browser5031 Posted February 27, 2019 Report Share Posted February 27, 2019 Brand new to the forum, I am getting ready to build a V style guitar in the next month. I built 2 guitars 25 years ago, but haven't since then. I have an old pickup I think I bought on Ebay probably 15 years ago, but I can't identify it. It looks like it had some sticker on the back of it that has been ripped off, and has no other identifier on the outside of it. It is a four conductor humbucker with orange, brown, red and black wires. It measures 4.6k on each coil. I have scoured the internet for color codes. but can't locate one that matches those colors. I am at work, so I don't have a picture of it but I will try tonight. Anyone have an idea what brand this might be? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistermikev Posted February 27, 2019 Report Share Posted February 27, 2019 it'd be hard to even hazard a guess with no identifier on the pickup itself but figuring out the wiring is pretty easy with a multimeter and a compass. make sure all wires are unconnected to each other... put multimeter on ohms reader... pick one color and connect the red lead... and test the other three (by connecting black lead) until your multimeter reads something other than 0k. once it reads something you know that is the other end of that coil... so those two go together. the other two will be the other coil. now just take one lead and call it live... connect it to the live on a 1/4" jack. take the other end of its coil and wire it together with either wire from the other coil, send the fourth wire to ground on a 1/4 jack. turn on your guitar amp and put distortion on it. plug jack into cable into guitar amp. if you hear a ton of hum then you probably aren't hum canceling so swap the wires on the second coil and try agian. you can also use a compass to tell you what direction the magnetism is on the magnets... then you could orient the pickup such that it matches up with seymour (north south or south north). that way when you combine it with others it will have proper cancelling. probably sounds like a lot but it's not... just trying to be methodical. also - welcome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
browser5031 Posted February 28, 2019 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2019 Here are a few photos of it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADFinlayson Posted February 28, 2019 Report Share Posted February 28, 2019 This is not a definitive answer but it might narrow it down a bit because brown/orange are not common in guitar wiring. All the brands I know of have been ruled out according to the charts below. https://guitarelectronics.com/guitar-wiring-resources/humbucker-wire-color-codes/ https://madhatterguitarproducts.com/pages/mad-hatter-solderless-tone-shaping-system-wiring-sheets-references Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
browser5031 Posted February 28, 2019 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2019 Thanks, yes I looked at Mad Hatter, and the Schaller was the only one that was close, but not quite. It must be from some cheap no name company. I will have to see how it sounds I guess. Thanks for the responses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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