What genres and playing styles is this pickup set best suited for?

The EMG FB is engineered for metal, hard rock, funk, and progressive styles where aggressive tone, articulate attack, and clarity in a dense mix are essential. The punchy mids and extended highs cut through without sacrificing warmth, making it less suited to folk, traditional jazz, or country playing.

Is this a matched pair, and how do the neck and bridge pickups differ?

Yes, this is a matched pair designed to work together. The neck pickup uses a ceramic magnet with a 2.61 kHz resonant frequency and 2.00 V string output, while the bridge employs a steel magnet tuned to 3.48 kHz with 1.75 V string output. This complementary design ensures balanced response across the fretboard.

What is included in the set, and do I need to solder anything?

The set includes both pickups, a solderless wiring harness, two 25k volume controls, a VLPF active tone control, and output jack. No soldering required—the solderless connectors make installation and wiring straightforward.

What are the power requirements and battery life?

The pickups run on a single 9V battery with a rated life of 3000 hours. Current draw is only 80 microamps at 9V, and the maximum supply voltage is 27 Volts DC for flexible power options.

How clean is the signal, and will there be noise at high volumes?

Output noise is exceptionally low at -101 dB (60 Hz) across both pickups, ensuring a clean signal path even when playing at volume or driving preamps and overdrive circuits. High output (2.00 V string / 8.50 V thump on neck) delivers aggression without muddiness.

Do I pay sales tax on this order?

We collect sales tax only on orders shipped to California. Orders shipped to any other US state are charged $0 sales tax at checkout when you buy direct from our website. On this item that is roughly $15 less out the door than the same listed price at a national retailer or on a marketplace. Marketplaces such as eBay, Reverb and Amazon collect sales tax in nearly every state as marketplace facilitators no matter who the seller is, so the same item at the same price costs less bought direct. Free US shipping and 30-day returns are included. Some states ask buyers to self-report use tax on out-of-state purchases.

EMG FB Active Bass Pickup Set in Red

The EMG FB Active Bass Pickup Set gives you the aggressive, articulate tone that cuts through live mixes and holds its own on stage. This matched pair combines ceramic and steel magnets with active circuitry to produce punchy mids, extended highs, and controlled lows across the full frequency spectrum. Built for bassists who need clarity and punch in dense band contexts without sacrificing warmth and note definition.

Active Electronics & Tone Shaping

Both pickups feature active circuitry powered by a single 9V battery with a rated life of 3000 hours—reliable for weeks of touring and gigging without battery swaps mid-set. The set includes two 25k Solderless Volume Controls and a VLPF Active Tone Control, giving you surgical control over your sound from venue to venue. Output noise remains exceptionally low at -101 dB (60 Hz) across both pickups, ensuring a clean signal path even at volume and minimizing hum in live environments.

Pickup Design & Frequency Response

The neck pickup uses a ceramic magnet with a 2.61 KHz resonant frequency and outputs 2.00 V on string (8.50 V on thump), while the bridge employs a steel magnet tuned to 3.48 KHz with 1.75 V string output (6.50 V thump). This complementary pairing ensures balanced response across the fretboard with enough output to drive preamps, overdrive circuits, and PA systems without muddiness, keeping your tone tight and defined through a full set.

Key Features

Neck pickup: Ceramic magnet, 2.61 KHz resonant frequency, 2.00 V output (string)
Bridge pickup: Steel magnet, 3.48 KHz resonant frequency, 1.75 V output (string)
Thump output: 8.50 V (neck) / 6.50 V (bridge) for aggressive, compressed tone
Output noise: -101 dB at 60 Hz (both pickups)
Output impedance: 2.00 Kohm (both)
Battery life: 3000 hours at 9V DC operation
Maximum supply voltage: 27 Volts DC
Current draw: 80 microamps @ 9V (both pickups)
Included solderless wiring harness with output jack
Two 25k volume controls and VLPF active tone control included
Connector type: 1/4" (6.35mm) mono phone plug
Dimensions: 7 x 5 x 3 inches

This signature set delivers the precision engineering and tonal aggression that working bassists rely on for modern metal, hard rock, and high-output live performance.