spaceboy250 Posted March 1, 2016 Share Posted March 1, 2016 Hi, I recently picked up a 2nd hand 2012 les Paul standard, and had a couple of questions. The first one is purely from a place of ignorance as I don't know if what is happening is normal or not.... 1. When the pickup selector is in the middle position, if I roll one Volume all the way off, it turns all the volume off and there is no sound, is that normal? It happens when I have the phase split switch enabled also. 2. When I roll either volume off in their respective switch positions even slightly, from 10 to 9/8, there seems to be a slightly tonal change, like a cocked wah effect. Again, is this normal? 3. There seems to be a fairly dramatic volume drop when I roll either pick up volume off even slightly. Then when I get the volume down to 5/6 the signal is almost completely gone. Past 5 there is no volume whatsoever. Is there an issue here? Sorry for the long list of questions, I just need to know if these are les paul quirks or I need to fix anything. Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted March 1, 2016 Share Posted March 1, 2016 Hello Spaceboy, and welcome here. Some pics of your new Les Paul would be nice... :) 1. When the pickup selector is in the middle position, if I roll one Volume all the way off, it turns all the volume off and there is no sound, is that normal? It happens when I have the phase split switch enabled also. This is normal. The outputs of either volume controls are switched in parallel via the toggle switch, and turning one of them down will short out the other as well. 2. When I roll either volume off in their respective switch positions even slightly, from 10 to 9/8, there seems to be a slightly tonal change, like a cocked wah effect. Again, is this normal? This is normal but also depends on the guitar cable used, in particular specific capacitance and length. With the control fully raised the pickup builds up a resonant circuit with the cable capacitance. Turning down will cause a resonance breakdown, and the attenuated signal is loaded down by the cable capacitance. The LC circuit increasingly changes to an RC circuit. 3. There seems to be a fairly dramatic volume drop when I roll either pick up volume off even slightly. Then when I get the volume down to 5/6 the signal is almost completely gone. Past 5 there is no volume whatsoever. Is there an issue here? Many Gibson USA guitars come with linear volume pots, others like yours use audio-tapered ones. Linear push/pull pots are unavailable. What you experience is the normal audio-taper characteristic. My own Les Paul Standard 2012 behaves just the same in any respect, and five more Gibsons of mine featuring audio-taper volume pots do that, too. Same is valid for all of my Fenders and most other guitars of mine, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaceboy250 Posted March 1, 2016 Author Share Posted March 1, 2016 Damn that was a comprehensive answer, thanks a lot you've put my mind at ease 😀 With respect the 2nd point, will this effect the volume if the phase switch is activated and the pickups are in series rather than parallel? Or is it the same no matter what? Apologies for my rudeness, here's a pic of said guitar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brantobrien Posted March 1, 2016 Share Posted March 1, 2016 Now that sure is pretty. I had a similar experience when I started playing Gibsons. You get used to it and learn to love it for what it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted March 1, 2016 Share Posted March 1, 2016 when you roll bhack your volumes, if you want to retain the high-end, look into installing a treble bleed circuit. I opted for a variable one that goes on the volume pots. they make a pretty significant difference, and with a good pot, (like a CTS or Bourne) your volume controls will work even down to 1 and 2 settings, sometimes those stock pots gibson uses kind of wink out past 5 or 4.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaceboy250 Posted March 1, 2016 Author Share Posted March 1, 2016 You see, it's all these kinks and complexities I look forward to learning about as an LP owner. I'm not adverse to the sounds or the quirks at the moment, was just checking that I hadn't bought a dog! I'm sure once I'm settled with it, all manner of tinkering shall start. Thanks again guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted March 1, 2016 Share Posted March 1, 2016 Damn that was a comprehensive answer, thanks a lot you've put my mind at ease 😀 With respect the 2nd point, will this effect the volume if the phase switch is activated and the pickups are in series rather than parallel? Or is it the same no matter what? Apologies for my rudeness, here's a pic of said guitar Congrats on this pretty Les Paul, HNGD! What rudeness? No problem, it's all good! Very few guitars allow for switching pickups in series, and these usually have a single master volume control only. Lots of circuit designs are possible on principle, but each has its upsides and downsides. On the 34 guitars and basses of mine occur 22 different control and switch configurations. Seven of them are modded, all the others stock. I use them all intuitively without taking a look. I wish I mastered playing to the same degree... :unsure: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 Lovely LP! Many congrats!!! As the old saying goes; 'There are no stupid questions; only stupid answers.' Pip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaceboy250 Posted March 4, 2016 Author Share Posted March 4, 2016 Thanks all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Farnsbarns Posted March 4, 2016 Share Posted March 4, 2016 Something about that LP. I don't normally like bursts with a lot of red but that has a real "old" vibe about it. Very nice looking guitar. Congratulations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stein Posted March 4, 2016 Share Posted March 4, 2016 Hello Spaceboy, and welcome here. Many Gibson USA guitars come with linear volume pots, others like yours use audio-tapered ones. Linear push/pull pots are unavailable. What you experience is the normal audio-taper characteristic. Another thourogh and technical answer from our CAPMASTER. Although, I have to ask, do we have "audio" and "linear" taper backwards? I always thought linear was the term for straight, and audio was compensated, or log taper (log being short for logarithm). In any case, whether I am remembering the terms correctly or if they are confused here, one type is compensated for exactly that reason, because we HEAR the changes as drastic, so they make pots with a different taper so they SEEM more even. No real change in function or sound, it's just a matter of getting used to having most of the range of volume at the beginning, that's all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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