Confusion over wiring of the pickups - LP

[Zandit75]

I've been doing some research on wiring up the controls and pick-ups, and came across this LP DIY build that does things very different from the videos Adam has on his website.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HoWWQvDsfsU
The Capacitors are connected differently, and the Tone pots are earthed the same as the Volume pots by bending the last contact against the pot and soldering it together.
Is one of these incorrect, or are there multiple ways of wiring these systems up?

[wokkaboy]

Hi Zandit, yes there are many ways to wire a 2 humbucker, 2 volume, 2 tone, 3 way switch.
I haven't had a look at the video but sure either way should work ok. The wiring diagram for LP kits on the PBG works fine.
Most of the video's with Adam on the site are pretty old.

[Zandit75]

Thanks Wokka. I spoke with my Boss who has some experience with electronics, and he mentioned one set-up is in Sequence, and the other is in Parallel, would have any effect on the operation?

[wokkaboy]

Hi Zandit, I think there will be minor differences in the operation, but best wait for wiring guru Weirdy to answer that. I haven't got time to study the video of the other setup at work

[Zandit75]

No worries Wokka, thanks for answering anyway.
Hopefully Weirdy can shed some light on the subject.

[WeirdBits]

Essemtially there are two ways to wire it:
1. The capacitor comnects between the volume and tone, acting as the link, and the pot is the path to ground.
2. There is a wire link between the volume and the tone, signal goes through the pot and then the capacitor is the path to ground.

With #1 the capacitor is acting as your link between the pots (saving you an extra connection), so the signal goes from the volume through the capacitor (acting as a filter) then through the resistance of the pot and directly to ground on the back of the pot. This typical of Gibson LP style wiring.

With #2 the wire link makes the connection between the pots, so the signal goes from the volume through the wire link to the tone then through the resistance of the pot and then to ground via the capacitor (acting as the filter). This style is more inline with Fender style where you would often have two tone pots sharing one capacitor.

The above video is using style #1... which style you choose is up to you. It depends on the type of caps you are using (if they'll fit etc.), how tight the control cavity is, and personal preference. Some people claim they can hear a difference between the two styles, but only you can answer that.

[Zandit75]

Thanks Mate, most appreciated.
I'm not an electric player, so I'm doing all of this by the seat of my pants really. I have no idea what kind of sound I want, and what changes I will need to make to get it where I want it.
Good ole trial and error coming up!!
Thanks again!

[Brendan]

If you're playing around and trying to find a sound you like, it may be worth looking at this stewmac video.


https://youtu.be/e0SLdOWvz3c

Even if you're not going to use their resistor / capacitor doohicky (also available from Pitbull), you can use the idea of aligator clips to try out different capacitors & values if you're of the experimental bent.

[Zandit75]

If you're playing around and trying to find a sound you like, it may be worth looking at this stewmac video.


https://youtu.be/e0SLdOWvz3c

Even if you're not going to use their resistor / capacitor doohicky (also available from Pitbull), you can use the idea of aligator clips to try out different capacitors & values if you're of the experimental bent.
Thanks Brendon, I'll look into that also!

[Alkay]

Thanks Mate, most appreciated.
I'm not an electric player, so I'm doing all of this by the seat of my pants really. I have no idea what kind of sound I want, and what changes I will need to make to get it where I want it.
Good ole trial and error coming up!!
Thanks again!

Hi Zandit,

I'm in the same situation as you with wiring my LP. Did you have any luck with getting this going?

That original video you posted for wiring I have seen. That videos are good however he never gave a demo whether the guitar worked or not after wiring so I'm leaning towards following PBG's LP videos(suggested by wokkaboy) located here: http://www.pitbullguitars.com/videos/

Cheers,

Alkay.

[Zandit75]

Alkay, I'm still in the build stage. I was just looking ahead at the time and seeing what was in store for myself.
I'm still a couple of weeks away from doing the wiring.
Sorry, I'm not much help for you just yet.

[Alkay]

Alkay, I'm still in the build stage. I was just looking ahead at the time and seeing what was in store for myself.
I'm still a couple of weeks away from doing the wiring.
Sorry, I'm not much help for you just yet.

Good idea to plan ahead I'm on my second build now. It's a bit of a process but everyone is very helpful.
I used some conductive shielding paint on this build so hopefully that helps. My first LP was a disaster. I never got the wiring fixed and gave it to a mate to try.

I'm just going through PBG's video at the moment and comparing it to Andy40's suggestion here: http://www.buildyourownguitar.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=5662&page=20&p=119607#post119607

[Simon Barden]

I've been doing some research on wiring up the controls and pick-ups, and came across this LP DIY build that does things very different from the videos Adam has on his website.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HoWWQvDsfsU


One thing I noticed in that video that is very misleading (especially without any clarification) is the statement (at 4:16) that a B taper is for the volume and A taper is for the tone.

To match the change in output level to the way the human ear responds to changes in sound levels, a volume pot should have a 'logarithmic', log' or 'audio' taper, whilst the tone control is often picked as having a 'linear' or 'lin' taper, though both linear and logarithmic pots can be used for a tone control function - it's down to personal preference as to how quickly you want the treble to roll off.

But not all manufacturers mark their pots in the same way and while it is now common for a pot marked with an A to have a log taper and those marked with a B to have a linear taper. Some time ago (not sure how long) this used to be reversed, (so A was linear and B was log) but this then got swapped. Not confusing at all!

So it's worth checking out the details on the manufacturer's web sites just to be sure.

If you look at the CTS data sheet for the range of pots that are commonly used in guitars http://www.ctscorp.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Series-450G.pdf, you'll find a range of different response curves, with both A and B being log type pots (as well as types C, BD, H and J) and D being linear. Luckily they use a numerical code in their part number for the taper type (so you won't get easily confused), and when sold by 3rd parties are generally listed by a generic 'audio' or 'linear' taper description.

Bourns pots use A for Audio, B for Linear and C for Reverse Logarithmic (often used in left-handed guitars).

Alpha pots use use A for Audio, B for Linear and C for reverse logarithmic, (though some of their linear taper curves are rather fast-acting for use as tone pots). http://alphapotentiometers.net/html/taper_curves.html.

So if you've got some name-brand pots and want to check on the taper type (if it's not stamped or printed on the pot), it's normally easy to look up the manufacturer's website and find out the specific taper your pots have. But if you've got some generic no-name pots that have A and B markings on them, it's probably worth getting out the multimeter (anyone putting together an electric guitar needs one) and checking the resistance between one of the two end tabs (connected to each end of the potentiometer's resistance track) and the central tab (connected to the wiper) when the shaft is set to the half-way position.

A Linear pot will have a value close to 50% of that of the pot's maximum value, so 125k ohms for a 250k ohm pot, and 250k ohms for a 500k ohm pot. A Log pot will typically have either a value of around either 10% or 90% of the pot's maximum value (depending on which end tab of the pot you're measuring - you can easily swap to read between the centre tab and the other end tab to make doubly certain if you've got a high resistance reading to start with), so 25K or 225k for a 250k log pot and 50k or 450k for a 500k log pot. there may be some variation on this if it's of a slightly different curve type, but it certainly won't be 50% of the pot's value.

So A normally means Audio/Log (and is meant to be used as a volume control) and B normally means Linear (and is meant to be used as a tone control), but not always (and videos like the one above don't help)!

[wazkelly]

Easier to run with Audio tapers on both volume & tone controls and that saves any confusion. Mind you it doesn't hurt to experiment to see which type you prefer as the Linear taper on a tone would cut in much quicker/dramatically however if you want a softer, more progressive roll off Audio taper works better.

[Kick]

Am I correct that there are new wiring diagrams published on the website? I see a new one for 2 humbuckers, to volume and 2 ton knobs (like an LP).
This wiring would be suitable for LP-1 (Video), LP-1M, LP-1P, LP-1S, LP-1SS, ES-1G, ES-1GT, ES-2, ES-3, FB-1, IC-1, MB-1, PBG-2, PRS-1TS, RC-1, SG-1, SG-1F, SG-2, TL-1HA. I miss the LP-1MQ in the list...

[Zandit75]

It will be the same diagram.