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EMG BQS System

Hello. I bought an ESP Ltd. BE-5 about seven years ago, which has passive pickups and a 3-band eq active onboard preamp. Shortly after I bought it, I put EMG passive soapbars in it and I honestly did not notice a huge difference. The bass sounds good but it is a little bit quieter and less bassy than my friends' basses (unless I boost the bass). I'm thinking about switching the stock preamp with the EMG BQS System. Do you think I should expect to hear an improvement in overall tone quality compared to the stock preamp, or would I mostly just be paying for the concentric stacked sweepable mid? Thanks.
 
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EMG preamps are pretty transparent. I wouldn't expect a huge change that have you magically loving the pickups you have if you don't like them now.

I have a BQC system in 4 different basses, and with all EMG pups, but all the pups are active. But having sweepable mids in any instrument is pretty much a must for me, in addition to onboard bass and treble.

No matter what pickups you end up with, the BQC is a fantastic preamp.
 
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