Emerald for drop C riffage???

[BWofDOOM]

I'm kind of drawn to this pickup because of the name. I have a feeling is in someway connected to the killer rock 'n' roll tune by Thin Lizzy. Maybe? I'm not sure. What I am sure about is that I'm considering dropping one in the bridge position of my main guitar.  I tune to drop C and the guitar is an Ibanez RG 655M prestige with a basswood body, maple neck/fingerboard, and bolt-on construction. I've seen a youtube video or two of this pickup kicking serious butt in a modern metal context, but metal isn't listed on the BKP website as an 'application' for this pup. I was thinking that the large amount of high end that they have (at least according to the tone graph on the BKP website) would work well with a guitar tuned down to drop C. Or would it be too shrill, considering the bolt-on neck that is completely maple except two very thin stripes of walnut?

Thanks a million for any suggestions or shared experience with this pickup model. It is greatly appreciated.

[Kiichi]

I´ve been becoming a lurker here, and it pains me (life took over), but I do drop in sometimes to watch. Now I have one I immediately feel I can contribute to.

With the Thin Lizzy reference you are of course spot on. Also with your idea for metal though.

Back when I was new here the Emerald bridge was hailed for modern metal dropped tuned stuff. Including the forums own Nolly of Red Seas Fire and stuff (also most of the demo tracks).
Due to the high end and the tight bottom it does work for that style....in certain conditions. That is imho why BKP does not list it as a metal pickup off the bat.
You know how a lot of a metal amps do that thing where they give you that lovely low end and mid thing with the high end a bit tuned down? Even a bit mid scooped? The Emerald works with those for modern metal like a charm (assuming the guitar is not ways off and if your RG is somewhere in the middle field it should work).

A classicly voiced amp will produce classic tones, from Lizzy to 80s hair metal and up, but never modern. Modern sounding amp and drop tuning though....a machine.

On top of that, in the right conditions it will nail the sound while setting itself apart through character. A certain spark of the origin times of modern metal. I love that myself.

So, in short, yeah, the Emerald can work for that. Can, but may not. Depends...

[BWofDOOM]

I'm liking the idea of getting one of these more and more. That's awesome about the pickups namesake. I thought I was really going out on a limb to even think that. Thanks for your input!

[Dave Sloven]

Yeah in drop C or lower through something like an ENGL I can see the Emerald working very well.  It will be tight in the bottom end and have plenty of upper mids.

[Slartibartfarst42]

The Emerald will indeed do what you're after. I can see why it's in the Vintage Hot range because it has a very strong dose of Classic Rock character so you can hear the PAF DNA in it but it's so bright and so tight that it lends itself very well to modern styles and dropped tunings. The reason I like it for that application is because most people looking for a modern style go with something ceramic and hot and therefore rather generic and soulless in my opinion. The Emerald offers you something different. You get all of the glorious tone of alnico magnets and that lovely hairy Rock aggression that comes with 43AWG wire but because it's not wound ridiculously hot, you retain a clarity that is often difficult to find in pickups usually used for this style. I used to always go for hot pickups and wouldn't venture out of the contemporary section but these days I find most of those pickups a bit limited a lot of the time. The Vintage Hot section is something that is not exploited enough by people in my opinion so now I would tend to look at the Vintage Hot pickups and some of the lighter wound contemporary pickups. As well as the wonders of the Emerald, the Black Dog can be highly effective at a range of styles and the Abraxas is arguably better at doing 80's Metal than the Holydiver. More people should explore this section and BKP should do more to exploit this category rather than churning out yet more Djent/modern pickups.

[BWofDOOM]

I don't have an ENGL. I play through a 5150 iii. Do you still think it would be a winning pickup considering that?

[Dave Sloven]

Definitely.  ENGL, Peavey, EVH, Mesa, any kind of high-gain amp like that, into a fairly crunchy cab (e.g., a 412 with V30s).

[BWofDOOM]

Sounds like the Emerald is going to be the one! Hehe!

[BWofDOOM]

Just placed the order for an Emerald in a raw nickel cover. Thanks everyone!

[Dave Sloven]

Please report on the results when you have the chance

[BWofDOOM]

^^^I'm not the most articulate when it comes to describing tone with words. However, I will try to remember to come back and give my thoughts on the sounds I get from the emerald bridge pickup. Again, thanks for the help. Although I knew the benefits of using a lesser output pup for metal/hard rock, I really wasn't looking too hard towards something like the Emerald. The verdict is still out there, but I foresee a winner in the Emerald for what I'm trying to do.

Also, I listened to the Thin Lizzy Jailbreak record last night. If the Emerald can capture that snarl that is on those guitar sounds from that album (and also give me a modern tone with some added vintage tonal charm), then I'm already a happy camper! Holy smokes that whole album is awesome. I had forgotten! Haha.

[BWofDOOM]

Hey all! I got the Emerald bridge installed in my RG. The single most impressive thing about this pickup is that I can use the red channel on my 5150 III set to rip faces and take it down to a pretty convincing clean tone all with the guitar's volume pot. Crazy useful. Also, she has so much great tone in clean and maximum butt kick situations. I was worried that it would be too shrill for anything over D standard/drop C. Was I ever wrong. The tech that I got to install the pup put what feels like a 10 gauge set on the guitar (i usually play 11s with a low 52). So, I put it into drop D for giggles. And it kills everything in its path. Just sounds solid. Thanks again for the help out there. I love this thing!

[Slartibartfarst42]

Great to hear it's working out for you. When I tried an Emerald bridge I thought it had a wonderful tone but I put it into a PRS SE Custom 24 and it was sadly way too bright in there, especially as I was in either standard or Eb standard tuning and at the time I think I was using a Marshall DSL, which was nothing like dark enough to tame the highs. The Emerald neck was godly in there but I always felt the bridge either needed to be used in a dark Les Paul or in the sort of application you're using it for. It's great to see such an unsung hero finally getting some love.