NPD: EMG TW's!

[NicJimBass]

I scored a pair of EMG 45TW's for my 6'r last week on eBay for a really good price. After some issues installing them (which have since been resolved) I have to say, these are great pickups. These are the model that allow you to switch between dual coil and single coil mode. I'm waiting for a preamp I also got on eBay, which should make the versatility of these pickups skyrocket, as right now, in a simple VVT setup, they cover a lot of ground. Both pickups in dual coil give me a nice meaty, midrangey tone that works well for mellow types of music. Both pickups in single coil mode give me the familiar J-type sound that I love and have missed for far too long. Neck pickup soloed in single coil mode give a pseudo-P-style tone... adding the bridge pickup in dual coil beefs it up really nicely, giving you the clank and hollowness of a P with more booty.

The one issue I've seen regarding this model is the volume difference between dual and single coil- yes, it's there, as (from what I understand) dual coil mode is in series and single coil mode is in parallel, so it's natural. Having had other pickups with a selector switch between S/P, I've learned to not simply dime the volume knob. If you dime it in single coil mode, dual coil's volume is about the same with the volume at about 50%. Sure there is some knob twiddling, but hey, it sounds great, so I don't mind.

I have band practice tonight and am excited to try them out in a "live" setting so see how well they do.

[Jamie_Funk]

Originally Posted by NicJimBass

I scored a pair of EMG 45TW's for my 6'r last week on eBay for a really good price. After some issues installing them (which have since been resolved) I have to say, these are great pickups. These are the model that allow you to switch between dual coil and single coil mode. I'm waiting for a preamp I also got on eBay, which should make the versatility of these pickups skyrocket, as right now, in a simple VVT setup, they cover a lot of ground. Both pickups in dual coil give me a nice meaty, midrangey tone that works well for mellow types of music. Both pickups in single coil mode give me the familiar J-type sound that I love and have missed for far too long. Neck pickup soloed in single coil mode give a pseudo-P-style tone... adding the bridge pickup in dual coil beefs it up really nicely, giving you the clank and hollowness of a P with more booty.

The one issue I've seen regarding this model is the volume difference between dual and single coil- yes, it's there, as (from what I understand) dual coil mode is in series and single coil mode is in parallel, so it's natural. Having had other pickups with a selector switch between S/P, I've learned to not simply dime the volume knob. If you dime it in single coil mode, dual coil's volume is about the same with the volume at about 50%. Sure there is some knob twiddling, but hey, it sounds great, so I don't mind.

I have band practice tonight and am excited to try them out in a "live" setting so see how well they do.

Glad you dig them!

Just to clarify - they don't switch between parallel/series. There are essentially TWO pickups in the housing - a CS dual coil, and a J - you are simply switching between the two pickups in the single case.

J

[NicJimBass]

Originally Posted by Jamie_Funk

Glad you dig them!

Just to clarify - they don't switch between parallel/series. There are essentially TWO pickups in the housing - a CS dual coil, and a J - you are simply switching between the two pickups in the single case.

J

True, but the J is actually humbucking, with a 3rd coil underneath it, and judging by the lower output, those two coils are wired in parallel, as opposed to the 2 coils that comprise the CS, which seem to be wired in series.

[PhatBasstard]

Originally Posted by NicJimBass

True, but the J is actually humbucking, with a 3rd coil underneath it, and judging by the lower output, those two coils are wired in parallel, as opposed to the 2 coils that comprise the CS, which seem to be wired in series.

Just for clarification:
http://www.emginc.com/content/wiring...s/EMG-45TW.pdf

I got a good deal on a set of these also and put them in a Spector 6 string.
I guess I should have gone with DC's because these are somewhat dark compared to my other DC equiped Spectors.
In dual coil mode they are essentially CS's so that eliminates them as an option also.
Prefer the bite and clarity of DC's. Plus, due to the volume drop (Which makes no sense as other manufacturers like Bartolini don't have this issue with their switchable single/dual coil pups. C'mon EMG, wake up!) single coil mode is worthless to me.

[tubby.twins]

Originally Posted by NicJimBass

True, but the J is actually humbucking, with a 3rd coil underneath it, and judging by the lower output, those two coils are wired in parallel, as opposed to the 2 coils that comprise the CS, which seem to be wired in series.

I think both coils are actually wired in series for the "J" mode too. But since it's a stacked humbucker in this mode, the lower coil isn't in the magnetic field and doesn't add anything to the sound. I don't think the coils were meant to run in parallel for either configuration, based on how I interpreted the wiring diagrams. You would probably need a lot more than 7 conductors and a more complex switch than a DPDT to do series/parallel switching for the internal coils.

I also believe the volume difference between the modes can be corrected by putting a resistor in series with the coils in "CS" mode only. This would effectively drop the level in "CS" mode to nearly that of "J" mode. I need to do some research to find out (1) whether this works, and (2) what resistor value gets closest to matched volume levels.

[Jamie_Funk]

Originally Posted by tubby.twins

I think both coils are actually wired in series for the "J" mode too. But since it's a stacked humbucker in this mode, the lower coil isn't in the magnetic field and doesn't add anything to the sound. I don't think the coils were meant to run in parallel for either configuration, based on how I interpreted the wiring diagrams. You would probably need a lot more than 7 conductors and a more complex switch than a DPDT to do series/parallel switching for the internal coils.

I also believe the volume difference between the modes can be corrected by putting a resistor in series with the coils in "CS" mode only. This would effectively drop the level in "CS" mode to nearly that of "J" mode. I need to do some research to find out (1) whether this works, and (2) what resistor value gets closest to matched volume levels.

IMO not balancing the volumes was an idiotic move on EMG's part. There are two solutions I think:

1. Use a resister to lower the CS output level - this has been done and documented somewhere on the Internet before

2. Use something like a PA-2 in line with the J output to MATCH the CS

If it were me, I'd want to do #2, as I have used a PA-2 before to balance output of a DC with a J. In fact, I'll soon be doing that with a 40P I'm adding in front of my 40DC (which is in the Stingray position).

J

[PhatBasstard]

Originally Posted by tubby.twins

I also believe the volume difference between the modes can be corrected by putting a resistor in series with the coils in "CS" mode only. This would effectively drop the level in "CS" mode to nearly that of "J" mode. I need to do some research to find out (1) whether this works, and (2) what resistor value gets closest to matched volume levels.

The only problem with this fix is that for people that have multiple basses with other EMG DC's, or even a DC or CS + TW in the same bass, if you bring the dual coil mode down to the level of the single coil mode, the DC's or non-resistor'd CS's will just destroy the TW by comparison in output level.
My TW's, as is, in dual coil mode have to be as close to the strings as possible to remotely match the output of my other Spector with DC's with the pups at medium height.
Both basses are running identical pre's.