Quote:
Originally Posted by Adwex
Zakk is a great (ok, really good) player, but he could be playing an ibanez, to my ears. His tone isn't "Les Paul" at all.
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Alright, while I do agree that EMG's are (generally) lacking in tone, especially when played clean, I have to disagree with this remark, which appears to slight slap at Ibanez. Yes, theyr'e considered primarily a hard rock/heavy metal brand, but they do make quality, toneful instruments. Their necks are, almost inarguably or invariably, very high quality and easy to play. The stock pickups and body materials on their high end models (yes, they still use Alder and a lot of Mahogany) is very high quality - case in point, my 2006 S Series with a single piece mahogany body.
Ironically, the one time I've played an EMG 81/85 combo extensively was on an Ibanez Prestige RG: neck-thru, hardtail, with a quality setup - and I was left wanting. I'm not bashing EMG - those pickups were very clear with distortion and could cut through the clutter when playing with a bassist, drummer, and rhythm guitarist (& more) - but their active pickups are almost one trick ponies that sound very similar in any application.