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Non Standard Wiring Options


not_the_dj

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Posted

I'm tempted to upgrade the pick-ups in my Smartwood Exotic, so I might also take the opporunity to think about different wiring options.

 

I've got coil splits on my Trad Pro 2, which I'm liking a lot, but what other mods have you guys done to yours?

Posted

I've got coil splits on my Trad Pro 2, which I'm liking a lot, but what other mods have you guys done to yours?

I mod most of my guitars.

For 2 pickup, 2 vol, 2 tone, three way switch, I'm a sucker for 50's dependent wiring with 500k pots and PIO caps wired with 22g vintage wiring

and switchcraft jack and toggle switch.

 

My '76 Les Paul Custom:

 

100_0947-1.jpg

 

Seems to bring out the best of what I'm looking for.

 

So much for my answer. Now, I have a couple of questions.

What kind of wiring do you currently have?

How about a Pic of the cavity?

What do you know as to what you would like?

 

Not being a wise guy here... but...

It might be easier to talk on the subject if we knew more about what you are looking for and what you already know.

 

I'm presuming that you understand that the majority of your sound is going to come from your pickups and amp. (the style of guitar is a given)

 

Different players like to control their guitars differently. (Are you playing heavy jazz through a Marshal stack?) LOL

Volume taper and tone control can not only depend on wiring style but also potentiometer value and percentage of taper.

Although many will disagree, the type and value of caps you use can also be IMHO quite effective.

 

Are you already aware of the four basic wiring styles for your guitar?

Modern Dependent

50's Dependent

Modern Independent

50's Independent

 

Everything else are modifications of the above.(coil tapping, coil splitting, series, parallel and reverse phase)

 

This is just the beginning of the "Road To Insanity".

How do you like to control your guitar?

 

This could turn out to be a very interesting conversation.

(by the by...What kind of pickups are you considering?)

 

A couple of starter links for the sake of conversation: (You probably know this but others may not)

http://www.dominocs.com/AshBassGuitar/WireLibrary-Gibson.html

http://www.guitarelectronics.com/category/wiring_resources_guitar_wiring_diagrams.wiring_faqs/

http://www.guitarelectronics.com/category/wiring_resources_guitar_wiring_diagrams.2_pickup_guitar_wiring_diagrams/

 

So....Waz Up?

 

Willy

Posted

Here's the insides of my '13 TP2, was wondering why there isnt any shielding tape or paint. Been thinkging of going old school and replace with the plain (no taps, boost) setup. Also thinking of putting the caps on a couple of switches to go back and forth between modern and '50s wiring. They would be inside the cavity and could do a 4 way setup (mod/mod, mod/'50s, '50s/mod or '50s/50s.

 

A thought would be is a 6-way BB King rotary. Tommy Shaw of Styx/Damn Yahkees/Solo had a white LP with it. It was his main player back in the 70's.

 

IMAG0056_zpsdeafbf14.jpg

Posted

Nitrodave08,

 

Nice looking wiring job considering the complexity. But, first things first.

 

Here's the insides of my '13 TP2, was wondering why there isnt any shielding tape or paint. Been thinking of....

I'm afraid I'm not familiar with the TP2, but...

I don't know of any Gibson that has shielding. I did mine when I re-did the wiring. It was just a bit noisy when I was

playing it through a 130 watt tube amp. I created a semi-complete Faraday cage. I coated the switch cavity, the pickup cavities,

all of the wire routes as well as the control cavity. (not for everyone) I also kept all the original parts as well as a

complete set of photos from before... including the dates and numbers stamped inside the cavities.

 

Moving on...

Great reply!!!

The modifications of wiring you are describing sound very interesting indeed!

Please keep us up to date as to what you decide.

Posting some diagrams and pics along the way would be quite informative.

 

Good luck in your choices Dave,

 

Willy

Posted

Thanks guys. I'll admit I don't really know what I want, I'm just looking for inspiration.

 

I'll have a good read of those links. This is something I might tackle over the Christmas break when I'll have time to tinker.

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