rjames1973 Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 Hi, I have an Epiphone Les Paul Standard Plus Top (honeyburst), which I purchased new last year. I have done some minor upgrades on the guitar so far, including a new tusq nut and new Stew Mac tulip tuning machines. My next project is to upgrade the electronics, and then replace the pickups at a later time. I'd like to see how the guitar sounds with just the electronics upgraded and keep the stock Alnico humbucker pickups. That being said, could anyone suggest a good electronics kit that includes all of the necessary components (e.g., caps, pots, etc.)? Please note that I am terrible when it comes to electronics of any kind, so please keep it simple. Look forward to reading your suggestions! - Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjames1973 Posted March 22, 2011 Author Share Posted March 22, 2011 I did find a wiring kit for Epi and Gibson Les Pauls on the Stew Mac website. I have Stew Mac tulip tuners on my Epi Les Paul, which I love. I assume their wiring kits would be of equally good quality. Has anyone installed these in their Epi Les Paul? Also, would I need to order the "standard" pots and toggle switch, or the "long-shaft" pots and toggle switch? Thanks for the help! http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics,_pickups/Supplies:_Wiring_kits/Wiring_Kit_for_Les_Paul.html - Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitmore Willy Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 Rjames, My apologies to all if the answer is getting old but, it is the only one I have. Start at post #2 and follow the links: http://forum.gibson.com/index.php?/topic/61124-let-me-rephrase-the-question-p94-swap-questions/ Willy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disaster Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 The guys at the SD & Warmoth forums claim that the StewMac kits are not high quality parts. They claim the pots are noisy & the caps leaky. Since the Warmoth guys are building their own custom guitars I don't take these responses lightly. I also buy from StewMac since they are a luthier supply shop & I've been pleased with the quality so far - but I haven't bought any electrical parts yet. The SD & Warmoth guys recommend the CTS pots & Orange Drop caps, especially for the LPs. Try allparts guitar. I think they offer them. I am not aware of any complete kits containing these parts. Once you upgrade the electrical stuff you'll probably want to fiddle with the pickups. Check out the SD Pearly Gates sound bytes at the SD site. The LP guys rave about these pickups (Billy Gibbons inspired LP Pickups). Good Luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cap'n Greenfog Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 RS guitarworks offers a complete kit for the LP. CTS Superpots, Jensen paper in oil caps, Switccraft jack and switch, and all the wire you need. That's what I would get if I had $100 to blow on electronics. I've been told that it's a waste of money. I mentioned it on another forum and some guy replied, "I just love RS Guitarworks. Where else can you pay $100 for $30 worth of parts?". I'm in the same boat as you. I want to upgrade my LP electronics and pickups. Money is very tight for me and I'm trying to get off as cheap as possible without sacrificing quality. Here's what I'm thinking. This place http://www.guitarpartsresource.com/electrical_capsorange.htm has orange drop caps for $2.59 a piece. I'm gonna check into Alpha pots to see if they are better than my stock pots. The Alphas are metric and you don't have to replace your knobs (I really like mine stock knobs). I hear the Alpha name thrown around on forums and I get the impression that they are good, although slightly inferior to the CTS pots. I will be researching them further before I buy. As far as pickups are concerned, a friend of mine has a Oscar Schmidt Delta King hollow body. His brother (A veteran player of 25+ yrs) raves about the pickups in that guitar. He says it's a probably a fluke, but the pickups in that $150 guitar are badass. Been saying that for 3yrs now. His brother offered to sell them to me for $50 the other day. I played the axe and listened to him play it. The pickups are clean, clear, and have some bite. I'm gonna give 'em a shot. I guess my main point is that you can spend $100 for a great wiring kit and $100 for a used Hotrodded Humbucker set, but there are so many other cheaper alternatives out there that it's not even funny. Everybody's got an opinion on what the best alternative is, too. It really make it difficult to decide what to do when you can't afford to buy wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Just a cost saving tip, CTS pots are also available in matched sets and the better wiring kits should have these included, matched sets though do command a premium price tag. But what I do instead is buy CTS pots in lots of 6 or 12, get my multimeter out and make my own matched sets for about 1/3 the price of theirs, basically just doing as they have done to match up sets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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