Watch This Before You Buy EMG DG20 David Gilmour Pickups 

The problem with the dragonfires compared to the dg20s are that the dragonfires DO NOT have the all Important spc controls and mids boosters. Those are important. Just get the dg20s, you'll be more satisfied with that instead of the dragonfires.

Just for reference, I'm someone who's played live for around 26 years. Experienced with cheap stuff all the way up to Gibson, etc. I'm the kind of player who is set in my way and when I watch reviews on cheap items, I usually dismiss it as such. However, these pickups legitimately do not sound cheap. There's a defined clarity between all the notes, and it really accentuates your dynamics. I'm not saying they sound top tier but I am definitely surprised by them. I do disagree on looks, the basic covers do look cheap but music is about sound first, not looks. The full pickguard combo at $144 seems like a great deal, and if they asked 250 I'd still say it sounds worth the price. Cheap pickups always have an underlying deadness in its tone that never goes away regardless how much you adjust the tone on your guitar, amp or effects but these don't have that. I might actually look into a set of these myself soon. Also, on an unrelated subject, I'm surprised that guitar brand you used had used the name "lake placid blue" because I would have thought Fender had the rights to that color name. Even before you mentioned the camera not picking it up I had thought "that's a nice lake placid blue."

Looks like the price went up.. but great find... The EXG and SPC controls is what the kit is all about.

Kenneth. I too find most aftermarket pickups are just as good. Just pay attention to the details. SX guitars are terrific. They have less flaws (zero) than MIM and some American Fenders. 56 years of play, recording and gigging. 'Haven't seen it all but maybe close. Thanks for the clean play that actually allows us to hear.

Yup, that’s one great sounding budget guitar.

BUT, you also do not get the booster knob dynamics the Gilmour set includes, the SPC Presence Control, which makes all the difference.

this is a good video, the pick ups sound good. I bought my DG-20 set 5 years ago from Sweetwater, the price then was $130 cheaper then. I love them!

I would just say that, while the products may be something you have had some luck with, they will take some time shipping. Also, if you ask the guy running the business for a timeline for shipment or express any concerns, you can expect to get some rude responses. Customer service is not the companies strong suit.

Dude, I love your shows man. Glad you’re back. Be safe and keep going strong. I’ve been using Dragonfire pickups for years now and yes they are great.

Great Video! I really like your little pedal board, it sounds really nice!

The guitar sounds great...but it's not the Gilmour tone I was listening for. I'd like to hear the single note boosted sustain that Gilmour's guitar solos are know for. He can hold those notes for days and they are clear as a bell.😎👍

They sound good, Kennis, but unfortunately, Dragonfire has apparently raised the price substantially. It is kind of absurd, to be totally honest. I can spend $200 (what they want for these now) or I can spend 20-30 more for a used EMG DG20 on Reverb. What is Dragonfire smoking? Lol

Yeah these do seem really cool, but I'm unsure if these have the tweakable mid boost and expander tone features you get with the fully loaded EMG D20 pick ups, and also because like you said you dont actually own the EMG D20's we can't compare them. Cool video but I think I'm gonna stick with the EMG D20's Keep doing what you're doing tho it was still really interesting

To be honest, I have learned that if someone tells me that a much, much cheaper version of something is "just as good" as the original, I am going to be extremely skeptical. This is especially the case when it is so obvious that there is a certain subset of guitarists online who have a very strong bias towards cheaper stuff as if everything they get is some sort of misunderstood gem that only is cheaper because it doesn't have a brand name attached. That kind of thing can SOMETIMES be true but usually it isn't. I am sure the pickups are fine but unless you own both the ones you feature in the video and the David Gilmour EMG set, your assertions that it is "just as good" ring rather hollow to say the least.

Love your channel. Take a run through your show before taping. You sound a little all over the place and it’s not necessary. You have a great presence and way.

Thanks Kennis! This is another example of how it doesn't matter how much your parts cost as long as it makes the noises that make you happy. Happy 4th of July everyone!

That is a very sweet sounding guitar. Great clarity.

Also 8th st music has a discount code you can use that you can get the DG20 for $289 and change! For the extra 70$ to upgrade to EMGs and his ACTUAL signature pickguard, I hate to do it, but dragonfire is getting too cocky. You used to get their products at a reasonable price.

I’m not sure if it’s the guitar or rig or both, but those sound nothing like EMG SAs to me. I’ve been using them for 25 years and I actually play a strat through an HRD live as my typical rig. These pickups sound a lot more scooped in the mids (more like standard strat pickups) than SAs which have a much flatter EQ. It’s hard to recommend these over the EMGs without a side by side.

I have a really difficult time believing that these are as good of quality or sounding as EMG sa pickups. It would be great to hear a side-by-side comparison.

I use Dragonfire humbuckers and they sound great. Creamy smooth and articulate. Best Regards!

The moment you started playing I knew they weren’t EMG Gilmour. I’d rather pay $320 and have the strat ready to go and sounding incredible than what ever you did to that guitar.

Like the sound when u added the tube driver

I wouldn’t spend more for a loaded pickguard than the entire guitar however the advantage is that you could easily transfer it to a better instrument later.

I bought the DragonFire Area 52 Strat Single Coil Pickups, Vintage Buckers and Hexbuckers and I’m very impressed of the sound. Good stuff. The colour of your guitar rocks.

I don't know.... I still have my EMG Sa's with the exp boost that I installed in my '88 Strat over 30 years ago and they still sound great. Not sure you'll be able to say the same thing about these.....

Emgs made in the usa. DG20 Also have two different tone boost controls, identical to what david has.

I paid £30 in the UK for vanson pickups to put into my SG copy and thay are amazing

+1 to Dragonfire pickups I have had about 4 or 5 sets total. Personally LOVE the tele rails and the Phat Screamers

I like what I’m hearing. Here’s a question (actually 2 questions): would these fit in a Squier Strat (most tend to be thinner than the average Fender so there’s less cavity depth; you can’t put a classic pickup selector in one, for example)? And 2: with these, or the EMGs, is it possible to do the 7 way selector mod, like Gilmour has on his Black Strat (which has more vintage, standard pickups now it)?

Well a lot of people are praising the sound in the comments, but honestly I thought they sounded just 'ok' - not bad, but nothing special really. Also there was some horrid distortion going on, especially in the bridge/middle and middle positions - not desirable distortion, I mean nasty breakup like there was some fault there. I've used the DG20's and these sound absolutely nothing like that - the DG's have a punch and smoothness which is just not present in these pups. I don't know for sure, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if these dragonfire pups are just coming off a big production line somewhere and being branded whatever the customer wants, in this case dragonfire, but could be anything - some will be charging £20 and some will be claiming big things and charging 3 times the price, but they're all the exact same pickup. I could be wrong, but they sound pretty generic to me.

Active means there is a battery.. where do you put the battery? Other wise they are just hotter coils.

I’ve subscribed your channel. Thanks for presentation. Cheers.

I just looked at the Dragonfire website and a preloaded pick guard, with similar components to the EMG goes for $339.80. The EMG goes for $329. I think I’ll go with the EMGs

Sounds greate

I have the DG20. I think it provides a much more dynamic range of sound and sounds better.

Great video Kennis , sound great

Ken, I was looking at the DG20 pups, then I saw your video. I pulled the trigger on the Dragons. I hope they work out. Thanks for the demo...I think🤔

Ok it’s always good to save money and most of us it’s a priority. But you cannot compare this dragon fire with emg. Are just two different categories. This one’s that you tested sound dull compared to emg, that have expander and middle boost, giving lot of different sounds. Anyway, for the price these dragonfire are decent.

Hey Kennis, watch out for the posters that say "loved it" or "wanna be friends?" Report those guys and don't respond to them. I'd hate to see anything else happen to your channel.

Hey brother, Dragonfire charges 199 and if you get a customer color PG its 220$! Dragonfire has actually gotten more expensive lately which is a bummer. Also what's the pot sizes on the dragonfire? I was ready to dive into DF pickups and totally support them. But they are getting out of control.

Not wild about the tone of these pickups, but I have 5 SX guitars and they are great and the stock pickups are decent to very good.

I have a couple of sets of Dragonfire pickups and love them. Vintage Buckers in an Ibanez RG and some Alnico V's in a HSS Strat set. I'm a tone hound and have several sets of Seymour Duncans and Dimarzios and these compare very favorably. Very cool looking and sounding SX Kennis! God bless and rock on 😎👍🎸

Sounds quite nice

are they solderless like the EMG's? The site says soldering required. And I have a couple sets of Dragonfire pups but after really comparing them side by side w/ Seymours, I'd rather pay the price of the Seymours. Now that my eyes aren't what they used to be I'm looking at EMG solderless. If you're on a tight budget and want actives I can see going with these.

The gate buckers that dragonfire sell are incredible alnico 2s

These pickups doesn't sound like a typical Strat sounds, and there is nothing you can compare with the EMG DG20 pickups! You have to compare it in your video and you will see the big difference between them...

Thanks Kennis....That is what will be going in. Do you know if Dragonfire loaded pickguard is solderless?

Before I bought my DG's I said holy cow, on sale for $99! No pickguard though.

Why would anyone want David Gilmore active pickups when everything he ever recorded that sounds amazing was with 60s/70s passive fenders ?

It's hard to compare since there's no amp/hardware/software in depth description. I have the DG20's and they sound WAY more 'glassy' and deeper sounding. It may well be youtube compression... but it sounds as tho there's a Low pass and High pass filter set at 150hz and 3khz killing the dynamic range. IE very middy sounding.

…so what DID Glen go with in the end?

Thank you

Thank you for demonstrating the with clean setting. To me distorted demos tell me nothing. I would have to try them in my guitar to be for sure. But the sound harsh to me on my iPhone speakers. I have 2 sets of EMG SA . I have had one set since 89. I have had great results with EMG and would probably just pay the extra.

EMG every day the week😊

I don't understand?? You say you don't remember what you did if you bought a loaded pickgaurd or if you installed them yourself?? If I do any work to any of my guitar's i always remember if i had to install them myself?? Again huh ???

that's a great video, thanks for the tips, I'll try to find those in France

thanks kennis!

Your clean modes sound dirty like there is small micro rattles.

I don't like to tell anyone that i'm not impressed, but definately i was not impressed by that sound and i would definately go for EMGs. I'm sorry...

used emg dg20=180euro. if I get tired, I always sell them for 180 euros///dragon fire: new=200euro>USED??? i think 100 euro

Hmm, so just wondering tho do these ones have the mid boost and expander nobs that come with the emg pick ups?

Sounds great, have ever try jb jr copy?

Kennis do you think this would fit in a Bullet Strat or is the body too thin?

Problem with the EMG Sa is the hiss.... just awful

By itself clean it does not sound right to me. Does not have Stratocaster vibe and glass to it. Through boxes it is better.

What did you friend get

I love the guitar, $100 hard to believe.

There's a lot you can't remember

SX are great guitars

THe guitar sounds pretty budget-average to me. Never heard of Dragonfire, must a Yank thing... The point is, you cannot compare the tone of your cheapy-pups and Stratoliker, with that of the EMG DG21 kit, fitted to a USA Stratocaster. And I'm a person who has generally stuck to the maxim that all planks of wood can be made to sound great, if the right combiination of hardware, onboard electronics (passive or active) and signal chain are used. . I have two Fender Strats amongst other non-Fender Stratolikers, a Deluxe with EMG DG20 pack and a Standard 'VG' Strat with basic Fender single coils. Both sound like Stratocasters should, in all settings, but the Deluxe has the edge for sure, especially when seeking that Gilmour 80's sound, with the SBC and EXG circuits giving vital control to mid range and overall boost. That is what you pay your £200 ($350) for. . You may as well compare a Ford Capri (Puma) with an 'E-Type' Jaguar... LOL!

I have played through dragon fire humbuckers and they are the bees knees.

Dragonfire are better than the emgs to me as well. I had the emg dg set and swapped it out for the dfdg dragonfire set with the exp and BCU controls. Dragonfire has come up considerably in price now rivaling emgs.. proof is in the pudding

EMG sounds a lot better!!!

But aren’t the emg dg20 set ceramic?

6:15 before he starts playing. 6:00 minutes of talking and all that was said is contradicting. Pick ups sound very nice. Dragon fire does not deserve this review. They make great stuff and he didn’t even know what he bought.

Great pickups. I have an HSS in an OLP (Musicman import brand before Sterling) and two 81Cs in a Dean 7 string. Lots of versatility and simultaneously delivers a “certain” sound for less with its own twist.

No longer available in store

Rather have a black strat knockoff than a red knockoff.It is all in the which era of pink Floyd do you shoot for Dark side to the wall you need the black strat momentary to the endless river the red with emgs is you set up.

Why is it I always have to point out that if people want their vids to be taken seriously, try tuning the guitar first. \..++../

Spend the money and buy the real thing.

Dragonfire pickups are nothing more than cheap rebranded Artec pickups. They're not bad for cheaply made pickups but they still cut corners in key areas. If you want cheap pickups that TRULY are constructed and sound EXACTLY like Duncans or Lollars etc. Check out brands like Tonerider or BYO. Those pickups are the true bang for buck option. Dragonfires are inferior in comparison.

Of course I want cheap but u didn't compare them to actual emgs pointless to watch a one sided comparison then tell people to not buy something you didn't test. Why send China money . Support your own countries products

4 min in and this dude is still talking

My god you take too long to get to the dam point. stop talking in circles tell us what we need to know then stop.

Hi Folks, this is a very good review. Dragonfire sounds very interesting !! Anyway I love the EMGs and the Fishmans as well. I did a video comparison: Fishman Fluence Singlecoils vs. EMG Sa Pickups as well. This might be interesting for you: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-xJ_fZ3G2m10.html

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What is this.... shet, rabish...

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