Best BKP for low tunings?

[BRNexus7]

 I tune to C# and B-Standard and I'm looking for a passive pickup that can handle those tunings as well as an EMG-81.

 I've been using EMG-81 pickups for about 10 yrs now and I think its time to check something else out, specifically something passive. I hate having to deal with batteries.  I know everyone makes fun of EMG's for not being dynamic pickups, but I'm not playing Blues, or Jazz, so dynamics really aren't that important to me. I just need a tight, articulate and crunchy pickup.

 Any recommendation will be highly appreciative. Thanks.

 

[Slartibartfarst42]

The obvious one would be the Black Hawks but others that would be worth looking at would be the Aftermath and Juggernaut. All are very tight and aggressive and suit your style.

[CommonCourtesy]

I've got an Aftermath in my main band guitar, a Gibson LP studio in drop c tuning. It sounds great and you still get the clarity and punch of the chords or riffs/notes whilst sounding beefy! I've also got a Nailbomb in my backup guitar which is brighter and more zingy, still sounds great.

[Toe-Knee]

I've been using EMG-81 pickups for about 10 yrs now and I think its time to check something else out, specifically something passive. I hate having to deal with batteries.

You hate having to change a battery once a year if that?

Regarding bkps.

The Miracle man will have the top end saturation & aggressive lower mids that you are used to.

The aftermath is tight but dry and has a big upper mid spike.

I've only briefly played a Blackhawk and found it to be a buzzy mess.

None of the above will be as tight as the 81 but they are different flavours of high gain that you may enjoy.

I have no experience with the Juggernaut yet and I probably never will as it sounds very tubby & honky in all of the clips that i've heard.

[Slartibartfarst42]

Regarding bkps.

The Miracle man will have the top end saturation & aggressive lower mids that you are used to.

The aftermath is tight but dry and has a big upper mid spike.

I've only briefly played a Blackhawk and found it to be a buzzy mess.

None of the above will be as tight as the 81 but they are different flavours of high gain that you may enjoy.

I have no experience with the Juggernaut yet and I probably never will as it sounds very tubby & honky in all of the clips that i've heard.

Weird! Although I've not played all of those models, that's almost exactly the same as I tend to view them, though not as harsh on the Black Hawk  :D

[Toe-Knee]

Regarding bkps.

The Miracle man will have the top end saturation & aggressive lower mids that you are used to.

The aftermath is tight but dry and has a big upper mid spike.

I've only briefly played a Blackhawk and found it to be a buzzy mess.

None of the above will be as tight as the 81 but they are different flavours of high gain that you may enjoy.

I have no experience with the Juggernaut yet and I probably never will as it sounds very tubby & honky in all of the clips that i've heard.

Weird! Although I've not played all of those models, that's almost exactly the same as I tend to view them, though not as harsh on the Black Hawk  :D

To be fair I played it into a JCM900 dual reverb which is a buzzy mess itself.

I would like to play one through my own amps.

[Kiichi]

Regarding bkps.

The Miracle man will have the top end saturation & aggressive lower mids that you are used to.

The aftermath is tight but dry and has a big upper mid spike.

I've only briefly played a Blackhawk and found it to be a buzzy mess.

None of the above will be as tight as the 81 but they are different flavours of high gain that you may enjoy.

I have no experience with the Juggernaut yet and I probably never will as it sounds very tubby & honky in all of the clips that i've heard.

Weird! Although I've not played all of those models, that's almost exactly the same as I tend to view them, though not as harsh on the Black Hawk  :D

To be fair I played it into a JCM900 dual reverb which is a buzzy mess itself.

I would like to play one through my own amps.

I would think playing it through one of your own would make a huge difference. I have heard many good things about the BH and some criticism also, but buzzy was not among them. I am not saying you would like them (I have a hard time wrapping my head around your taste these days), but I a think you will not dislike em as much as you currently do once you play them through a proper rig.

I was myself tempted by the BH and its qualitys, mainly as an alternative to the AM, which I still own and will try in a baritone axe as I see it fitting there, but when the jugg was introduced it was kinda described as getting rid of main complaints of the AM and my fears of the BH, so I am very open to that one still.

[littleredguitars2]

personally, all the clips i've heard of the black hawk lately sound amazing.

[Slartibartfarst42]

Of the Black Hawk, Aftermath and Juggernaut, I can see the application for the first two even though they're not to my personal taste. I suppose I'm most disappointed in the Juggernaut because everything about it suggests it's right up my street yet I still haven't come across a clip I like.

[Toe-Knee]

I would think playing it through one of your own would make a huge difference. I have heard many good things about the BH and some criticism also, but buzzy was not among them. I am not saying you would like them (I have a hard time wrapping my head around your taste these days), but I a think you will not dislike em as much as you currently do once you play them through a proper rig.

It's pretty simple.

1, Controlled low end
2, Does everything I want just going straight into the amp
3, Costs £100 Max

I still love the MM just the EMG JH set works far better in that guitar. And the Aftermath too it just isn't very compatible with my SLO clone as it's just like a high mid overdose. Now that the MkIIC+ is done i'd happily grab a second hand one.

[Lucas]

I suppose I'm most disappointed in the Juggernaut because everything about it suggests it's right up my street yet I still haven't come across a clip I like.

As far as I remember, few days ago, someone here meant to record some more classic clips with Juggs. Did I miss it?

[Lucas]

Look what I found, I know it`s still modern metal but gives you an idea anyway.
Comparison between Black Hawk and Juggs in C standard tuning.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wOUAcGBpws


To be honest, in that case I like Juggs far way more, it`s not as loose and sterile. Sounds more organic and pleasant to my ears (I might say it due to the fact that Im not the biggest EMG fan :lol:)

[Dave Sloven]

I preferred the Black Hawks, to me they sound more 'metal' ... I also think that he made more mistakes in the first clip than in the second, which makes the BH clip sound a bit worse than otherwise.

[Lucas]

Well, it`s quite subjective.
Yes, they are mistakes in the first clip but I was paying no attention to them, was more focused on the tone itself.

What really put me off in the BH clip was those higher strings jumping out and taking the chord over while he was playing E minor chord. Juggs in that case seem to be more balanced. BH seems to be a bit more messy as well, shame that he didn`t play proper leads because to that point I liked that fluidity of Juggs better. But it`s only my subjective opinion.

[Slartibartfarst42]

I preferred the Juggernauts without a doubt in that clip. It was just much 'bigger' sounding and more organic. However, it still seemed a bit too tight, aggressive and dry for my tastes. I'd love to hear it doing 80s Metal and hear how that more modern twist affects it.