Okay, first off, I'm about to get some new gear- first up is a Vox Valvetronix 50 watt amp, second would be the Epiphone Les Paul Prophecy EX (The model with EMGs, not Dirty Fingers). I'm not familiar with EMGs and a friend of mine who plays and does his own recordings told me that they were just garbage- which is hard to believe when you consider who plays them. I hate that I can't hear the amp with the guitar before I buy them ... because the store I'm buying the amp from doesn't carry Epiphone and I'll have to order the Les Paul from Musician's Friend. What should I do?

QUOTE(Madden @ Feb 14 2008, 11:50 AM) [snapback]417683[/snapback]Most EMGs pickups have very poor dynamics, and are only really good for one or two things. Bare Knuckles on the other hand are the shit, and they work great in LPs. But anyway, if you're buying a guitar loaded with EMGs I'll presume then that you're looking for a really heavy duty amp. Vox, really dont cut it. Line6 do some great modelling amps, like the Spider, which are about the same price range, but probably has a bit more of the sound you're looking for.
Yea, EMGs are fairly overrated in my opinion. They all sound they same, the only difference seems to be the level of output. The Bare Knuckles that I tried were great, but they're not really my cup of tea if you get what I'm saying... Depends on the guitar, really. I prefer DiMarzio through and through.
Vox amps are meant for clean and dirty blues. Dirty, closer to fuzz, meaning it's not going to crush skulls. Line 6 amps are disgusting to me, but some people like them. Give a few of them a shot, see what you think. I prefer Peavey amps. Right now, the Valve King is the one I'm sticking with for a while, because it sounds amazing to me.

I know Vox doesn't have the reputation for a 'metal' amp, so to speak, but the new Valvetronix series seems to be better suited for the genre.
I really only want EMGs because I want that Hetfield 'God' sound ... I want big, muscular sounding guitars. And according to what I've heard and read, the EMGs are the way to go.