Active vs passive -- help me out

[Ron7strings]

i know there have been several posts on this topic but i still done seem to get my answers from there..

I'll be buying my 1st 7 string and I am at my wits end deciding on which one should i go for.. I have zeroed down to 3 guitars Ibby RGD7421 vs RGIR27FEBK vs RGA7 based on the reviews. The major prob is i dont have the option to try out any of these guitars.

The tuning i'll be playing in is drop A and i am looking for a heavy deathcore sound (impending doom, whitechapel, suicide silence).

The RGDs come with stock passive pickups and as far as i heard they sound crap. On the other hand RGA7 comes with stock active pickups and mahogany body. Now, i wont be able to swap the pickups immediately after buying the guitar but might think of doing it a bit later.

So if any of you have played any of these, please suggest as to which one i should go for.. Since i am not able to try out any of these, i am completely banking on your reviews.

 

[Taikatatti]

I had same issue couple months ago, and got rg927fx premium. Stock pickups suck (as always in ibanez guitars) but i swapped them to SD invader 7 set. I'm playing same stuff as you in drop A and these are the best passive pups i have ever tried. So go for a guitar with passive stock pups and swap them later. Iron label series comes with emg:s if i remember right. I don't like actives that much so i decided to go with that. Go with guitar you like the most. Picups should not be reason ehe selecting a guitar, you can always swap them to something else

Sorry for a really clumsy english

 

[Ron7strings]

Thanks for the advice.. but then again i am really confused about the guitar body and pickup that would compliment my kind of sound.

The RGD has a basswood body and passive pickups and RGA has a mahogany body with actives. So any idea which wood/pickup combo would be best to achive that heavy deathcore sound?

 

[Taikatatti]

Both will suit in that genre. It's more about your playing style and your amp. I would be looking for a rg927, it's little bit more expensive but really good quality guitar. And as i said, you can swap the pups afterwards. You will manage with stock picups for a while. All of those are great guitars.

 

[RuffeDK]

>RG7421 (2013)
>DiMarzio D-Activator 7
>???
>profit

I personally find the typical super-strat (RG) body more comfortable than most archtops (ie. RGA). If you want a longer scale, go with the RGD7421. I havn't had the opportunity to try one out, but I hear great things about it.

Hope it helps!

EDIT: As for the actual pickups lol I prefer passive humbucker-sized pickups, due to the fact of wider selection in this size. You can always throw a pair of Seymour Duncan Blackout Phase 1 in your guitar if you want active pickups later down the road. I have a SD BO in one of my RG1527 and it sounds great

 

[UV7BK4LIFE]

i know there have been several posts on this topic but i still done seem to get my answers from there..

I'll be buying my 1st 7 string and I am at my wits end deciding on which one should i go for.. I have zeroed down to 3 guitars Ibby RGD7421 vs RGIR27FEBK vs RGA7 based on the reviews. The major prob is i dont have the option to try out any of these guitars.

The tuning i'll be playing in is drop A and i am looking for a heavy deathcore sound (impending doom, whitechapel, suicide silence).

The RGDs come with stock passive pickups and as far as i heard they sound crap. On the other hand RGA7 comes with stock active pickups and mahogany body. Now, i wont be able to swap the pickups immediately after buying the guitar but might think of doing it a bit later.

So if any of you have played any of these, please suggest as to which one i should go for.. Since i am not able to try out any of these, i am completely banking on your reviews.

You can buy the RGIR27FEBK and blast away without needing to replace the pickups. The RGA7 sounds great with an EMG 81-7x in the bridge, I had one with that pickup. But the RGA's stock pickups sound like farts and snorts.

If you like Whitechapel and Suicide Silence, they alltogether have 5 awesome and affordable signature guitars out. Why not get one of those?

 

[Jes]

I used to have an RGA7 and the pickups are shit

 

[GiveUpGuitar]

I have an RGD7421. Yes, the pickups suck, but that should not be surprising if you've ever tried an Ibanez. I think that the guitar is extremely well made, and I have recommended it on these forums before. If you're judging your first Ibanez 7 on what type of pickups it has, do more research. The only thing that should matter is the routing/what pickups you will put in it later on.

 

[leechmasterargentina]

I had the same doubt last year when I was about to buy a new guitar, and I wasn't going to have the chance to try it. At first I was going to got for a 6 string RGA, but the bass player of my band told me to watch out, that the sound is completely different, etc etc.

After spending some time reading about passive vs. active online, I came to the conclusion than the benefits are not as good/noticeable as in bass instruments. Finally, I decided to go for a RG827QMZ which is a great guitar and came with passive pickups.

As regards to RGA guitars, I've heard that the active pickups included in this guitar are even more crappy than Ibanez passive stock pickups, which led me to even stay further away from active stock pickups.

This year I had the chance to upgrade pickups, so based on suggestions from this forum, I bought a D-Activator (Bridge) for my RG827QMZ. I know many people hate Ibanez pickups, but I've been able to record and play very well with them for a decade on my 6 string RG470 until I swapped it for a D-Sonic. As to my RG827QMZ, I consider stock pickups to be decent, they sounded better than the stock pickups in my RG470. After the swap for the D-Activator 7 (Bridge), I must say it was my best pickup swap ever.

I'd say that if you haven't truly tested active pickups sound to know whether they are for you or not, a good choice would be to buy a guitar with passive pickups and swap them for D-Activators. What I like about them is that they have a definite and responsive attack, while the quality compared to stock is increased; the sound is great and they live up their reputation. I don't know if they can be compared to active pickups, but I like the way they keep the organic sound, and I guess that after 18 years of passive pickup usage, I guess that for now I'll stay in that ground. Maybe someday when I have the funds to buy a guitar with active pickups and replace them for blackouts for example, I can give them a try. But I'm happy with my RG827QMZ with the D-Activator on the bridge

 

[VBCheeseGrater]

. You will manage with stock picups for a while. All of those are great guitars.

This. The suckiness of the stock pickups is a bit blown out of proportion IMO. I found the ibanez actives to be pretty good in a 6 string artist model, but i've heard the 7 strings variants are not the same and basically suck. I'd want to try them for myself before writing them off. There's nothing that says the stock pups can't be exactly the tone you're after. It's not like you won't be able to gig with 'em or anything.

 

[MetalBuddah]

^ I totally agree with both posts above.

Right now I am rocking the stock pickups on my RG7421 and they really aren't that bad at all. They may not be exactly what I am looking for tone-wise, but I can fix that in my signal chain on my Kemper or in my DAW.

If I was in your shoes, I would go with the Iron Label 7 string. The EMGs that come stock are actually quite good for the genre/sound you are looking for and if you don't like them, you can get the new Seymour Duncan passives in active housing.

 

[kris_jammage]

As UV7BK4LIFE said, the Whitechapel and Suicide Silence guys all have signature guitars out, with the LTD AW-7 being the most popular. Have you given any though to getting one of those?

They come stock with an awesome selection of pickups. For Whitechapel, the AW-7 and ZH-7 come with Dimarzio D'Activators (the ZH-7 did have EMG's, but the newer models have D'Activators) and the BS-7 has a Dimarzio Crunchlab/Liquifire combo.

I think both guys from Suicidce Silence use EMG's and their sigs come with 81-7/707 combos, although I stand to be corrected on that!

 

[9unslin9er]

I don't favor one over the other.

I never had any luck with EMG81's. I found them way too sterile. More recently I acquired a set of 707's in my Jackson and they are boss.

I have a love hate relationship with passives too. One the one hand, they offer more character. On the other, it's a lot of work finding one that will work with your particular rig or playing style.

Pickups react as much to your fingerwork as they do your amp/interface. It's both expensive and a headache.

 

[teamSKDM]

Buy a used rg7621. Made in Japan pre prestige that comes stock with dimarzios (and most will have replaced the already stock dimarzios)

 

[Curt]

As UV7BK4LIFE said, the Whitechapel and Suicide Silence guys all have signature guitars out, with the LTD AW-7 being the most popular. Have you given any though to getting one of those?

They come stock with an awesome selection of pickups. For Whitechapel, the AW-7 and ZH-7 come with Dimarzio D'Activators (the ZH-7 did have EMG's, but the newer models have D'Activators) and the BS-7 has a Dimarzio Crunchlab/Liquifire combo.

I think both guys from Suicidce Silence use EMG's and their sigs come with 81-7/707 combos, although I stand to be corrected on that!

Chris uses the 81-7/60-7, and Mark uses the 81-7/707.

But I would say the 707/60-7 will likely net you the most versatility with actives.

If you are going with passives, the Seymour Duncan Distortion/Jazz is a really good option to consider, as well.

 

[Forkface]

Get an rgd, replace the pickups with d activators, and win forever.

 

[Given To Fly]

I rarely say this, but after looking at each guitar, I think you should base your decision off looks. Seriously though, you can find great passive and great active aftermarket pickups and each guitar is a two humbucker, 24 fret superstrat. You can't go wrong with either of the three guitars. I might give a slight edge to the Iron Label because it already has EMG's which means you may not need to change anything.

 

[Hajtosek]

As far as i know you can have both active and passive Pickups connected with Merlin Pickups lowrider ( little bit hard to find. Check merlinpickups.com ). You can always by external preamp such as SD modular preamp

I hope this will help you.

 

[djentbojangle]

I'm using a RG7321 (basswood body, maple neck) with a Dimarzio D Activator 7 in the bridge. Sounds killer. I play in drop a and this thing sounds great for pretty much anything. Even cleans are nice when coil tapped.

 

[Andromalia]

Rule one: don't care if a pickup is active or passive, just decide if you love how it sounds or not. ^^