KFK Kerry King 81/85 Active Signature Humbucker Guitar 2-piece Pickup Set - Black Review

Truly South of Heaven !!!

Got an Epiphone Les Paul Custom Pro Silverburst. The Probuckers are "meh" at best and just didn't deliver the tone I was looking for. The guitar though is absolutely spectacular and absolutely love the way it plays. Honestly, it is my favorite guitar as far as "feel" goes. And before you think I don't know what I am talking about, I'll just say I wish my Gibson, BC Rich, and Schecter… read more played as well. My John Petrucci KOA might be slightly better playability but its close. Epiphone may not have the reputation of being a high quality build but this one is awesome and way nicer than anyone would expect. So, I decided to upgrade the pickups and pots. Originally, I was contemplating SD distortions (Mayhem set) and CTS pots, or Fishman Fluence Moderns. As I was looking at different options I came across the Kerry King KFK EMGs. I am a huge Slayer fan and made a leap of faith. As far as the kit goes, it is stupid simple to install. I did have to drill a hole for the pre amp switch but that was easy enough. Outside that, everything just fell into place without any modifications. Taking my time, I may have spent an hour. Everything was straight forward and plug and play. Pay attention to the directions and its all super easy. Now for sound... These are absolutely murderous. Distorted they are monstrous and aggressive yet very articulate and not muddy. You definitely can hear the notes and clarity. Pinched they scream. Guess what? Thats with the pre amp OFF!. When turned on, it is absolutely overkill and insane. You can adjust the amount of input from the pre amp but who the hell buys Kerry King EMGs to not be totally aggressive? Cleans are very clean. These are far from a one trick pony. You can dial in pretty much any sound you might be looking for. That is cool and all, but when it is time to get stupid (like I do), crank it up and add the dankest amount of guttural distortion you can and let these monsters scream! I was a little scared buying EMGs as everyone seems to say they are dated and relics as there are newer options available today. I don't want to take away from Fishman as they are awesome pickups, but the KFK EMGs are just phenomenal and I could not be happier. I made the right decision. To be totally honest, I do not believe the PreAmp is a necessity. Its a cool feature and definitely makes a difference, but the 81/85 alone are plenty bad @$$ enough. For no more difference in price than what it is, go ahead and grab it in the kit. You don't have to engage it or even use it. I doubt I use it often but its a cool add. I don't think I would have been disappointed in Seymour Duncan Distortions, Fishman Fluence Moderns, or the EMGs as they are all awesome pickups. That said, I believe these would have been my favorite if I bought all three sets (at least in THIS guitar). Probably gonna upgrade the BC Rich Warlock next. May try something from Seymour Duncan, but it is gonna be hard to not buy these again for it.

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