Emerald bridge review

[Lucas]

Hi, I would like to give you guys, my short review of my newest BKP - Emerald bridge.

First of all, I`m not new to BKP line, all my 4 guitars are loaded with BKPs and been using them for about 5-6 years. From all  Knuckle pickups I had I always had mixed feelings about one-CBomb, it was my first BKP pickup, but since I`ve started using my favorite Miracle Mans and Cold Sweat bridges, CBomb was nearly forgotten. It was time for change... So I bought Emerald bridge to replace Ceramic Nailbomb in my all mahogany Dean Cadillac. I never used alnico bridge as all my other guitars have ceramic bridges, plus Emerald`s reputation as extremely bright pickup were putting me off, but I bought it anyway...

So...
I must say it`s really really good pickup although it`s not so popular here. Definitely big improvement over CBomb.
First of all I would say it`s definitely not metal pickup at all, closest I can compare it to would be Cold Sweat, but CS is much tighter and more into classic metal/trash metal territory while Emerald bridge is typical mature sounding rock/hard rock one. It`s not as tight as for example Cold Sweat.
It has classic mature rock sound not too vintage and not too modern, with nice punchy mids but not too much pronounced. It`s sitting in dark sounding all mahogany Dean Cadillac but it`s not too bright, in this guitar I would say it`s really balanced with nice bottom end and highs not as much pronounced and crispy as in Cold Sweat. The best word to describe it is balance.

Big surprise was leads though. It does have really good leads, you can definitely feel alnico nature there. As I stated before, it`s not metal pickup, and it can be heard in leads too. If you`re looking for screaming metal-like leads, Cold Sweat does it better and Miracle Man even better, but in hard rock/rock/heavy blues solos Emerald bridge really shines.

What I like the most about this pickup so far is the way open chords and riffs on higher strings sound, you can play those open chords and similar riffs all night with big smile on your face.

Summing up, Emerald bridge is really good heavy blues/rock/hard rock pickup with punchy mature sound and nice leads. It`s not as precise and crisp as Cold Sweat but if you`re after rock wall of sound and don`t need really tight sound, Emerald is worth checking. Also it`s not metal pickup by any means but provides really good results in less heavy styles of music. It does have reputation of being overly bright, but in dark sounding guitars like mine it`s really balanced and fun to play.

I would really recommend it, but it has it`s limitations especially if you`re more into metal.
Lucas

[Dave Sloven]

Yes metal players who like the Emerald should probably look at the Rebel Yell instead.  Great pickup for rock and blues rock though

[Kiichi]

I added this to the big review sticky. Thanks for writing it down for us. Interesting perspective you don´t hear too often.

This is why I still lurk in the shadows here, trying to catch all the reviews....if I missed a writeup deep in some thread let me know. I want them all, but I don´t scan entire threads anymore and have not for a while.

[timmy_pix]

I would strongly disagree that the Emerald isn't a metal pickup. Maybe not typically, and maybe it's your guitar/amp combo, but it was frequently recommended for 7 strings in the earlier days of the forum, and I love mine for metal. Super tight low end with a ton of clarity under gain. Agreed, it won't scream on leads, but it's amazing for tight thrashy rhythm playing.

The Emerald is definitely most at home with classic rock - into a Marshally type drive it's instant Thin Lizzy - but it's by no means limited to that.

Could not agree more on the point of playing open chords, the bridge emerald has so much clarity and air to it, it's addictive.

I suppose it's different strokes for different folks, and maybe it just doesn't work for what you want out of a metal pickup, but it's made me suddenly find the Duncan JB in one of my other guitars flubby and loose - imminent Holydivers should fix that!

[Lucas]

Timmy, don't get me wrong I'm not saying that Emerald is a bad pickups, I really like it and I'm positively surprised by its sound. Definitely big improvement over CBomb, Emerald is definitely staying as it gives me nice addition to my current BKPs. Its really good pickup I must say.

Regarding its 'metal' capabilities it's my first alnico BKP as I was always using ceramic ones. I also have 2 Miracle Mans and Cold Sweat.
You might play metal with Emerald I suppose with tight hi gain amp, but it wouldn't be my first choice, but that's my opinion. When I've done direct comparison with Cold Sweat (in quite dark sounding Tele) Cold Sweat is much tighter and precise, but it's ceramic. Regarding trashy riffs I would definitely go for Cold Sweat. Actually for early trash, classic metal Cold Sweat would be my first choice even over Miracle Man (which is my favourite for long time).
I'm big fan of Orange amps and use TH30 (which is high gain) and Dual Terror and with both I would not call Emerald metal pickup. It's amazing for classic rock/heavy blues and rock in general, it shines here.

Also what I noticed and really really like in Emerald is 'roar' in mids, it's really in your face roar but its there and its really nice. Love that with big fat power chords.

Summing up I really like Emerald and its lovely addition to my sound and I'm positively surprised with its sound. It's fun to play and with its strongest points like open chords, that subtle roar in mids and clarity and good balanced solos for mellower styles of music it's definitely a keeper.
Amazing pickup but in my opinion for metal sounds you can find more suitable models.

[Dave Sloven]

I agree.  Cold Sweat bridge is definitely the pickup in the BKP line best suited to early thrash sounds

[Mohi]

I am waiting for a custom made srtrat with that pickup in combo with Irish Tours, can't wait!

[Lucas]

I am waiting for a custom made srtrat with that pickup in combo with Irish Tours, can't wait!

If you`re not aiming clearly for metal and your Strat will be darker sounding, you`ll be happy with Emerald bridge.

After couple of weeks of playing Emerald, I still can confirm my previous thoughts about that pickup.
Sounds good, way better than CBomb, it`s fun to play, serious mature rock tone, great clarity, nice subtle 'roar' in mids, it`s alnico DNA in solos is amazing, great lead tone, definitely good addition to my other BKPs, absolute keeper for rock/hard rock and heavy blues. If I want to play some heavier styles and go more into metal territory I still have my Cold Sweat and 2 Miracle Mans.

[stratguy23]

I think you have pretty spot on described the tone of the Emerald bridge. I have the full set in a Greco Les Paul, and I agree it really shines for classic rock and rock tones. In darker guitars, I agree with you that it is very balanced and provides the cut and crunch that can be lacking with other pickups. I’ve never played a Cold Sweat, but I did compare the Emerald with a buddy’s Juggernaut set through his Orange Rockerverb, and he and I both thought the Emerald could hold its own with the Juggs for the style my friend plays (which leans more towards metal). No it probably would not be my first choice for metal, and I am not a metal player for the most part, but I would not say it is terrible for metal with the right amps. For someone like me who is primarily playing rock/classic rock and dabbles in a little metal every now and then, it is the perfect pickup for me in a Les Paul.

[Mohi]

I am waiting for a custom made srtrat with that pickup in combo with Irish Tours, can't wait!

If you`re not aiming clearly for metal and your Strat will be darker sounding, you`ll be happy with Emerald bridge.

After couple of weeks of playing Emerald, I still can confirm my previous thoughts about that pickup.
Sounds good, way better than CBomb, it`s fun to play, serious mature rock tone, great clarity, nice subtle 'roar' in mids, it`s alnico DNA in solos is amazing, great lead tone, definitely good addition to my other BKPs, absolute keeper for rock/hard rock and heavy blues. If I want to play some heavier styles and go more into metal territory I still have my Cold Sweat and 2 Miracle Mans.

My Strat came stock with a HSS set of CBomb and Irish Tours .... and I noticed that guitar was a tad dark, the Nailbomb also being too punchy for what I liked it ... but after putting in the Emerald ... man a totally different story, it is really less bass heavy, which for my guitar was something I wanted, and it pairs really well with the Irish Tours ... I love it for medium gain and cleans (split), but occasionally used it thru high gain stuff in my Axe Fx, like Cameron Atomica, and there it sounds great ... because also are dark amps.

Could not be happier, it is definitely a keeper.