quick questions

[doggage5050]

where should i drill the holes in my guitar body for installing the tailpiece/bridge (does it matter how far up or down the guitar it is)?

i love the sound of the EMG-85 pickups ( i am planning on just having one pickup in my guitar...positioned right in the middle), but don't they require batteries? that turns me off. what comparable Humbucking pickup should i use?

[guitar_ed]

First thing you need to know is the scale length of the guitar/neck. That will tell you where to put the bridge. And yes, it matters. In fact, it is critical.

[Brian]

What Ed said, plus only active pickups such as EMG 85's need batterys!

Most standard guitar pickups are non-active, so no batteries need

[vh-guitarstore.com]

try a duncan jb instead of the emg....why do you want it in the middle?

[westhemann]

keep in mind that the positioning of the pickup will greatly affect the tone.closer to the bridge=more attack while the further up towards the neck you go,the softer and milder the tone.what confuses me is that the 85 is generally a bridge pickup(although i use 81's)so like vh i wonder why you want it in the middle.i guess the question is;what style of music is this guitar planned on being used for?but yes the 85 is active(needs battery).emg has an active and a passive line.try out the emg hz series.they are passive(no battery)and they are similar in tone to the active line(not quite though)i had one that closely matched an 81,but they have others.

anyways just keep in mind that if you heavily palm mute(aka metal) the middle position will be too mushy.oh and each 9 volt battery lasts over a year with heavy use(3000 hours).so it's really not a big deal.just remember to unplug the guitar after use.(this turns the battery off.)