floatingby

Thanks again! I am going to change the pot to 250k and see what happens and I have a DPDT push pull that I am going to install in it's place. I think I am sure about the split. Did you catch my comments about the hot wire to DPDT lug and the two splitting wires that are now soldered together. I'm not sure by the diagram weather the two wires go to one place on the pot or two. I would think two, but i'm not sure where?. The web site was really good about showing ways to split. It even showed how to tell which lugs to use depending on weather you want the effect to be when it is pushed in or pulled out. Another question I have been looking for. Thanks again! I've already learned a ton. I am making myself a binder of all this as I go.

Thanks for all the tips!! I wired it simple today. I wired all three pickups as single coils, master volume and a tone for bridge and one for middle and neck. I rarely use the neck pickup. After wiring, it was a little strong, especially the mini humbucker, but I evened it out by adjusting the pickup height. I used all 500k pots. I like the bright tone, but the volume goes away to quick when turned down. I would imagine I should try a 250k for the volume?. I am starting to realize that allot of these components are experimentation! I use primarily the bridge pickup, bridge and middle, and because of the sound of the mini humbucker, I will use the middle only also, I like it. The blend of the Dream 90 and the mini H is nice after adjusting the PU height, although I still can mess with the PU height more. I agree with not putting to much stuff on it, but I think I want to split the mini H. It has more gain than the P90s and I think it would give me a little more strat sound between the bridge and middle. I have pasted the instructions on a diagram I found. Website of diagram for split/tap: Coil Split_Tap Diagram Hooking this mod up is quite simple. Solder the split/tap wire(s) from the pickup to the center lug on the push-pull pot. The left lug of the pot (left side when pot is turned right side up as shown) is connected to the middle lug on the toggle switch, either pole (side). Now from the same pole connect the bottom lug to ground(-) anywhere in the circuit. Connect the top lug to hot(+) of the same pickup on the pickup selector switch (If you connect the hot(+) to anywhere else in the circuit, the pickup would always be on. This way hot(+) signal only flows when the pickup is selected). Now you can select where the split/tap junction connects to, the hot(+) or the ground(-), which in turn determines which coil is variable. Any way, it says to "Solder the split/tap wire(s) from the pickup to the center lug on the push-pull pot" would that be the green and white ones that are now tinned together on the mini H and would they go to two different places? It also says "Connect the top lug to hot(+) of the same pickup on the pickup selector switch" Does that mean that the hot wire that is now on the 5 way selector stays and a wire goes from there to the top lug of a pole on the switch? I guess once I learn all this stuff I won't be asking these questions! Heck, I might even be helping a guy like me some day! I have a 250k push pull pot and I think I want to try it? What do you think? Split I understand, but Tap I'm not sure? Thanks for the help!

Thanks! It seems scary to have no tone control, but I rarely ever use them. Sometimes I use it to back of the highs on cleaner stuff. Thanks for stopping me to go nuts with all the ideas. I am going to wire it today as a stock strat and see what happens. I also have some latitude with my pedal as I set the sound with my amp controls all on flat and adjust each sound to taste. I have a 500k mini pot with DPDT and I think I will install it without using the DPDT, Just to have it there if needed? I have heard many different ideas on capacitors, most of which is they don't do much when played all the way up? It's confusing with so many opinions! ie; bumble bee, paper oil, Vitamin Q, Orange drop, etc. I have had the strat up with a P90 in the bridge with a Vitamin Q .033 cap and it sounded pretty good. I think I'll start with that. Is there a way to wire so that different caps can be changed without taking the strings off? Maybe wire the two points to the tremolo cavity in back? Any suggestions. This seems where a Les Paul would be very handy! Problem is I can get sounds like a Les Paul and so much more with the strat! Thanks again for the help!

This is generally a small capacitor or resistor and cap in parallel across the volume control "treble bleed cap" which preserves highs as the volume is reduced. This is useful, but in the interests of simplicity, leave it out for now. Some players like the darker sound with reduced volume...at the moment you don't use the volume at all so I'd suggest leaving it out and adding it later. In my el-cheapo DIY sustainer-strat I used a standard pot, 500k will do as the control for the volume on a different pot. You can go nuts with wiring but "your sound" truely is in your hands. That said, you can have a guitar with a few great unique sounds or options. Wiring ideas can be found at Guitar Nutz 2 forum These guys are great help and just do wiring and will have a bunch of great suggestions...this link goes to the schematic page with some unique ideas (don't post in this section, look about). DGB Studio This is one of the most amazing sites for wiring but not for the faint of heart, thousands and thousands of wiring ideas ands schematics!!! Plus lots more (press the english button before exploring!) So...my suggestion is to get the thing wired as simply as you can (probably single vol/tone) then add bells and whistles after playing with the guitar and getting to know it. Play with the effects and amps settings to get the best from it. Think about what is "missing" (a brighter sound, more power, quack) and then ask again to get some suggestions or simply try a few simple alterations (treble bleed cap, different tone cap if you use the tone)... Don't forget to ground the strings at the bridge pete

Thanks! The middle volume idea sound very interesting! Would you wire the 5 way the same and just wire the middle pickup to the extra volume? Did you use a mini toggle? Good advice! I will keep it simple to start. Thank you for your help! I am new on forums. I have spent much time online finding many combinations but allot of them contradict each other. I am wondering about capacitor choices with 2 single coils and a humbucking? I have had this project up with p90 in bridge and two stock strat pickup, but I di not like it. I did have however, a 033 Vitamin Q cap in it and I think the P90 sounded good, although I did not have any other comparisons. I am also trying to decide pots, 250K or 500K? I have purchased both. I would like to learn more depth about the wiring as I have put 3 strats together, but only wired this one myself. I have ordered a couple of books on it. I enjoy working on them, but as a player, I have a strong passion for "my sound" I tend to play the guitar volume on 10 and control the volume on my XT Live pedal, because I play quite a bit of tight high gain stuff and I like allot of bite from the cleaner stuff. I have heard of installing a resistor on the bridge and/or middle pickup to preserve the highs when the guitar volume is lowered? It seems my way of playing maybe suits that? Thanks!

Hi I am wiring a strat project and I am putting a dream 90 P90 pickup in the bridge, a stock P90 in the neck and a Diesel "Firehawk", which I thought was a single coil, but I think it is a mini humbucker pickup in the middle. I have wired a couple before, but I am still learning and not to keen on the why and where of polarity, how to tell, etc. I would like to get the out of phase type sound between the bridge and middle and the middle and neck, like a strat? I would like to have one master volume, a tone for middle and neck and a tone for bridge. I have downloaded a million strat single coil diagrams from stock to with mods. Will they work the same? I understand it is always experimenting, but is there anything else I need to know?? Thank you for whatever light you can shed on this. The Diesel pickup I have is a mini humbucker, and not a single coil, which makes sense because it came in with five leads? I was going to have that one as the middle pickup. Thought it would be interesting? Do you think I can do the same with it out of phase with the neck and bridge P90? Unfortunately I don't seem to be able to obtain a schematic or any wiring details for the Diesel pickup. It has a main black braided ground wire and 4 small leads, green, red, white, and black. The green and the white seem to be tinned together? I have also thought about getting a 3rd P90, but I cant find a middle one that is in a humbucker size format with the gold I am working on and I want it to sound DIFFERENT! Appreaciate it!! I have since found out that the wiring is red=hot, white/green=solder together, black to ground. suppose to be standard Gibson humbucking wiring.