Active emgs in about anything are going to sound like active emgs. We used to joke that you could put emgs in a 2x4 and it wouldn't sound any different. In my opinion that's not far from the truth. The preamp in your guitar pushes the signal many times stronger than the signal you get from passive pickups. What this does is eliminate a lot of the subtle qualities your unique instrument may have. In the end you will have the aggressive scooped emg sound. Many people, myself included, find 81/85 tone sterile in a sense that your sound is scooped to the extreme. The mids you've cut out and the tone properties of your guitar shine when you run through a quality tube amplifier. However if you want a guitar that's going to haul ass all the time, this will do it. I'd look into the kerry king set if I was you. They're the same pickups with a boost. I know for a fact I can tell the difference in the tone of an epiphone and a gibson, but I wouldn't bet a dollar I could tell the difference in tone when both have emgs.