I'm starting a mod project on my Ibanez. it is a cheap GRX70DX. I am replacing the blah pickups with new Kent Armstrongs...i have an Ultra-Distortion for the bridge and an OEM PAF for the neck. I plan on getting a hot single coil for the middle.
Now for the issues...I want to replace the pots so i can split me humbuckers.
1. What does "out of phase" mean?
2. Does anyone know of an easy to read diagram of how to wire this with split buckers?
3. What kind of pot should i use? I know there are 250k and 500k and the difference between them, but Im not sure what I need. I like the idea of warmth in the 250, but i want the volume and highs that could come with a 500. I'm leaning to the 500, unless someone tells me im nuts.
4. if you think of anything cool or useful im not thinking of, please let me know
A humbucking pickup has 2 coils.
Each coil has a + and - wire
Standard wiring is in series, + connected to - with 2 wire ends, one - and one +
making the 2 coils one big pickup. This has the most powerful sound.
Parallel in phase wiring has one coil's + connected to the other coil's +. Each coil's -'s are connected together also. This still gives you 2 wire ends, one + and one - but they run like 2 single coil pickups instead of one big pickup. This sound has a little less power and is brighter.
Parallel out of phase the + end of one coil is connected to the - end of the other like in series but the other ends are connected also. This gives you 2 wires but each is + and -. The sine wave patterns of the pickup will now have one coil on the up while the other is on the down. This cancels frequencies and makes the sound thin.
As for pots, there is no absolute rule, but usually 250K for single coil and 500K for big pickups like humbuckers and P90's. Also I read most manufacturers use audio taper pots for volume and tone, but again there are no hard rules.
"Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard,
grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em."
-- The Webb Wilder Credo --
Good descriptions, TR. I think of out-of-phase as a nasal sound, it sounds like you've got a wah pedal in the chain set half-way, only a more subtle effect. Nice tone for some things, and sounds great with distortion.
As for pots, there is no absolute rule, but usually 250K for single coil and 500K for big pickups like humbuckers and P90's. Also I read most manufacturers use audio taper pots for volume and tone, but again there are no hard rules.
If you don't use an audio-taper for the vol, on your dial 0 will be muted and 2ish will be almost full volume - 2ish to 10 will all be almost exactly the same and therefore wasted, and you have to be much more delicate making volume changes as it will be more sensitive. It still works just fine though, and if you do a lot of violining (ie, fading each note in with your pinky on the volume pot) it'll make that a whole shedload easier...
These two sites might be helpfull.
http://www.guitarelectronics.com/category/wiringresources.11pickupcolorcodes/
http://www.1728.com/guitar.htm
:D
hmmm, im still a layman, so im not sure i totally get what all that was...I understand what it means to be in phase now (im not fond of the concept) and i understand the values of the pots...
ive decided that i want to put my 2 buckers and single coil with 2 500k pots (tone and volume), i want to use a 3-way switch (i didnt like the 5 way on this guitar with the pickups it has), and i want one of the pots to be push-pull so i can split the bridge humbucker. Is this even doable? I have trouble locating diagrams of how to wire this. i dont understand schematics at all, so it would help if i could find something that made it plain and clear.
any more ideas? ive learned alot already from you guys, so thanks. you all rock.
There's a fantastic site for this kind of thing, http://www.guitarelectronics.com/category/wiringresources.22pickupdiagrams/
Here's your basic 2 buckers, 3-way switch, one tone and one vol, and a coil tap is just a little addition - to make a switch turn coil tapping on, it just has to connect the two humbucker leads that are usually connected together and connect them to the hot output, which bypasses/shorts out/shunts one of the coils. Give me a shout if there's not enough info there, I can knock up a complete diagram from the basic one on that site...
i saw that site...but my guitar has 2 buckers and a single coil in the middle. i want the position switch to engage one of the 3 pickups with no combinations. i dont really like 5-way switch setups except on strats with pure single coils.
i saw that site...but my guitar has 2 buckers and a single coil in the middle. i want the position switch to engage one of the 3 pickups with no combinations. i dont really like 5-way switch setups except on strats with pure single coils.
That calls for some serious rewiring. You would have to take the 5-way out, and replace it with the 3-way. The hard part would be figuring out which wire does what, and what terminal to solder it to. If you don't have experience, or an electronics background, I would take it to a shop for that.
i saw that site...but my guitar has 2 buckers and a single coil in the middle. i want the position switch to engage one of the 3 pickups with no combinations. i dont really like 5-way switch setups except on strats with pure single coils.
Sorry, I missed the bit about the single coil :roll: ...and a certain someone didn't mention no combos :wink:
A standard 3-way switch can't do that, it is basically a choice between 2 signals or both together, you need a choice of 3. You're looking at either conquering your aversion to 5 way switches; putting in a seperate 2-way toggle switch for each pickup and one for the coil tap; or finding some other switch that does what you want.
If you're open to a slight change in plans, consider one of these setups:
http://www.guitarelectronics.com/product/WDUHSH5L1101
or
http://www.guitarelectronics.com/product/WDUHSH5L1102
Both use a 5-way switch, and both have coil taps in positions 2 and 4; the wiring is fairly straightforward.
The first is
1. Bridge humbucking,
2. Bridge split + middle,
3. Middle
4. Neck split + middle
5. Neck humbucking
The second is the same except for position 3, which is bridge + neck, both humbucking, so more like the middle position on a LP.
"Everybody got to elevate from the norm."
seymorduncan(sp)?.com has great diagrams check it out if you haven't already
gibsonSG standard/gallagher"doc watson" acoustic
yup! you rock soundsgood...that's *almost* exactly what i want on seymourduncan
http://www.seymourduncan.com/support/schematics/HSH_1v_1t_5w_pushpull.html
i'll put up with the 5 way, i guess...maybe i can wire it so that the 2 and 4 positions have no signal, and i can do a litlte Tom Morello action
Could this be what you're looking for? http://www.wdmusic.com/mini_switch_4_pole_triple_29636_prd1.htm
I'm not a wiring genius or anything, so maybe someone else could take a look at it. It's a 4 pole tripple throw switch.
