Skip to content
Non-working tone po...
 
Notifications
Clear all

Non-working tone pot

4 Posts
3 Users
0 Likes
606 Views
(@billyboy)
Estimable Member
Joined: 16 years ago
Posts: 91
Topic starter  

Took a try fixing a tone pot on my Strat. Curious what to try next. Here's a brief description:

MIM Squire, 1 Volume, 2 Tone, and a 5-switch. The bottom tone pot for the bridge pickup hasn't worked for quite a while.

1. Removed the ground to the tremolo plate, so I could flip the pick guard over and get to everything
2. All the connections looked solid on everything, nothing visibly cracked or disconnected
3. Following the instructions in a repair book I bought, unsoldered the lead from the non-working pot to the 5-way, then tested the pot with a multi-meter. When turning the pot (it's a 500k ) the range was from 0k to about 418k. There's also (I think) a capacitor soldered on the pot as well, says .033J. Don't see the capacitor on the wiring diagram either.

What next..could anyone post a brief description on testing a pot? I'm obviously missing something..

Cheers

"In my dreams your blowin' me... some kisses" - Lets Duet - Dewford Randolph Cox


   
Quote
(@hyperborea)
Prominent Member
Joined: 17 years ago
Posts: 827
 

First, your Strat probably doesn't have a bridge tone pot but only a neck and middle pickup tone pot - that's the standard. If your wiring is like this schematic here then you most definitely don't have a bridge tone pot. Do your tone pots work with the neck and middle pickup?

Pop music is about stealing pocket money from children. - Ian Anderson


   
ReplyQuote
(@billyboy)
Estimable Member
Joined: 16 years ago
Posts: 91
Topic starter  

That's almost embarrassing. No, not almost. It is.

Having said that, it not completely off the wall to have assumed the two tones should interact with all three pickups, just like the 5-way? Just nod and we'll move on. :wink: At least I got a look at guitar wiring for the first time, had some solder practice, and cleaned the pots and switch with contact cleaner.

But it brings up the question, why no tone for the bridge pup? I'll guess it has something to do with the natural sound of the strings that close to the bridge.(?)

"In my dreams your blowin' me... some kisses" - Lets Duet - Dewford Randolph Cox


   
ReplyQuote
(@gnease)
Illustrious Member
Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 5038
 

The reason for no tone on the the bridge pup may be documented somewhere, but it's likely a decision Leo Fender and his team made with the advice of the handful of country players they consulted during the Strat's design. The 3 pups of the Strat originally were intended to operate independently (3-way - not 5-way - switching back then) to offer the player three fundamental tones based on pup position. I'll offer a theory (only a theory): Most players selected the bridge pup for a biting or twangier tone. If less treble bite was required, the player could simply switch to the center or neck pup and trim tone even more with the provided controls if required. Leo was a frugal guy, and probably considered the additional tone control to be something few players would need or use, especially as the Strat bridge pup was not considered all that biting compared to a Tele bridge pup anyway. No need to provide a control to roll off treble with other options (pups with tones) available.

Of course times and playing needs change, and some players have rewired their Strats to move the center tone control to the bridge circuit. And for most of us, the 5-way switch has become standard!

-=tension & release=-


   
ReplyQuote