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Need wiring help with Epiphone Les Paul Standard


lttoler

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I have an Epiphone Les Paul Standard that I am wanting to put a pair of Seymour Duncan humbuckers in. I took the old pickups out a couple years ago and all the original wiring and pots are still in there, just minus the pickups. Can anyone tell me where I can find a wiring diagram or help me out. I can't seem to find one for the original wiring setup anywhere on the internet. Thanks a ton!

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Go back to the main page.

Click on the "Epiphone Lounge" forum.

At the top of the page you will see a "sticky" entitled, "Do-it-yourself thread".

Click on that. animalfarm, one of our members, has put together some great stuff, including wiring diagrams.

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I have an Epiphone Les Paul Standard that I am wanting to put

a pair of Seymour Duncan humbuckers in. I took the old pickups out a couple

years ago and all the original wiring and pots are still in there' date=' just minus the pickups.

 

[/quote']

 

BRAD!!!!! I'm a member? I 'member I thought I was a member, but

can't 'member right now.... Thanks for mentioning the thread, I keep adding

stuff to it (just added a source for Laser-cut Masonite Guitar templates).

I go on it to dig in the TECH INFO links, but I never see anyone else on it.

However, the # of views is going up, so..... That's good. It's there to be used.

 

lttoler - Do what BRAD said. There IS a link to SD wiring diagrams in the

"Guitar Wiring Diagrams" sub-section then you choose which configuration

you want. Try it just for practice, but I'll go ahead an post the link

from the "DIY" to a typical SD LP-Style wiring diagram. I use it myself.

 

2 Humbuckers, 2 Volumes, 2 Tones, 3-way switch

http://www.seymourduncan.com/support/wiring-diagrams/schematics.php?schematic=2h_2v_2t_3w

 

WELCOME to the Forum! Ask away with questions, there are MANY MEMBERS

HERE who can answer them. IF you can, and have an image-hosting site, post

pictures of your Git as is now and as you go, or after you install ups!

We LIKE pictures.

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Thanks for the info. I have already seen this, but my problem is that the wires from the 3 way switch run to the control cavity, and then is joined with a connecter with different colored wires, so I dont know which wire is which. should I just gut all wiring and run new wires? If so where can I get wiring like that from?

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Gday mate, Id go ahead and re-wire it if the wiring looks a bit dodgy or confusing. If you can weild a soldering iron its not that hard, and its good to know how it all works.

 

The wiring in my Dot was done differently to the way Seymour Duncan schematics show anyway. Stewart MacDonald is a great source for any parts Ive found, you should be able to get everything you need there, or you can get complete wiring upgrade kits with paper in oil or orange drop caps, CTS pots etc. from eBay if you want to go the whole hog.....

 

Cheers, Scott.

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If all you're doing is adding some pickups to replace ones that came out before, it doesn't matter which wire's which in the "quick connect" connector, you just need to join the red and white wires from SD 4 connector pickups together, wire the bare and green wire to the volume pot casing, and wire the black wire to the correct lug of the volume pot as in the diagram. If it's 2 wire pickup with a single core and an outer sheath, then you just need to wire the inner core to the pot lug and the outer sheath to the pot casing.

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Okay thats basically what Im doing, just changing the pickups. Only problem is I removed the original wiring and am trying to figure out how to put it back in. I have the 3 way switch that is hooked by the quik connect to the 4 pots.

 

I guess I basically need to know where each pot should go because the SD diagram seems slightly different. 2 of my pots have rust color caps on it that say 2A223J. 2 of the pots say B500k on top and the other 2 say A500k.

 

Can anyone tell me where these pots are supposed to go? Thanks a ton!

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Hey, guy! I see you'e at a crossroads? I did a bit of research for you

before I had to go and pull a double shift, so you haven't heard from me

yet! OK -

The A pots are VOLUME pots, the B pots are TONE pots. Two different

kinds of "taper", they turn on/off a bit differently. The ones with the CAPS,

capacitors, are TONE, should have the B on them, right? Your part # indicates

your tone caps are 22ufd (microfarad), iz good.

 

Regarding the connector, I redid my own wiring in my classic LP

WITHOUT the connector. What are your plans? Do you have enough wire

left on the control cavity side to splice onto? Just cut out the connector,

ID the wires (4), then splice/solder additional longer wire onto each so

you'll have plenty of slack to work with before cutting, tinning, and soldering

onto each volume pot and output jack. Of course, you'll have to put

heat shrink (best) OR electrical tape on each "splice" to prevent accidental

touching.

 

No matter what, you'll need to know which wire from switch is ground, hot, neck, and bridge.

 

Or would you rather just run NEW wires from 3 way switch to control cavity?

Will involve de-soldering old wires, solder new wires. Is your current 3 way switch

inside a little box, rather than "open" where you can see the contact tabs move

when you flip it back and forth?

 

I'm gonna have to head out for about 4 hours, so I can either continue then, or

keep posting, and let's see if one of our esteemed colleagues can jump in with you.

I can think of several IF they're online to see this!

 

Your ground circuit is important - you'll be doing/soldering the following:

Ground 3 way to back of a pot.

Ground Bridge ground wire to back of a pot.

Ground pickup ground wire(s) to back of a pot.

Ground all pots together.

Run ground wire from back of a pot to output jack ground tab (the one connected

to inner ring).

 

The "HOT" circuit connections solder to the tabs on the pots themselves, just like the

schematic I linked you to earlier shows. Still going with the SD pups?

 

EDIT: Any way you can produce Pics of what you're looking at? Not mandatory, the

SD wiring schematic is more than sufficient to pull this off. If you've never done this

before, it helps to have a bit of assist. After the first time, you'll smack your

forehead when you realize it was actually that easy.

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Well actually I plan to use the existing wiring because I'm selling it to a good friend. He said if I wire the pickups in, he'll buy it. So I'm just trying to get it going with what is there. I have another Epi Les Paul that I plan to completely re-gut.

 

All this is great info and I really appreciate it. The only problem I have now is that my pots that have the caps are labeled "A" not B.

 

Are they still the tones?

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Yeah you can use the same pots for tone or volume.

Were you able to find wire? I think that's what you were asking about earlier.

I go to Circuit City, which is the old Radio Shack. They sometimes have 26 guage wire.

Otherwise I go to an electronic supply store near me.

You can use 22 or 24 guage but I wouldn't go much bigger than 22; the

cavity gets a little crowded.

A good way to replace wiring is to do one at a time. Tie the end of the new to the end of the old

and use the old wire to pull the new one through.

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I think the matter's really being overcomplicated. Forget the A or B thing, a lot of people who do their own wiring like to use A for volume and B for tone, but Epiphone seem to usually do it the other way around now. I have studied this scientifically and found that the way Epiphone do it is the best way. The pots with caps are tone, the ones without are volume.

 

Just solder the ground wire from a pickup to a volume pot casing and the hot wire from the same pickup to the same pot's left most lug when viewed from the bottom of the pot (i.e. the end lug that isn't connected to the pot casing). Repeat for the other pickup to the other volume pot and shove it all back into the guitar so that the pots end up in the correct holes. I see no reason why the switch has anything to do with it. If the switch ends up working the wrong way round, loosen the screw and rotate it 180 degrees. Then just put the pots back in the correct holes.

 

Simple as that.

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I think the matter's really being overcomplicated.

The pots with caps are tone' date=' the ones without are volume.

[/qoute']

 

:-

 

the SD wiring schematic is more than sufficient to

pull this off. If you've never done this before' date=' it helps to have a bit of assist.

[b']After the first time, you'll smack your forehead when you realize it was actually

that easy[/b].

 

KX -Sure is easy if you already know HOW to do it, and you aren't trying

to explain to someone who doesn't know how the way to proceed. How did you

learn? It's a whole different ballgame if YOU are the "teacher". Not so easy as

just saying "too complicated, just do this and that". Many of the newer members

have NEVER attempted mods, and until they get one under their belt, extra attention

and more detailed explanations are required. It's not like you're standing there and

can just show them. :- :- :-

 

When I joined this forum, I had never modded a git, much less totally stripped

one down, refinished it, then reassembled. I've learned a LOT since then, modded

and refinished countless guitars, and can look at a Git schematic and know just

what to do to install pups, pots, switches, hardware, make many different repairs,

have filed and polished my own frets, shot my own cherryburst finishes on gits,

etc.

 

I LEARNED HERE!!!! Because others HELPED ME! I did a LOT of my own research to

go with it. Your explanation is correct on what to do, and I fully understand it because

I, too, already know what to do. Someone who has NEVER attempted it is unsure, and

is ESPECIALLY worried about RUINING their guitar. Add to that the fact that you are NOT

face-to-face changes how to explain. Many things to look at that experienced modders

just take for granted... [biggrin][blink] [blink]

 

I'm not a Pro Luthier, never claimed to be. I learned, now will pass it on if I CAN.

Topics come up that I know nothing about, so I watch 'em and see what goes down.

I'm "maintaining" the EPI Lounge "Do-it-Yourself" thread. WHY? To put the info

out there for others to use and hopefully learn from. [rolleyes]

 

End of professorial dissertation. :-({|=

 

"DIY" Thread

http://forums.epiphone.com/default.aspx?g=posts&t=14775

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  • 5 years later...

I rewired my Epiphone DOT 2 years ago. I used the 50's wiring. What that did was that I was able to use both the neck and bridge pickup at the same time to tweak the tone. Hope this helps.

post-78829-044640300 1463931506_thumb.png

post-78829-029105600 1463931563_thumb.jpg

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