of mine has a baritone electric that he's not satisfied with sound wise. It's currently loaded with EMG 81's. The sound is somewhat thin; the guitar was made with some very dense and hard woods. We need this thing to keep up playing hard rock and metal. Thanks in advance for any suggestions! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Elessar [Sly] Posted October 17, 2012 Members Share Posted October 17, 2012 Bare knuckle cold sweat set or holy diver set Seymour Duncan SH5 and '59 set They are great for cleans and for metal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cratz2 Posted October 17, 2012 Members Share Posted October 17, 2012 Air Norton. I have one in a light weight alder body Strat and think it sounds great across the board. I can even get decent jazzy tones that almost sound like a middle position. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members IbanezJon Posted October 17, 2012 Members Share Posted October 17, 2012 I am not a huge fan of it but sounds like this is what a Tone Zone is for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cratz2 Posted October 17, 2012 Members Share Posted October 17, 2012 The Air Norton is basically a Tone Zone with a little less output. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members thecornman Posted October 17, 2012 Members Share Posted October 17, 2012 Originally Posted by cratz2 The Air Norton is basically a Tone Zone with a little less output. I thought that the Air Zone was basically the same as the Tone Zone with a little less output! Either way all three of them are great pickups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members billybilly Posted October 17, 2012 Members Share Posted October 17, 2012 If he wants to keep with emg's, the simple choice is to go with 85's, in particular, in the bridge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kevman Posted October 17, 2012 Members Share Posted October 17, 2012 How about a nice Invader? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Presc Posted October 17, 2012 Members Share Posted October 17, 2012 Tone Zone was the first thought that came to mind...I had one in an Ibanez RG and it was pretty thick sounding, not ice-picky in the least. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ugameus Posted October 17, 2012 Members Share Posted October 17, 2012 I have a baritone with a Lollar Firebird in the bridge position. It sounds huge, not thin at all. I don't play metal with it, but hard rock is not a problem. Granted, when I want higher gain, I play it (and anything else) through a "hot rodded plexi" type amp that is a BEAST. I let the amp do all the work. I can easily get metal tones with PAF style buckers through it. I like the Firebird because it retains some clarity I can't get with traditional humbuckers. That being said, if I wanted a "metal" guitar, I would probably get a hellarails or hellabucker from BG Pups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Unclemeat Posted October 18, 2012 Members Share Posted October 18, 2012 Dimarzio Tone Zone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Spike Li Posted October 18, 2012 Members Share Posted October 18, 2012 Originally Posted by billybilly If he wants to keep with emg's, the simple choice is to go with 85's, in particular, in the bridge. +1Seeing as how EMGs are solderless, this is a really simple mod to make, just unplug the 81, plug in the 85 and youre good to go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Pizza Combo Posted October 18, 2012 Members Share Posted October 18, 2012 Originally Posted by billybilly If he wants to keep with emg's, the simple choice is to go with 85's, in particular, in the bridge. +1If an 85 in the bridge can't do the job nothing will Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members vablows Posted October 18, 2012 Members Share Posted October 18, 2012 I have never heard of a dense wood guitar (I am assuming it is mahogany or maple) with an EMG 81 in the bridge that sounds thin. I think the amp is the culprit here, not the pickup. What amp are you using? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members honeyiscool Posted October 18, 2012 Members Share Posted October 18, 2012 A baritone, huh. Those things can often sound too thin. Good luck with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mind Riot Posted October 18, 2012 Author Members Share Posted October 18, 2012 Originally Posted by vablows I have never heard of a dense wood guitar (I am assuming it is mahogany or maple) with an EMG 81 in the bridge that sounds thin.I think the amp is the culprit here, not the pickup.What amp are you using? Mahogany is not a dense wood. This guitar is made out of mostly jatoba with a hickory back, and padauk fretboard. Jatoba is one of the hardest, heaviest, and densest woods in the world.This is not my guitar we're discussing, I wouldn't make a guitar out of those woods. I predicted to my friend that it may end up sounding too bright and brittle, but it wasn't my build. I helped on it, I did all the neck shaping and fret and nut work, but it's not my guitar.At the moment I believe all my friend has as an amp is a Line 6 Spider IV. But this is all kind of moot, as after I made this thread my friend decided he's going to sell the guitar in question. Thanks to everybody for your suggestions and help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kevman Posted October 18, 2012 Members Share Posted October 18, 2012 * note to self* dont build a solid body w jatoba. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeadNight Warrior Posted October 19, 2012 Members Share Posted October 19, 2012 Originally Posted by IbanezJon I am not a huge fan of it but sounds like this is what a Tone Zone is for? Yeah, I don't think anyone has ever uttered the words, "This Tone Zone sounds a bit thin." Whether it's the kind of thickness/sound he wants is another matter, but the TZ is definitely a good one for fattening up a thinner sounding guitar. That said, maybe the thing is beyond saving. Acoustically speaking, is it that there's some lows and mids 'n' whatnot, but just too much treble on top of it all? Or is it more that it's pretty much just all treble and there's no body in the sound? If it's just the former, I imagine it's quite manageable. If it's the latter... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Krank'N Posted October 19, 2012 Members Share Posted October 19, 2012 Check the battery AND the pup height. Emg's are sensitive to height. Also swapping to heavier gauge strings will help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members elscorcho140 Posted October 19, 2012 Members Share Posted October 19, 2012 I'm going to make a plug for the turtle boy. It can turn a thin sounding Jag-stang into a 71 Tele deluxe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gdsmithtx Posted October 19, 2012 Members Share Posted October 19, 2012 Tone Zone, Norton or Duncan 59. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeliriumTrigger Posted October 19, 2012 Members Share Posted October 19, 2012 EMG 85. Quick connects, no rewiring required. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GAS Man Posted October 19, 2012 Members Share Posted October 19, 2012 If he wants to keep with emg's, the simple choice is to go with 85's, in particular, in the bridge. That would also be my first recommendation. The 85 uses an Alnico V magnet and it produces a warmer rounder tone. The 81 uses a ceramic magnet and it's a more cutting and crunchy sounding pickup. If you want to go with passive pickups, then I'd also suggest the Tone Zone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cats-o-caster Posted October 19, 2012 Members Share Posted October 19, 2012 DiMarzio Super distortion Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ChristianRock Posted October 19, 2012 Members Share Posted October 19, 2012 DiMarzio Crunch Lab. Screwed on the wood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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