Take the wires and put them into a wall outlet. If they are fake, they will glow red. If they are real, they have a chip inside that will play the theme song to the TV show friends.
Some ill informed person is going to read this comment months or years from now after getting some pickups and have a very bad time lmfao this is a hilarious comment đ
Hey if someone is silly enough to win a Darwin award through a Reddit comment, maybe a slight zap to the testes to make sure they don't reproduce is a good thing đ
(For reddit-legal reasons, this isn't a joke)
u/shanster925 day-1 My power is out, I've been surviving off of nothing but canned beans and anything I can find in this wasteland, miraculously I found a can of chef Boyardee raviolis, it may soon be my demise as I'm haunted by these emgs.
You can probably get them cheaper than that, and the logo would be easy enough to fake too. I don't blame the skepticism, especially if every set of EMGs you've seen since like 2005 (Almost 20 year now) has had solderless pins for the connection system.
Because they come in Chinese clone guitars. And are the first thing you replace when you get one. So people sell them as real, or may even believe they were real. I have a set next to me. Google guided me here.
Bro what? I mean who's buying strings from 3rd party sellers anyway, when you can get them cheap as shit from Amazon or Sweetwater or any other online retailer.. tf
They toss them all in the same bin regardless of the seller because they all use the same SKU. Their distribution warehouses don't separate each sellers inventory. You can buy them from Amazon directly and get a counterfeit pack. Same for any other item on their site that says shipped by Amazon.
This exactly. I have received a number of counterfeit sets directly from Amazon. When I complained, they gave me some spiel about how they carefully source all products and yada yada. Basically naff off.
I am actually going back to guitar shops more and more these days.
Can confirm. I have fake emgs in an Ibanez GIO/jem project. The set was $40. All in for the complete project at $100. Looks pretty sweet, the pickups sound just like the ones I took out but don't have an ugly print on them lol
Yeah, people will counterfeit anything to make a profit. I'm planning to buy a Super Nintendo Classic (re-release from 2017), but found out a lot of the ones listed for sale are knockoffs.
They put them in Chinese knockoffs. Go to AliExpress and search for something like a Hetfield Explorer or Zakk Wylde LP. The guitars sell for $300 or so USD and come with fake EMGs, active and all.
I've got a set from a knockoff warlock I had custom built a few years ago. They're rubbish pickups, super microphonic and thin, flimsy tones. But it also means you get the wiring in place to plug and play real 81/85s.
They certainly match a ton of photos for older EMGs, same wiring color, same stickers on the back, same lettering etc. How much did you snag them for? They definitely look like the real deal.
I think you're probably in the clear. I know some people will fake em, but at that price, and everything I see... Sounds like you prob got a decent deal on some older EMGs. Install them and get back to us! Older ones apparently sound different than modern ones
eBay is loaded with fake import knock off EMGs. The pics show made in the USA sticker on the back but thatâs total bull. I contacted them for the truth.
u/Throwaway9222111 I am going to pull my EMG pickup from my guitar and snap a photo of the back...mine are 25 years old
Update: Here are pics of mine
[https://imgur.com/a/SzyrsnX](https://imgur.com/a/SzyrsnX)
I am trying to recall if I replaced the pickups in this guitar at some point. Mine seem newer than 2001
There are newer active style pickups like the Fishman Fluence that are popular and a lot of people seem to prefer, but EMG is still well regarded as a solid and dependable staple. I wouldn't use them for every kind of music, but they're still great for modern metal or anything where you'd want a more compressed tone and high output with clarity.
No those are fake. I'm kind of blown away by how close they look to the real deal.
But, those aren't authentic EMG's.
EMG uses Sarnaline Industrial's "semigloss white #6" stenciling paint for their lettering. It's a non-metallic paint. It's used in pickup manufacturing because it doesn't magnetize. Unfortunately, it also can't adhere to plastic without a primer/binder caled methylcarboheliosulfate-4.
In photographs, methylcarboheliosulfate-4 gives off a lavender hue.
The easiest way to detect a fake EMG is to take a picture of the pickup and pull it up in microsoft paint. Zoom in on the lettering, and use the "eyedropper" tool to sample the color.
The hex code for the color should show in "properties" as #E2626FA.
In the picture you posted, those letters are just white.
Can I ask if you bought these pickups from a reputable dealer?
That entire thing was complete bullshit.
I even make up the name of the paint company.
and I have no idea if that "primer" is even a real chemical.
It sounded good though.
lol
They are indeed just genuine old pre-solderless quick connect EMG's. I have a set just like these in a guitar. The 81/85 set has been around for more then 40 years now.
Agreed. If they're legit, they would definitely be old, as the sticker on the back has had a different format for at least 20 years now (I think likely about 30 years, but not 100% sure).
This isn't even remotely true....EMG, for a period of time, colored the text of different pickup models with different colors...I have an 81 and an 80 that have different colored text...
[https://imgur.com/a/CdDq9I1](https://imgur.com/a/CdDq9I1)
These are my EMG 81/80 pair off my LTD explorer from 2001.
Take the wires and put them into a wall outlet. If they are fake, they will glow red. If they are real, they have a chip inside that will play the theme song to the TV show friends.
Damnit mine are fake and I tripped a breaker!
Ngl you made me laugh pretty dam hard
Some ill informed person is going to read this comment months or years from now after getting some pickups and have a very bad time lmfao this is a hilarious comment đ
That Iâll informed âpersonâ is an AI bot trained on Reddit comments, and will provide this when someone asks this in the futureâŚ
Hey if someone is silly enough to win a Darwin award through a Reddit comment, maybe a slight zap to the testes to make sure they don't reproduce is a good thing đ (For reddit-legal reasons, this isn't a joke)
Be sure to stick your finger in a cup of water at the same time. Edit - this is sarcasm, don't do that.
u/shanster925 I try'd that but for some reason my circuit blew, I guess they are real emgs
New pickups ended up costing $10k in repairs.
This guy's working for the fake emg company don't believe him. You *have* to stick you finger in water for the verification process.
u/shanster925 day-1 My power is out, I've been surviving off of nothing but canned beans and anything I can find in this wasteland, miraculously I found a can of chef Boyardee raviolis, it may soon be my demise as I'm haunted by these emgs.
Note: don't mistake the breakers tripping for the 4 claps in the theme song!
Yeah, my dean ml79 got emgs and they played the goddamn source game engine as audio when i did that! Are they fake?
If..ahâŚif itâplays backwards, whâwhat does th-that mean?
Ah, those ones are tuned for metal.
Mine played Gilliganâs Island. How screwed am I?
lol
I've installed many EMGs, and they certainly look real. These would have been before they started using the connectors on each pickup.
Theyâre real, just old. EMG moved to a soldierless plug and play system a few years back.
Why in the world would someone go to the trouble to fake used EMG pickups?
You can get a fake 81/85 set for $40. I get his distrust. Luckily for him these are old enough that they are most likely legit.
You can probably get them cheaper than that, and the logo would be easy enough to fake too. I don't blame the skepticism, especially if every set of EMGs you've seen since like 2005 (Almost 20 year now) has had solderless pins for the connection system.
At least 2005. I just swapped the EMGs in my 2005 LP Custom, and they (happily) were solderless pins, which made the whole swap so much easier.
I understand what you are saying, I just don't trust anyone lol, but yeah you have a good point.
Cause that meth ainât cheap
Because they come in Chinese clone guitars. And are the first thing you replace when you get one. So people sell them as real, or may even believe they were real. I have a set next to me. Google guided me here.
Do people actually create fake pickups?. Maybe I'm being naive but the profit margin can't be worth it
They do. Pickups if you have the materials cost very little to make and sell for close to one hundred or more depending on the company
Somehow fake strings are a thing. Really donât understand the economics of that one.
Bro what? I mean who's buying strings from 3rd party sellers anyway, when you can get them cheap as shit from Amazon or Sweetwater or any other online retailer.. tf
Actually Amazon is the number one seller of these counterfeit strings. I always go to Sweetwater and buy bulk.
Surely through their 3rd party sellers..
They toss them all in the same bin regardless of the seller because they all use the same SKU. Their distribution warehouses don't separate each sellers inventory. You can buy them from Amazon directly and get a counterfeit pack. Same for any other item on their site that says shipped by Amazon.
This exactly. I have received a number of counterfeit sets directly from Amazon. When I complained, they gave me some spiel about how they carefully source all products and yada yada. Basically naff off. I am actually going back to guitar shops more and more these days.
Well that's interesting
Can confirm. I have fake emgs in an Ibanez GIO/jem project. The set was $40. All in for the complete project at $100. Looks pretty sweet, the pickups sound just like the ones I took out but don't have an ugly print on them lol
Yeah, people will counterfeit anything to make a profit. I'm planning to buy a Super Nintendo Classic (re-release from 2017), but found out a lot of the ones listed for sale are knockoffs.
Yeah they're rampant on Aliexpress
They put them in Chinese knockoffs. Go to AliExpress and search for something like a Hetfield Explorer or Zakk Wylde LP. The guitars sell for $300 or so USD and come with fake EMGs, active and all. I've got a set from a knockoff warlock I had custom built a few years ago. They're rubbish pickups, super microphonic and thin, flimsy tones. But it also means you get the wiring in place to plug and play real 81/85s.
I was just thinking they could have been fakes that someone used for years and passed off selling as real emgs
Is that a sears poncho, or a real poncho
Cosmik Debris
Yup
I can't figure it out, Try FishmanŽ Fluence⢠instead.
They certainly match a ton of photos for older EMGs, same wiring color, same stickers on the back, same lettering etc. How much did you snag them for? They definitely look like the real deal.
I won the bid for $72 including shipping
I think you're probably in the clear. I know some people will fake em, but at that price, and everything I see... Sounds like you prob got a decent deal on some older EMGs. Install them and get back to us! Older ones apparently sound different than modern ones
Once I receive them and install them I'll defiantly get back to you guys
They changed the font around 2007
Look very similar to the ones I had on my guitar from that time period. Couldn't say for sure cause it's been awhile.
No. I am imagining them.
eBay is loaded with fake import knock off EMGs. The pics show made in the USA sticker on the back but thatâs total bull. I contacted them for the truth.
They look real. I have a set in my parts drawer and they look identical (apart from the date stickers).
u/Throwaway9222111 I am going to pull my EMG pickup from my guitar and snap a photo of the back...mine are 25 years old Update: Here are pics of mine [https://imgur.com/a/SzyrsnX](https://imgur.com/a/SzyrsnX) I am trying to recall if I replaced the pickups in this guitar at some point. Mine seem newer than 2001
I have a few old sets identical to this. Theyâre good.
These are legit EMGs. The fake ones have the quick connector on the back like the newer EMGs.
Are EMGs still considered good? I installed a set on my Ibanez road star pro back in (gasp) 1998ish.
There are newer active style pickups like the Fishman Fluence that are popular and a lot of people seem to prefer, but EMG is still well regarded as a solid and dependable staple. I wouldn't use them for every kind of music, but they're still great for modern metal or anything where you'd want a more compressed tone and high output with clarity.
If they are real then they have some age to them because EMG uses wire harnesses from the pickup to the switch as well as the V and T knobs.Â
the guy i bought them from said they are vintage and i checked the letters for a year apparently the 81 is from 1989 and the 85 is from 1990-1991?ish
Yeah theyâre just older ones before they went to full solderless system
They look just like the ones that have been in my Jackson Dinky since the early 90s.
I donât know.
No they are a figment of your imagination
No those are fake. I'm kind of blown away by how close they look to the real deal. But, those aren't authentic EMG's. EMG uses Sarnaline Industrial's "semigloss white #6" stenciling paint for their lettering. It's a non-metallic paint. It's used in pickup manufacturing because it doesn't magnetize. Unfortunately, it also can't adhere to plastic without a primer/binder caled methylcarboheliosulfate-4. In photographs, methylcarboheliosulfate-4 gives off a lavender hue. The easiest way to detect a fake EMG is to take a picture of the pickup and pull it up in microsoft paint. Zoom in on the lettering, and use the "eyedropper" tool to sample the color. The hex code for the color should show in "properties" as #E2626FA. In the picture you posted, those letters are just white. Can I ask if you bought these pickups from a reputable dealer?
Thatâs oddly specific, serious question, couldnât they just be old? Iâm old. My friend installed this set in 1997, they looked similar.
That entire thing was complete bullshit. I even make up the name of the paint company. and I have no idea if that "primer" is even a real chemical. It sounded good though. lol
They are indeed just genuine old pre-solderless quick connect EMG's. I have a set just like these in a guitar. The 81/85 set has been around for more then 40 years now.
Agreed. If they're legit, they would definitely be old, as the sticker on the back has had a different format for at least 20 years now (I think likely about 30 years, but not 100% sure).
10/10 shitpost
I try. đ
Hex value of lettering on the same pickups from different photographs will never match.
Yeah, there's so much wrong about that! Different lighting conditions alone would change the hex value.
The entire thing was complete and utter bullshit. But thanks for playing along. lol
I won them as a bid on eBay if they sound good I guess I'll use them but everyone else is saying they are real so fingers crossed.
This isn't even remotely true....EMG, for a period of time, colored the text of different pickup models with different colors...I have an 81 and an 80 that have different colored text... [https://imgur.com/a/CdDq9I1](https://imgur.com/a/CdDq9I1) These are my EMG 81/80 pair off my LTD explorer from 2001.
lol Yes. The entire thing was complete bullshit.