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Can Someone Please Draw This Up


DreamSeller

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OK ive decided to put an EMG H4 in my guitar. The guitar is an Epiphone Special II, Heres What I Want To Do

  • Omit the tone pot and replace with a blend pot between the two pickups
  • Change the 3 Way pickup switch so that middle is humbucking up is neck coil and down is bridge coil on the H4

Can this be done and if so can someone please draw the diagram up for me, I would really appreciate it.

Thanks

-Dream

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You'd be better off just changing out the tone pot for a push-pull pot or a regular DPDT switch and wiring the pickup for series/parallel operation through the switch. It'll sound the same as a coil-split and still be humbucking. Replace the master three-way switch with your blend pot and be done with it.

The problem with using the stock 3-way to control the coil-selection is that the coils will always be in parallel in the middle position with that switch. The sound will be much thinner than the H4 is capable of as well.

Edited by crafty
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So leave the tone pot and change it to a push pull pot that will change the pickup from series to parallel operation and take out the 3 way switch completely and replace it with a blend pot?

Can someone please draw me up a schem so I can visualise it?

Thanks

-Dream

Edited by DreamSeller
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This link should help you wire up a blend pot

Blend pot wiring

What crafty is saying about the switch - it doesn't have the right wiring capability to have the pickup be series humbucking in the middle (or any) position. Parallel humbucking would be possible, but it's probably not what you want as the difference in the positions sound wise will be subtle. His suggestion would give you two different sounds instead of three pretty much the same sounds.

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Wait I may have it.

The volume pot will stay the same.

The tone pot will be replaced with a push pull pot, The pot section will still control tone and the push pull part will switch the pickups from being joined in series to being joined in parallel.

The blend pot will blend the two pickups together.

I really want to be able to split the coils though, Also I want a blend pot. I will remove the volume and tone knobs to kae space, I dont really want them anyway. How can I do this?

Also will the push pull pots from stewmac fit throught the top of the special II?

-Dream

Edited by DreamSeller
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There's no need to split the coils if you have the push-pull switch setup for series/parallel operation. It will sound 95% the same as the individual coils split--except there will be negligible hum because the pickup will still be humbucking.

What I'm suggesting is placing the blend pot where you have the three-way switch currently mounted. Then replace your tone pot with the new push-pull switch pot. I think it'll give you the simplest operation possible. Stew-Mac has all the wiring diagrams you need for both the blend pot and series/parallel switch on the push-pull.

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I think he's just talking about removing the knobs, not the pots. Removing the volume pot would be foolish just because it'll sound weak and crappy without it. You can't just hook up the pickup straight into the amp without being loaded first by a volume pot because of the impedance of the front-end of the amp.

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I think he's just talking about removing the knobs, not the pots. Removing the volume pot would be foolish just because it'll sound weak and crappy without it. You can't just hook up the pickup straight into the amp without being loaded first by a volume pot because of the impedance of the front-end of the amp.

You'd remove knobs but not pots? That would look pretty weird.

Pickups do not need to be "pre-loaded" by a volume pot, and yes they can be hooked straight into an amp. The input impedance of the amp would be in parallel with any volume pot if used.

Haven't you ever heard of a "blaster switch"? It connects the pickup (usually your lead or bridge pickup) directly to the output jack bypassing volume, tone, pickup selectors - everything. Full output... with the pickup loading being the input impedance of the amp.

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Pickups do not need to be "pre-loaded" by a volume pot, and yes they can be hooked straight into an amp. The input impedance of the amp would be in parallel with any volume pot if used.

Haven't you ever heard of a "blaster switch"? It connects the pickup (usually your lead or bridge pickup) directly to the output jack bypassing volume, tone, pickup selectors - everything. Full output... with the pickup loading being the input impedance of the amp.

:D

Go read up on Kirchoff's Law, AC circuit design, and Leo Fender and then we'll discuss why guitars have volume controls...

"Blower" or "Blaster" switches, whatever you call them, when done properly DO NOT BYPASS THE VOLUME CONTROL. Only the selector switches and tone pots are bypassed. The Fender Delta-Tone system only bypasses the tone controls, too.

Edited by crafty
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Go read up on Kirchoff's Law, AC circuit design, and Leo Fender and then we'll discuss why guitars have volume controls...
:D OK, educate me, counsellor - why does a passive pickup need a load other than the amp? The very first component in Leo's amps is a great honkin' 1 Meg resistor shunted to ground (right across the input jack) - why does the pickup need another load? The only thing that adding a resistor in parallel with the amp's input load will do is cause a loss of highs due to the capacitance in the cable, and while that may be a good thing in some instances, it certainly doesn't qualify as a necessity. I'll see your Kirchoff, and raise you two Soldanos! :D
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OK so I will:

-Change the tone pot to a push pull that changes the pickups from series to parallel wiring, The pot part will still control tone.

-Remove the 3 way switch and replcae it with a blend pot

-Leave the volume pot alone.

Have I got everything?

-Dream

Also this will leave me with an unused pickup, Is there anything worth doing to mod it or just leave it alone?

Edited by DreamSeller
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