Whether he’s playing with Ozzy Osbourne, delivering pummelling biker metal riffs with Black Label Society, or tipping his hat to the late Dimebag Darrell in the newly reprised Pantera, Zakk Wylde never strays away from his EMG 81/85 pickups.
A humbucker combination beloved by some of the biggest bands in the world – from Metallica to Slayer, through to the history-making Diamond Rowe – the high-output active pups have more bite than a cheap buffet. But it wasn’t a metal guitar hero who originally turned Wylde onto them. Instead, it was one of his guitar students, who was playing – of all things – a Fender Mustang.
