Help! HSH wiring, getting myself confused!?

Hi, I'm putting together a scrappy partscaster thing... I'm about to get a pickguard made (THANKS PABS! ;) ) but before I do, I need some advice...

The body is from an old Ibanez RGX20, it is a 2-humbucker guitar but there is actually a routed cavity in the middle for a single-coil pick-up, so I'm throwing one in. I've got a Wilkinson pick-up to throw in, but I might go a noise-free Entwistle from here actually!

OK, so the original pickguard was 2 humbuckers, volume pot, tone pot, and 3-way switch.

I am making it HSH, 5-way switch (I think?) and what I want to know is, should I add an extra pot or toggle switch between the 2 existing pots?

I am undecided if I want to keep it simple, or go whole-hog & have heaps of tonal options? Can you guys please help me? I know electronics a bit but guitar wiring seems to do my head in lol. I'm sure I'll get a grip on it all soon but I do need some advice on what you more experienced folk suggest for HSH wiring options.

Should I throw in a 3rd pot/toggle? What about push-pull pot options? What about 5-way "super-switches"?

Sorry for the noobiness of this post, I'm hoping you people can set me straight hehe...

Thanks!

Just to follow up... I should mention that I am throwing in an SD Invader bridge & I got a GFS Loudmouth thing for the neck. Probably an Entwistle ASN-57 in the middle. They are all pretty much same high DC output, not sure if that means anything or not...?

I would like switching --

1 - Bridge H
2 - Bridge SC/Middle
3 - Middle
4 - Neck SC/Middle
5 - Neck

...^^ at the very least!

I have heard that bridge SC + neck Humbucker is a good combo?

This is where I get confused... Should I go a toggle or a push-pull and have another set of 5 switching options? I could probably fit a 3rd pot in there, or possibly even 2 mini toggle switches. Or push-pull blah blah... Help!

With tapping the single coils off the bridge and neck, which side should I use? Inner? Outer?

Wtf is "series" and "parallel"?? (Yes I know what these terms mean, but what does it mean with regards pickups & tone etc? I have no clue!)

What about phase/reverse phase options??

HEEEELLLP!!! :confused:

Sorry to spam my own thread lol...

Other switching options I am interested in (maybe?) --

Bridge SC
Bridge SC/Neck H
Bridge H/Neck H
Neck SC

...???

Suggestions/advice welcome!

With a standard CRL style 5-way lever switch and 1 volume, 1 tone, you can easily do the "Bridge H, Bridge SC/Middle, Middle, Neck SC/Middle, Neck H" layout. It's basically a strat layout on one side of the switch and on the other side you short the humbucker coil links to ground in positions 2 and 4.

Which coils you need/use when split will depend on the pickup you use in the middle and its properties compared to the bridge and neck humbuckers (is the mddile stacked/noiseless or a plain SC so you will need to match the coils etc to get hum canceling with the split bridge and neck).

If you want to have the option of just the bridge and neck together or all three pups on, then you'll need an extra switch (either a mini-toggle or a push/pull). If you want bridge/neck pairing with optional coil splits... then you'll need up to three switches, with either mini-toggles or a mix of mini's and push/pulls. Phase changes add even more options, but it's probably better to work out what pickup combos and coil options you want first and then decide if you have room and any real need for phase changes as well.

Series and parallel can refer to two different things. For humbucker pickups it refers to the way its coils are linked, which are typically in series but can be linked in parallel for a thinner brighter sound with less output. Series and parallel can also refer to how pickups are combined, typically in parallel but can be linked in series for fatter higher output results.

Is this going to be an 'everything' axe, or is there a specific sound/style you're aiming for?


Here's a few layouts: 3 pickup wiring diagrams.

THANK YOU! I really appreciate your response!

I will get back here with a few more questions most probably, but just wanted to say thanks & I will study further...

Quote:

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Is this going to be an 'everything' axe, or is there a specific sound/style you're aiming for?

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Well, that's the thing... I'm still deciding. Mostly I am a bridge humbucker sort of guy, but yes I would like some tonal variety... why? BECAUSE! :p

Because... this is my first "partscaster" and I want to experiment! Yes all my pick-ups are high-DC output (whatever that means? I read conflicting stuff about this!!)... So yeah, I plug into overdrive pedals etc...

Anyway, I may have a few more questions, but thanks for your response, WeirdBits! I am continually looking into it!