rewiring lp from modern to vintage

[Sgt.]

okay i assume a new lp studio is wired 'modern' style. i wish to refit the studio with a prewired harness that is wired vintage style.

The question I have is in regard to the toggle switch, does it have to be wired differently? What type of wire should replace what's in there (toggle switch wire)? Should I have to do a rewire of the toggle switch when replacing the stock electronics or will a prewired harness just drop in? I've had a look at what's in the guitar already and it seems that the toggle switch wire is pretty flimsy. It would be better to get it rewired when i have the harness done, right? I'm reallly hoping that the buzz issue i'm having with the lp studio when the vol/tone are all the way up will clear up with better quality electronics.

I'm not an expert electronics guy. I have to ask Q's :)

in the worst case i'll have ordered something from the US that's expensive and useless.

[rct]

A vintage harness will probably do very little to solve the buzz. If it does, it will be because a grounding problem was resolved, and is nothing to do with modern vs vintage wiring.

 

You could also end up with a vintage wired les paul that has buzzing pickups, that's a possiblility too.

 

The reasons for buzz are rarely, if ever, cured by "hope", they are pretty simple and pretty straight forward.

 

Good luck with it.

 

rct

[Armitage]

You know with the controls on 10, there is no difference between vintage and modern wiring.

 

Except that most vintage wiring is 500k pots, while most modern Gibsons come with 300k pots.

[roadhog96]

The Vintage 50's wiring will allow more highs to pass through using the 500K pots. This will make the guitar brighter and clearer sounding which will really help to eliminate the mud sound you get with the neck pick up. Using a .015 uF cap for the neck PUP vs. a .022.uF will also help clear up the mud. What you will really notice is when either PUP Volume is rolled off, the Treble will be retained. When you roll off the Volume with Modern wiring you loose Treble. When you turn down the Volume, it should sound the same only at a reduced Volume. Reducing the Volume shouldn't alter the tone like it does with Modern wiring. Also with 50's wiring, the Tone controls will now be more useful by providing you with infinite options with your Tone. And yes, there's no difference between Vintage and Modern when their both on 10 using the same value pots.

[Greg Jacob]

To answer the first question, that is up to you. I use all braided push-back wire as more gounding isn't going to hurt, switch, jack, everywhere. I rewired my Ibanez (has similar controls to an SG) this way with 50's wiring schematic and I am really digging the sound. Like previous posters said, the volume and tone controls are much more usable than before. With the gain at 11, she's completely silent - no unwanted noise. I haven't modified my 2012 Les Paul because it sounds good as is.