Question about wiring EMGs

[Screwhead]

Hey, I just got an EMG 81-7x, which I want to put in the bridge of my 7 string. Thing is, I've got two pickups to replace, but can only afford to do them one at a time.

What would be the best way to do it? I'm figuring I should completely remove both of them, then install the EMG in the bridge, but here's what I'm not 100% on; should I wire it as a single pickup for now, and rewire everything when I get the second pickup, or could I wire it with the three-way toggle so that when I get the new pickup, it just slots in and I have a couple wires to stick into the board and that's it.

The main thing I'm unsure/worried about is that I know the pickups get power from the battery. Not knowing much about electronics, I'm PRETTY sure that, from looking at the diagram, no power goes through the selector switch, so it SHOULD be fine to wire it with the whole switcher board and just have one pickup installed.. Would make the switch work sort of like a kill switch, right? There's no chance I could be causing a short somewhere that might fry anything?

Thanks for any help!

 

[Zhysick]

Yes, exactly as you say. Wire it with the switch and all that, it will act as a kill switch for the moment then you will need just the pickup and the wire to power it up and for the signal.

So... If you do it this way you get a free Killswitch, what's not to like?


No risks

 

[Screwhead]

Awesome, thanks! Set it all up, now to wait a few weeks before I get the second pickup..

Now, if only I'd done some reading before jumping onto EMGs.. I'm going to be primarily playing Doom metal, and suddenly, my fuzz sounds like shit, even though it's the Behringer SF300 which is buffered..

 

[Muzz]

You will need a different set of EQ settings. I dunno what pickups you used to have, chances are EMGs have a higher output.

 

[Screwhead]

You will need a different set of EQ settings. I dunno what pickups you used to have, chances are EMGs have a higher output.

Yeah, from what I've been reading, the issue is with impedance and buffers; Fuzz pedals interact with your pickups and volume/tone circuit, and are designed for high-impedance outputs, whereas the EMGs have both a low-impedance output AND a buffer, so the Fuzz can't "loop back" into your guitar to interact with it the way it should.

I think, if I understand correctly, that getting/making a small circuit like this and running it just before the Fuzz would work in restoring some of the tone/fuzz characteristics, but I'm also reading that just in general EMG 81 pickups just don't seem to agree with fuzz pedals..

Since I don't have a neck pickup yet, I think the real question is going to be "which EMG neck pickup could I get that would sound good with a fuzz while using a pedal emulator circuit".. which, from doing a decent amount of googling, no one has really asked/answered a question like that..

 

[jonsick]

I would potentially suggest making life a little easier on yourself and potentially go back to passive pickups? Or research a fuzz pedal that will play nice with low impedance pickups like EMG.

 

[Screwhead]

I would potentially suggest making life a little easier on yourself and potentially go back to passive pickups? Or research a fuzz pedal that will play nice with low impedance pickups like EMG.

Yeah, I've done some looking around, and emailed BKP after seeing that they had a "no poles" option in the pickup customization, and it turns out they also have a 10 degree angled plate in the Accessories section that you can add to make them angled.. coupled with the soapbar cover, I have things sorted out! Gonna get a pair of 7 string Warpigs!

 

[Zhysick]

Do Warpigs sound good with fuzz pedals? I have never tried a fuzz pedal (is a kind of sound I don't like to the point I haven't even tried just for the sake of trying) but from all I have read here and there fuzz pedals are supposed to like single coil/brighter low output pickups... The warpig is hot and thick with lots of bass response.

I have no fucking clue, for real, just trying to learn something here

 

[jonsick]

Do Warpigs sound good with fuzz pedals? I have never tried a fuzz pedal (is a kind of sound I don't like to the point I haven't even tried just for the sake of trying) but from all I have read here and there fuzz pedals are supposed to like single coil/brighter low output pickups... The warpig is hot and thick with lots of bass response.

I have no fucking clue, for real, just trying to learn something here

I have two fuzz pedals... to be honest, I just didn't like either of them. Maybe it was due to me using EMGs? Either way, I don't really have any notion to crack them back out.