EMG 808x or Blackouts?

[Vince Caruana]

The 8 string I have now has the EMG 808's(not the 808x) and the guitar I'm most likely buying comes with blackouts. I love the low end and heavy tone of the EMG 808s but the can get a bit harsh sounding at times, muddy chords with heavy distortion etc. I hear the EMG 808x cleaned up this problem and gave them a cleaner tone. The blackouts are supposed to have a cleaner tone which I like, but my problem with the blackouts is that they seem VERY midranged, although I will say they sound nice. I'm looking for the same low beefy tone of the EMG 808s I'm using now just with a little more clarity. Anybody know if there is any noticable differences between the two?

 

[HeHasTheJazzHands]

Do the 18v mod.

 

[Given To Fly]

Try the 18v mod first, if you don't like it, get the 808x's.

 

[setsuna7]

I have the 808X in my RGA. Sounds tighter than the blackout in my previous 7.

 

[cronux]

Blackouts

 

[crg123]

+1 blackouts - the only active pickups I've ever liked haha

 

[Navid]

Blackouts

 

[Jessy]

40DC X.

 

[no_dice]

I might be doing something wrong, but I have Blackouts in my SLS C-8, and they sound like they're clipping if I play too hard. I've tried 808s in several guitars and didn't like them, but I hear great things about 808Xs.

 

[Decipher]

Another vote for Blackouts here!

 

[Jessy]

I might be doing something wrong, but I have Blackouts in my SLS C-8, and they sound like they're clipping if I play too hard.

What's clipping? The pickup itself, or an amp?

It's good* for a pickup to clip an amp, because a pickup that is very loud has more potential to have a good signal-to-noise ratio. Control the output level outside of the pickup.

* Potentially good. Generally, a loud pickup just has a bunch of useless extra wire that just kills the high end.

 

[Vince Caruana]

So which one handles lows better?

 

[Jessy]

So which one handles lows better?

What do you mean by "handles"? All pickups (including single coils) reproduce low frequencies just fine. You can dial more in with EQ if you need it. Highs are what you need to worry about.

 

[Vince Caruana]

It just seems like every clip I see of the blackouts they are very mid ranged. I'm just going to give them a try when I order my guitar. I wish agile had the option to swap pickups and put your own gauges on like other companies.

 

[Mprinsje]

try the 18v mod first, it's cheaper than new pickups

 

[Vince Caruana]

Where would you put the extra battery just with the wiring? Wiring isn't a problem but I don't really wanna chop up my guitar ya know?

 

[Jessy]

It just seems like every clip I see of the blackouts they are very mid ranged.

I don't disagree. I bet they have more wire than EMGs, which would lower their resonant peak. You can make an EMG sound like a Blackout with EQ, but the reverse doesn't work. However, you can dial out the midrange of any pickup. Whether that leaves you with weak highs or not is dependent on the pickup.

 

[Vince Caruana]

Thanks for the feedback. You know if their is any noticable difference between the 808x and blackouts?

 

[brutus627]

im getting my 5150 back from the shop and im going to be able to a/b/c the 808, 808x, and the blackout. im excited to see how they compare to eachother because i have gone 808 vs blackout but not all three. originally i loved emg's but was converted to the blackouts because i thought the blackout had much more of a passive feel with the active responsiveness than the 808 (makes the F go dur instead of bow to my ears ). i cant wait to try the 808x to see how it is up against the blackout because i what i always noticed 707 vs blackout, was that the blackout was a lot brighter and had much more of that angry bite that i love. going back and forth from the blackout to the 707 i would have to crank things like presence and highs to get it back with the 707.

 

[Corrosion]

18v mod, and put that spare in the control cavity. I did it, and will be keeping my emg 808s in the RGA8 forever.