EMG 707

This review actually concerns the 707TW, the switchable version of the 707 (so it's actually a 7-string version of the 89), which comes with a designated push-pull pot to load the alternative single-coil sound. Or EMG's version of it anyway. The 707 is the 7-string version of the 85, an active (which means it needs a 9V battery) alnico loaded pickup. I'm sure it's been written here a zillion times before, but I'm doing it again anyway just in case. First, the dimensions are beyond those of a regular passive pickup so it's not a replacement unless you're ready to give your guitar a routing job. Second, the 707 needs pots in its circuit with a conciderably lower impedance, 25kOhm, than the 250 or 500 kOhm pots that passive pickups are fitted with.

I retrofitted two 707TW's in a Schecter Blackjack ATX, which came standard with Seymour Duncan Blackouts. While I liked the organic, almost jazzy tone of the SD's, I found these having too much emphasis on the lo-mids, and lacking treble signature in spite of the ebony keys the guitar is fitted with. In other words, I was looking for more definition while retaining the organic sound feel the SD's provided. I tried an 81-7 in the bridge position, but didn't like the outcome for the resulting sound being too harsh in nature for me. After some more soldering, the 707TW's gave me what I was looking for.

This pickup delivers an copious amount of output compared to passive pickups, which means that applying it involves readjusting your rig to the specifics of the 707 to get the ultimate results. Switching to single-coil mode eases this significantly, but also drastically changes the overall sound your guitar will produce. In humbucking mode, I'd characterize the sound as even, with a nice crispy edge, well defined but not overly pronounced mid and warm but not muddy or even bassy lows. It's also unforgiving in that any technical flaw while playing will shine through in its fullest demise. Switching to single coil will result in a gain-drop, and a more scooped type of sound.

I've been playing guitar since my early teens - and I'm almost 50 now, currently semi-professionally involved in metalcore. I've accumulated more stuff over the years than I care to summarize here now, but my active rig is all rackmounted and includes two BagEnd 12" cabinets, Peavey Classic 50/50 power amp, Engl 530 tube pre-amp, H&K Attax tube pre-amp, TC G-Force effects unit, BBE Sonic Maximizer, Rocktron Hush Super C noisegate and Rocktron Patchmate 8, and a Roland FC-200 floorboard. The EMG 707TW gives me everything I want, given the constellation it's applied in as I described above. It delivers devastating chunks when palm-muted, pinch harmonics are so easy they almost come inadvertently, harmonics shine through wonderfully even with heavily saturated (tube-)distortion and the sound is open, direct and with a clear 'ring' when played clean, provided that the amp is properly adjusted.

I'd take them again in a heartbeat - in a mahogany guitar with ebony keays and on a tube driven rig.

Active humbucker for 7 strings only.

Put 2 on the bridge and neck of my RG 1527, replacing the old stock ones that come with it.

Rusty Cooley uses these badboys.

The stock pickups on the 1527 aren't really great and tend to be muddy in the bottom strings. I wanted an upgrade.

The output level is phenomenal. I am using a Marshall MG30DFX, nothing too fancy. The tone of the pickups are very balanced and they can handle anything very well. If your chugging away on the bottom or if your shredding it up at the top these pickups won't go off track even on clean they sound fantastic. The distortion isn't huge though. It seems like it's trying to be too versatile and theres no real speciality group that can have this recommended for.

If these got lost of broke id get some more without another thought. Unless they brought out something better somehow.

I've been playing three years but am only a kid and have financial issues. It's taken me years to save up for this combo and I don't even have a really good amp yet.

This pickup has taken my RG1527, which if any of you have will know is a machine and has turned it into a monster. My axe has become absolutely unstoppable.

Read all specs in other reviews. I may have reviewed this pickup before but I'm doing it again because I recently added the 18 volt modification and my opinion changed about these things.

I have this in a Schecter Damien 7 in the bridge, though I have used in in the neck tool. Right now I have an 81-7 in the neck position. I put the actives in the replace the stock EMG HZ passive pickups that came stock in the guitar. The reason for the swap out was that the HZ's are complete crap. Don't get me wrong...I love passive pickups. I've got Duncans in my other guitars and they rule. But the HZ's are just all around horrible pickups. They had no sustain at all and sound completely sterile. The only thing they were good for was a sharp attack because of the ceramic magnet. The 707 is a much better sound and feel. So is the 81-7.

Like I said above, I recently did the 18v mod to the pickups in my guitar and my opinion about them changed a bit. I was never really satisfied with the tone I got from my EMG's before. They used to really lack dynamic when I'd play hard...kind of like having a compressor on with the threshold set too low. They also gave me an insane amount of feedback through my live rig at performance volumes that I never get with my other, passive equiped guitars. I'll put it to you this way; at 15 feet away from my amp(B52 AT 100 watt head with 4x12 cab) and facing away from it, the EMG's would give me rediculous, uncontolable feedback with my OD channel on(and I only set my gain at about 12 o'clock). My Duncan equiped guitars, however, I can stand directly in front of the amp - FACING IT - and I get dead silence as long as I have the strings muted.
Anyway, I ended up only using the my Damien guitar for home recording since it was still pretty quiet in front of a computer screen. Although I still had the same problem with the tone being sort of 'choked' sounding.
Anyway, I just did the upgrade modification from 9 to 18 volts and I have to say the tone is much better. This mod won't really make the pickups sound more brutal or anything but you get more clarity and the punch seems bigger since it is less compressed now.
As for the 707 itself, the tone is very decent. I'd say it is similar to a Duncan JB as far as the frequencies it pushes. There might be a little bit more sustain in the 707's due to them being active, but again, this is probably why I got all that feedback too. Compared to the 81-7, the 707 is warmer in the low end which make them better for clean playing IMO. They also have a little less upper mid-range which make them darker. The 81-7 might cut through a little more because they have that ceramic magnet bright presnece to them while the 707 has the Alnico 5 sweetness.

EMG gets some flak for their 'compressed' tone but they are decent pickups for certain applications, especially for studio recording due to their lack of noise. And with the 18 volt mod they can stand up against other high end pups. I'm still not sure if I'd trust them for live stuff because of all the feedback but I certainly wouldn't throw them away all together. And while most people assume they are purely for extreme metal I actually find that their tone is great for clean playing applications like jazz. However, i've been playing for 14 years - mostly progressive metal - and I've found that I generally prefer my passive Duncans for live situations.
I am really not sure why these pickups don't come set up to run on 18 volts since they sound so much better that way. Maybe because its hard to fit two batteries in the control cavities of most guitars. I've read that their maximum capacity is actually 27 volts. I think a lot more people would like EMGs if they heard them working at the efficiency they were designed for.

Pickup features: active humbucker
Impedence or other specs: N/A

Model of guitar or bass: Shecter Hellraiser C7
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: Stock
Other pickups on guitar: Emg707
Artists using this pickup: Jeff Loomis of Nevermore the guy from Fear Factory
You musical style(s): Extreme metal
Reason for pickup change: Though these were stock, one of the main reasons I got the guitar is the fact that it came with 707's. I wasn't happy with the tonal qualities of passive 7-string pickups even though I prefer them on 6 string guitars. 7 strings generally dont sound as tight at high gain.

Perceived output level: Pretty high output. A little more than my Blaze.
Tone: Pretty good balance though the mids are scooped a bit to my ear. Sterile sounding
Sonic evaluation: I run my Hellraiser into a digitech gsp2101 into a qsc power amp and finally into my peavey cabinet.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: This is the ultimate metal pickup for 7 strings hands down. Im sure it's good for other genres like rock and whatnot.

Comments: These pickups are incredible. This is coming from someone who's had the biggest grudge against EMG for years. I can't deny the sound these give and I was just plain dissatisfied with the other 7-string pickups on the market. These are the best period. Super in your face heaviness with insane clarity. What more could a metalhead ask for.

Pickup features: active humbucker
Impedence or other specs:

Model of guitar or bass: Ibanez RG 7420
Position: bridge
Pickup being replaced:
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): deathcore
Reason for pickup change:

Perceived output level:
Tone:
Sonic evaluation: This an upgrade to my first review.
I changed my setup. I purchased a Mesa Strategy 500 poweramp and a Rectocab.
Now the EMG sounds better than the SH6-7. The sound is perfect.
Plugged into ENGL Savage 60 and Thunder 50 the Seymour Duncan SH6-7 sounds better. The EMG sounds thin and sterile.
If your amplifier sounds articulate and bright don't use the EMG.
This pickup sounds best with huge bold amplifiers.
Combined with Mesa stuff especially Rectos the EMG 707 shines!

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable:

Comments: I gave 5 points before. Now 10!

Pickup features: active 7 string humbucker
Impedence or other specs:

Model of guitar or bass: Ibanez RG 7420
Position: bridge
Pickup being replaced:
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup: Fear Factory
You musical style(s): Brutal Deathcore www.kobold666.de
Reason for pickup change: I thought this was the best PU available

Perceived output level: more than stock PU's but not too hot
Tone: this thing is trebly balanced, very thin and sterile sounding bucleart very articulate and clear
Sonic evaluation: I have another Ibanez RG 7620 with Seymour Duncan SH6-7 and it sounds so much better: richer, fuller, more organic with every amp i used.
Engl Savage, Engl Thunder, Marshall JCM900 SLX, Marshall VS 8100, ADA MP1, Rocktron Chameleon, Zoom 2020. Maybe the EMG sounds better with a Recto...
The EMG sounds better than stock Blaze 7 but the sound will never change 180?! You can't hardly hear diferences without AB switching.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: I play Deathcore. I recomment the SH6-7 for all heavy stuff.

Comments:
It isn't worth the money! It's all hype about the active EMG!

Pickup features: humbucking, active
Impedence or other specs:

Model of guitar or bass: BC Rich Warlock Platinum Series 7 string
Position: bridge
Pickup being replaced: Stock BC Rich
Other pickups on guitar: In active neck(didn't put another in the neck, so passive doesn't work)
Artists using this pickup: Check out the site. www.emgpickups.com
You musical style(s): Hard Rock/Metal
Reason for pickup change: BC Rich pickups are like the hair between your ass and balls. So annoying that you wish they were gone forever. Fortunately, EMG allowed me to rid myself if this burden.

Perceived output level: Lets just say I had my amp on 8, now its on 5.
Tone: Very Clean cut, very VERY bright, good balanced tone.
Sonic evaluation: I have multiple seven string guitars, this one the only one with the 707. I go from guitar to digidelay, chorus/flange,phaser, mt2, ds7,fz7,(Sometimes my boss phase shifter), morley wah to my Peavey Special 212 with extended 412 cab, pushing about 200 watts. Some people hate solid state, I don't mind it. I like tube amps don't get me wrong. But I got my amp because it was affordable and now I have a good amount of power and a pretty solid effect line and a clear tone that I have mastered and established over the past couple of years.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: This goes very well with the music I play. Heavy metal needs good clear tone, because anything muddy sounds like shit. This incorporates solid clear tone, and mixes it with outrageous output, making your guitar a mass-murdering machine.

Comments: If It were stolen, I'd like to meet the person that did. It would be kinda hard to steal a damn pickup. Take my pickup, I give you props, kill you, but give you props, then by a new one. Take my guitar, and your life will be over. I've been playing for about 9 years, and like i said, my gear has gradually grown into a self existing machine. I love how this pickup brings clarity into the mix, but it has tons of output that is somewhat hard to control. I love the duncan JB 7 string, passive is unique in its own way that active doesn't have. But the 707 has tone that can't be matched by a passive pickup. I use this for very choppy and digital metal, ie fear factory, where individual tones need to be heard and with courageous force. But, for melodic medal and more all around rock, the JB gives me the versatility to play it all, ie staind/dream theater. I want a big nice expensive amp, tube i suppose, but am satisfied with what i have. i worked for it and none of it was given to me. This pickup gives me what i want and need, but it all depends on what you're looking for. BUY THIS PICKUP!! Get it in one guitar, and put a JB in another, and your life will be made. That is your versatility.

Pickup features: active humbucking pick-up
Impedence or other specs: low

Model of guitar or bass: Ibanez RG 7421XL
Position: bridge
Pickup being replaced: Dimarzio Blaze Custom
Other pickups on guitar: Stock ibanez neck pickup
Artists using this pickup: Alot now
You musical style(s): Melodic Hardcore
Reason for pickup change: I had the blaze custom in the bridge and it kicked ass but it was missing something and the 707 added it and then some

Perceived output level: Very hot but not over the top
Tone: Good solid bass balanced mids and bright treble
Sonic evaluation: Im running the ibanez into a boss tuner pedal and then into a boss noise suppressor then into a Marshall JCM 900 2100 into a mesa boogie 4x12 . No effects !!!!!!!

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: I play melodic hardcore and this pickup is the perfect match for my style it responds to how hard you hit the strings very nicely . This pickup would be good in the bridge or neck position .

Comments: This is the best 7 string pickup out there period . If you dont want to deal with routing the body out , which you have to do on most guitars , then go with the blaze custom it is the closest i have heard to a 707 . It cost me about 90 dollars to get it wired and the body routed and 100 dollars for the pickup it self but its worth every cent . Dont try to install this pick-up your self unless you know what you are doing . But now i am satisfied with my sound .

Pickup features: Active, humbucking
Impedence or other specs: Low impedance

Model of guitar or bass: Ibanez RG 7620
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: Dimarzio Blaze II
Other pickups on guitar: None
Artists using this pickup: Me
You musical style(s): Death, thrash and melodic metal
Reason for pickup change: The stock pickups on Ibanez 7 strings are magnetized pieces of excrement.

Perceived output level: The stock Dimarzios would distort the clean channel somehat, these do it a bit more. Thus, these are pretty hi-gain p/u's
Tone: The tone is quite balanced, but with an emphasis on the low / low midrange.
Sonic evaluation: I am now using emg 707's in the neck and bridge positions on my RG. I don't use any effects, I just run straight into my Randall Warhead which is fitted with the 4x12 and 2x15 cabinets designed for the head unit. I use Monster Cable pro-link instrument cable going to the head, and pro-link speaker cables going from the head to the cabs - the cables make a big difference!
If you are familiar with the stock pickups on Ibanez 7 stringers, you know that they are pretty farty and do not produce a very clean or punchy sound. This is especially true if you are playing at high volumes with other instruments. I was not at all pleased with the stock pickups in this sense: they were decent at playing practice level volumes, but if I played with a bassist or a drummer, I found myself cranking the mids and treble on my amp trying to cut through the mix. Also, the stock pickups have the passive pickup plague: an annoying buzz that plagues you when you are using high gain and trying to keep your guitar quiet for a few seconds.
After swapping the stockers out for these bad boys, boy was I excited. My tone has done a complete 180. At first, I played these at low volume I didn't notice a huge difference, but then I cranked my amp up like a true death metal savage, and I damn near blew my wad. There is NO comparison between these pickups and stock. These are SOOO much better in every way, I cannot begin to describe it.
I can ring out some Opeth-style jazzy chords even with the amp set to 'kill' and I can actually hear the individual strings, not just some muddy garbage that I would be treated to with the Blazes. Additionally, I can hit said chords and quickly silence them and play some palm muted chugs without the pickups will instantly respond - super, super tight sound.
When I am making my snarling war face while playing slow and brutal palm mutes, the pickups sense this and respond by giving me the most insanely wicked chugging riffage i could ever dream of.
When I am playing fast and technical death metal, the pickups articulate every note and squeal that I ask of them.
My lead tone has improved the most. The stock pickups had a sort of rusty saw blade / half dissonant sound to them which was not at all pleasing to the ear. These guys give me nothing but the cleanest, blistering lead tone I could ask for.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: Again, I play strictly metal.

Comments: Come on, no one has ever stoled someone's pickups before. If these were vaporized or something, I would be very upset and would go buy more of them. I am quite satisfied with these pickups, I have a feeling that I will be leaving my amp's knobs alone for quite some time.

Pickup features: humbucking, Active
Impedence or other specs:

Model of guitar or bass: Ibanez RG7-420
Position: bridge
Pickup being replaced: stock ibanez 7
Other pickups on guitar: neck V77
Artists using this pickup: Dino , me
You musical style(s): Metal
Reason for pickup change: The ibanez stock pickups are really bad... EMG active PU a the best for metal.

Perceived output level: extremly high
Tone: not muddy, well balanced
Sonic evaluation: so I plug in my GTR into a Boss HM2 heavy metal distortion and into my H&K combo.. nothing great , but it sounds so good !

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: Metal ! perfect match for metal, heavy metal, grind, death , etc..

Comments: well if somebody would steal my guitar w/the EMG 707, i would hunt him down and buy lots of emg 707 for backup ! This P/U changed my life ! To all the 7 metal string guys : get the EMG 707 !!!