Riviera P93 - How do I work this thing?

[brianh]

Sorry for such a stupid question, but I've never owned a 3-PUP guitar with only a 3-way selector switch. The strats I've owned had five way switches which is fairly self explanatory.

 

I any case, I'm just surfacing for air after experiencing P90 nirvana for an hour or so on the new Epi Riviera, and I just don't get how it's all wired - 3-way selector with 2 volume and 2 tone pots? Who thought that up and how is it supposed to work? In the old days we would just pretend we knew how it worked and still actually know nothing 20 years later.

 

Thanks, (and try to refrain from roasting too extensively)...

[pohatu771]

I've never understood either, but I imagine the switch works how older Strats worked - each position is one pickup. Or maybe it's standard Gibson - but middle also include the middle pickup.

[BlueLesPaul2006]

Send the Riviera to me and I will test it out for you and let you know how to work it. lol I believe that the middle pickup is always on, but that is just a guess.

[charlie brown]

ONE tone control, THREE Volume controls. That will probably help you determine how to

set things, a bit easier? (in playing postion, the back upper control is the tone pot/control)..all the

rest are volume pots.

 

Switch is: UP=neck-middle, MIDDLE=all 3 pickups, DOWN=middle-bridge pickups.

You get single pickups, by turning down the appropriate volume knob. In playing position, the

Front top is neck volume, front bottom is bridge volume, and back bottom is middle volume...at least

that's the way MINE is wired, and I haven't altered it, at all.

It's a bit confusing, at first...but, it allows a LOT of tone variations...even into "Gretsch" like sounds.

And, once you figure it out, it's really quite simple. But..it is NOT "Standard" two tone, two volume,

3-way switch Gibson wiring.

 

Someone said that the "Gibson LP Custom (3-pickup) "Black Beauty," is wired in a similar manner.

I cannot attest to that, as I have never owned one, and the one I played was 30+ years ago...so..???

 

CB

[bluesman345]

I wonder if you can put in some type of 5 position switch. On my Zephyr Blues Deluxe, I replaced the master tone pot (on the cutaway) with a 6 position rotary switch & chickenhead knob (looks like a Varitone). It gives me the standard Strat-type 5 positions, with the addition of a 6th position, where all 3 pups are "on", but wired out-of-phase (think T-Bone Walker).

 

I would love to have a Riv P93!

[brianh]

ONE tone control' date=' THREE Volume controls. That will probably help you determine how to

set things, a bit easier? (in playing postion, the back upper control is the tone pot/control)..all the

rest are volume pots. CB[/quote']

Thank you Mr. Brown, that makes perfect sense! :)

[tulsaslim]

I have one, too, and I believe you always want at least two pickups 'working' (whether the volume is turned on for both or not) for the noise canceling thing.

[Stig]

ONE tone control' date=' THREE Volume controls. That will probably help you determine how to

set things, a bit easier? (in playing postion, the back upper control is the tone pot/control)..all the

rest are volume pots.

 

Switch is: UP=neck-middle, MIDDLE=all 3 pickups, DOWN=middle-bridge pickups.

You get single pickups, by turning down the appropriate volume knob. In playing position, the

Front top is neck volume, front bottom is bridge volume, and back bottom is middle volume...at least

that's the way MINE is wired, and I haven't altered it, at all.

It's a bit confusing, at first...but, it allows a LOT of tone variations...even into "Gretsch" like sounds.

And, once you figure it out, it's really quite simple. But..it is NOT "Standard" two tone, two volume,

3-way switch Gibson wiring.

 

Someone said that the "Gibson LP Custom (3-pickup) "Black Beauty," is wired in a similar manner.

I cannot attest to that, as I have never owned one, and the one I played was 30+ years ago...so..???

 

CB[/quote']

 

So it sounds like if you turn down the middle pickup, the switch will work like a standard 2-PU guitar, and you just turn up that middle pickup when you want it.