Setain

Fresh Fizz, would you mind posting a schematic of your circuit. I have been interested in this project for a while, but I have been waiting for someone to build a successful compressor (and I only just recently got a cheap victim.)

Bought a V3 212 yesterday for $850.

Probably a stupid question, but where did you find a V3 212 for $850?

I am trying to think of a way of using both pickups to drive the amp but still allow for pickup selection to the output, any ideas? This appears to be what sustainiac do in their mid-driver patent.

The most simple way is to use two buffers. One for each pickup. I don't think two buffers would effect current draw very much, as it is the 386 that draws the most current.

It also reminds me, I did think about your suggestion of running the pickup coil (about 5,600 ohms) in parallel with the driver (this one about 8.2 ohms) but calculating it out (which I am not good at BTW) I got

1/8 (0.125) + 1/5600 (1.79) = 1/ (1.915) = 0.522 ohms

You made one mistake: 1/5600 does not equal 1.79. It equals 1.79 x 10^-4, ie .00179, which means that the resistance would be 7.99 Ohms. Next time use (R1 x R2) / (R1 + R2). Trust me, its easier.

My guess would be that the pickup is microphonic. This means that the windings are loose. So, when your amp is up loud, the windings vibrate, causing feedback. Its a bit like holding a mic to close to the speaker. Check out http://www.guitarnuts.com/technical/electrical/index.php . It has information on potting your pickup, if you decide that's what you want to do.

A pickup is microphonic when its coils are loose enough that they vibrate when the guitar's body vibrates. This means that the pickup, like a microphone too close to a speaker, can feedback and squeal. In even more extreme cases, the pickup can even detect your voice, thought that is quite rare.

This may seem like a stupid question (probably because it is), but since the the preamp has an output impedance of about 6K Ohms, why do you need to preamp the magnetic pickups? I would wager that 6K Ohms is about the output impedance of most magnetic pickups (single coils anyway).

I agree with curtisa, but I wouldn't get the ceramic disc caps. My reason may seem trivial, but the tolerance is not specified and that type's tolerance is notoriously high.

The phase switch is used prevent feedback from an amp. (I'm going to assume you know know feedback words) It causes the signal from the amp to be at the opposite phase as the instrument.

The subtle changes are most likely caused by the speaker working in reverse, since the phase is opposite of normal.

As Mike said, then half of the signal would pass through the resistor and thus lower the efficiency of the circuit. And besides that, while the resistor would change the DC resistance, the AC impedance and inductance not be changed in the same way (if at all).

From what I've read, the capacitor is very similar in its function to the couplings capacitors found in tube amps. In other words, they allow AC currents to pass but block DC currents.

I would suggest reading http://www.guitarnuts.com/technical/electr...afety/index.php also

Rather than trying to stop the signal from reaching the output jack, just have your switch connect the ground and hot signals together. This will silence the output completely.

"So...I think you acknowledge that the magnetic field that dissects the string and the core is vital to the signal content of the vibrating string...yes?"

Are you saying that the magnetic field affects the vibration of the string? If so, i would answer "no, ideally the magnetic field does affect the vibration of the string."

If I am not mistaken, he is saying the exact opposite: the ferrous vibrating string is causing the magnetic field to move with it, which is what generates most of the current.

Neither of the tone controls effect it. Which is why some people (myself included) move the second tone control from the middle pup to the bridge pup.

Those wire that run from the back of one pot to another are ground loops. It's because the foil is grounded via its connection to volume pot, which is grounding the tone pots. Make any sense?

As for the volume problems, I've seen it caused by both bad pots and incorrect wiring of the pot. You're picture is just a bit fuzzy, and I can't make out the volume pot well enough to tell, but the output should be connected to the center lug.

Warmoth sells chrome pickup covers: http://www.warmoth.com/hardware/parts/part...e_pickup_covers .

I've never seen or heard of nickel covers for single coils, but chrome should look similar.

The Strat Lover's Strat: http://www.guitarnuts.com/wiring/stratlovers.php

Just bypass the phase switch and you're set.

There is no way to be certain with out checking out the polarity of all 3 pickups. Or, I suppose, you could take the pup out of the Ibanez and see if it's pole pieces are attracted to the pole pieces of the middle strat pups. (Did that make any sence?)

Some strats have been made with 2 pups north facing up, and some have been made the exact opposite. Its completely random.

You could wrap a second coil around the coil already on the bobbins. Then, with a switch, switch between the two coils in series or just the original. It works really well on single coils if you want both vintage and overwound sounds from one guitar. I personally have done it a couple of times on single coils.