EMG Kirk Hammett Bone Breaker Set Review | How do they compare to standard EMGs? 

Kirk has been going through stuff. He’s actually still very good live. I saw them twice during the Hardwired tour. Indoor and out door US shows. Kirk has so much energy as of late. I saw them in Milwaukee and he was going crazy all night and was on point.

I was in the camp that believed it was just a regular 81/60a set with a green logo, after watching this I totally hear a difference...thanks for clearing that up for me! 🤘🏼

I think I heard the same things you did. I immediately heard a softer pick attack and low mids. This was a great review

This is the best review of the Bone Breakers I've seen your channel definitely deserves more views. I actually have the Hetfield signature LTD Vulture and replaced the Het Set with the limited BB pickups and I enjoy them so much more. They've become my go-to pickups.

Thankyou for making this video, ive had a set for about 7 months and i am very pleased with them. They sound amazing. The bone breakers are my first set of emgs and my first set of active pickups for the matter, just going off of youtube videos of standard 81/60s i too can tell they have a bit less gain but they are so clear and crisp sounding and great for all types of music. I am very happy with them.

That's an awesome Rhoads inside a windy room!! And nice comparison video too!!

Thx for the vid, I just got an old esp ex 50 and the Bone Breakers are a big possibility. I also appreciate your descriptions, you're filling in some gaps in my knowledge, I've built a few solid bodies and need to develop my ear and my lingo... i think i get everything you meat. lol. Nice work!!

Awesome playing Jon, hope your still playing these days dude 🤘

Great demo. Time to get some Bone Breakers.

Is it too much to ask for people to do reviews of pickups and amps without a damn backing track going? It makes it way too hard to hear the difference.

A lot of the bands that got me into Metal all used Emg's. I personally love them, and I never quite understood the hate they get.

I like the way they make your hair blow around. 😁👍💯Good video,

Thanks bruther, good chopping! bb fuller overall, barkier mids, treble pretty close to 60a, great for metal and solo material. I'm installing my bb this weekend! PRS Torreo, EMG bb, Fractal Audio and Atomic frfr monitor = BLISS! - P

Wicked video man ..i have 81 on bridge and 85 on neck ..i love the warm thick cleans on the neck and the cutting edge sound like an angle grinder steel cutting 81 on bridge .. I just want bone breakers, well just BECAUSE . They are green, clean, dirty and mean. I would have to hear them through my own equipment to really judge . Let's face it , they can't be bad ! , just bad ass👊😎🤘🇦🇺 Kirk was always 81/81 for a long time .. it's cool to see his own signature green set now 👊👽🤘

I have an 81 / 60TW-R set and just got a KH602 with the BB and there is a very noticeable difference to my ears plugging back and forth. Was getting ready to order a 57/66 set for the MH but seriously considering just adding a BB set, the neck is VERY nice IMHO.

Thanks for making this video, it will help me make my decision! \m/

Intresting vid, just got a mii with 81s in it. My first set of active pick ups, pretty sick i must say. Nice explorer behind you, iv got a white one too

I’m a big fan of EMG pickups as well, ALL of my guitars have them, I have the Hammett Bone Breaker’s so far, the Het-set is next!!! One with the 81/60 set, one with the 81/85 set and one with the H4/H4A set!!! Love my EMG’s!!!

I have the Kirk Hammett signature EMG set on my ESP LTD m10 also use Ernie Ball 11-48 sounds badass in drop d

Came for the pick ups. Stayed for the riffs

I'm fans of EMG Zakk wylde set 81 & 85 I was ever to used it many times on all my guitars and play oldschool thrash/death metal styles more than 20 years passed. and so fucking love shape/more gain sound of it. Now I have plan to consider about buy EMG BB and your video is so very help me for choose it.

Nice video, man! I heard some difference between them too.

Still like the 81 better. Sounds angrier. Good comparison, helped me avoid the BB's.

Hi Jon. The sound is quality in your playing. What setup do you use in the video? Pedals/amp ? Thanks in advance

To be honest, to hear the different in this video is quite difficult. Because it's a full mix video. But, with a little bit effort I think I can hear the different between 81 and BB bridge. BB bridge has less spike/treble. So, I agree with your opinion. As for favorite pickup. Both sound good. I won't change 81 to BB bridge.

I have the KHBB and they are Awsome!!

Cool video! I bought a set after watching.

I use 85/85 in my guitars. Lovely tone and clean up great.

bone breaker sounds amazing

We can hear all the note on the bb set, for solos

Great video! I really cant' decide! They both sound really great. I think I am going for a bit more of a Master of Puppets era style, so maybe the EMG 81/60...

The 81/60 had a noticeable higher output cleaner sound on the cleans... The necks sounded same on the dirt

Seem to be pretty similar... just a different EQ “voicing”. I’ve played the BB set, and I enjoy it personally.

Can hear every note out of the Bone Breakers

Hi, how do I know that the battery of these pickups is empty?

I just want to know if you kept the bone breakers in your Jackson? Also, I did hear a difference. The bone breakers seemed to have a bassier tone in my opinion.

Either installing an 18 volt mod or getting the 24 volt battery pack is a must-upgrade for the legacy EMG's. if someone has been running only a 9 volt that upgrade may eliminate the feeling of needing to switch to a newer model

I think the bones are a little bigger in thumping chug but only just .. I love the green logo. I wanted 89's just for the red logo to learn my 85/81 set up was more for my sound . But these BB's I want me some concept or not dont give a crap love these green breakers .. emgs ,get em all.

Bone breaker have way more fullness and bark in the mids. I think they’re better fit in the mix more.

Earned a subscriber

If you are a Tapper, the EMG is simply the best. Where they fail is in the Lows and Low Mid tones.

It's definitely the fan. You need more wind for the bonebreaker to sound the same.

So, at the beginning you made the comment that you think these pickups may have caused Kirk's playing to sound worse, but you never further elaborated on this and I waited through the whole video to see if you would. Can you eleborate?

Might be a dumb question, but the kit comes with 4 pots when my guitar only has 3… do I add the extra pot or is it not needed? Be kind… I’m a noob

I can't describe it in word, but there is different. My guitar has 81/85. I won't change it to bone breaker or het set because because I like 81 so much. I don't use 85 very much since I mostly play rhythm. If I have another guitar with 81/60 or 81/85, I will change it to fishman or maybe to passive one.

Jim Root EMG sig set 2020! \m/

I'm on the fence, there's definitely a difference. I'm looking to upgrade to emg and was going to go for the 81/85... shit, have to watch more comparisons. Cheers, for the vid🤘😁🤘

I agree there is a difference in pickups. Personally, I'm not a fan of EMG. I do like how bone breaker sounds. Perhaps I get a new guitar with active pickups will keep these in mind.

To me the Bone Breaker set has a little bit more bite comparing to the 81 & 60.

Gary holt and Zakk Wylde both just play regular 81s.... Jim Root However May be getting a custom set, also since Mick left and got his own custom set of active Seymour Duncan’s ages ago, it’s about time Jim got his too!

Which set would you recommend for a one guitarist metal band? I keep vacillating between the 81/60A and the Bone Breakers. I like the way the Bone Breakers look, but it seems to me like the bottom end might be a bit better with a regular 81. On the other hand, the solo tone seems a bit thicker with the Bone Breaker.

The pre amp is tweaked. They are not just a new package emg set. They just aren't. EMG have said their different. Why would they risk a law suit, and as if Kirk would do that to people. He wouldn't do that to people I don't reckon.

Couldn'ta howled it better, minus the cool accent! I have been hype- tone happy w my ESP JH-600, which tragically but fairly satisfyingly replaced an original, 1st- run BC Rich warlock that got stolen;/ 'Special place in hell for gear thieves..' Now that I think of it K Hammond was quoted in interview saying that? Anyway a badass hobbit- luthier in Charlottesville I worked w tricked out the warlock w Joe Barden humbuckers, which coincidentally looked & sounded like the JH-600 EMG's, but the clean sounds were sparkly spectacular coming out of a warlock! The luthier mainly built & worked on violins- & electrified those too which is very cool too- so this guy thought the BC Rich demonicly amazingly compelling enuf 2 convince him to modify it Anyways I just got new ESP EII Horizon III FR, liquid black, & I'm gonna change out the stock S Dunc's w EMG H4 set.. just bc they're passive don't mean they can't shriek!! I told the EMG tech the tones I wanna chase w the new axe r of Santana & EVH rendering.. hey it's an impossible but 'tryably' goal, & fun, success lies in that chasing & playing It's not abt the sonic destination so much, it's the journey.. Yup that sounds like I just smoked a tonna weed lol Yah dude total ditto re: EMG.. u got serious skills too man! My main gig is USMC heli pilot; guitars r not my forte but cerebrally they challenge so I much love playing.. Quality guitar requires quality p/u's.. so me too-- EMG makes some serious great gear 'Dear Santa'.. makes u wanna have unlimited bank or b endorsee right?!

big difference yes but prefer hmmm its hard both have they own qualitys i think

I dont know but i think the fan going made both pickups sound the same. may wanna turn the fan off next time.....

I actually took a chance and bought a set. They sound identical but feels different. More of a passive feel and less top end and therefore harmonics are not as sharp and ear shattering as an 81. Much more pleasing to the ear Its basically a tamer 81. You'll think your playing a passive 81. Its a softer feel. Let me say...it is definitely worth getting and you'll see once you do. I have and no more 81. The 81 gets tiring and tough to get it to sound and feel right. Go get this..trust me.

Maybe I'm just tone deaf but I can barely tell them apart. I wholeheartedly agree with you in regards to signature gear looking too obvious, (same with signature guitars) the original EMG design is in my opinion timeless and by far the best looking. I also don't understand why a fan of any musician would bother buying signature pickups when usually their best material was recorded with stock EMGs.

Great video, especially because it shows that agufish's review of the set is shit. I just bought an ESP LTD KHWZ supposedly with EMG 81/60 but it came with EMG Bone breakers. My first reaction to the BB's was that they seemed to have lower output than I excpected and that the mids were more pronounced.

BB has more lows and mids, 81 has more highs. I guess the BB set has a more passive sound

Not sure what you’re getting on about his pickups, they sound loads better than the 81s in this video. Also do you have a fan on your hair?!? Really?!?

You got it so compressed and processed really can't hear the pick ups

The BBs are closer to the 81x, imho.

Kirks still has his shit together live..indeed..he's human and not a machine, so he makes mistakes just as anyone else...as each member has their share of fuckups...but Kirk still plays his solos great. In my opinion Lars has become the weaker link....still plays well, but he breaks time more often now.. since my band is strictly classic rock, I think the BBs will be fine, more versatile, and not so much IN YOUR FACE. I ordered the Purple Sparkle KH ESP ...can't wait to get my paws on it

I honestly don't hear a hair of a difference. Sounds just like the 81/60 which is the industry standard.

I'm not a big fan of them iv been using them for a year in my kh3 the 81bb is ok just meh it's the 60a in the neck I dislike more I'm toying with the idea of putting a 81x and 60x in

I have them in a new guitar but don't really like them

I personally think they both sound the same. lol

Bone breakers just have more bite

Because not doing a test with another type of metal other than Metallica, it is obvious that the EMG Bonebreaker serve to sound like the band

81 sounds better

What's with the fucking fan?