modding my electronics on my guitar...

[StrykeBack]

I've got an Ibanez SZ520 and I plan on swapping the stock pups out to a Dimarzio air norton/ air zone combo (atleast I think but I'm still open for suggestions for a guitar like this with mahogony body and neckthrough/stringthrough).

My questions is that I'd like to change the electronics. Looking at the manual I've got a 3 way selecter switch to change between neck/ coiltap/ and bridge. I kinda like the coil tap feature but I'd also like the option to have both pickups on (perhaps some kind of push/pull pot could work with this?)

I've also got 3 nobs (1 for neck volume, 1 for bridge volume, and then one for "Bridge tone"only) I'm not sure why it is only wired for the bridge tone but for some reason when i have the neck pup on and i play wiht the bridge tone nob it will completely cut out the neck volume...either on full or off. So I'd like to change this to where I can atleast have the tone setup to adjust both pickups. Is this an easy fix or am I in way over my head? I've seens some schematics posted for different wirings but nothing like this. Anybody? Thanks.

[20thCenturyAnalogBoy]

Re: modding my electronics on my guitar...

You can wire the tone directly to the output jack, so it will effect the outgoing signal regardless of which pickups are engaged. As for keeping the volume controls seperate, you'd want to wire the pickup to the center lug and the outer lug to the output (the other outer lug is still grounded). A J-bass diagram can show you how to wire the volumes and the tone, though there's no switch, so you'd then have to refer to a Tele diagram to wire the switch, except you'd want to change the order around (pickup-->volume-->switch-->output).

Meanwhile, there are two ways to split a series humbucker with a push-pull switch. If you want only the inner (slug pole) coil, wire it like so (the little o's represent the lugs of the switch, as viewed upright with the pot on top):

o-------->to ground

o<--------series link

o (not connected to anything)

Hot wire is connected to volume/output, ground wire is (duh) grounded



Or if you prefer the outer (adjustable pole) coil, then you'd do this instead:

o<--------series link

o-------->to volume/output

o<--------hot wire

Again, be sure to ground the ground wire.

In either case, pulling up on the switch will result in a single coil. Since each method only uses one pole of the switch, you can use one switch to split both pickups simultaneously. I personally like to wire the split for bridge inner coil/ neck outer coil, so that it's still hum-cancelling when both pickups are on together.

[StrykeBack]

Re: modding my electronics on my guitar...

I personally like to wire the split for bridge inner coil/ neck outer coil, so that it's still hum-cancelling when both pickups are on together.

So you have a coil split and then a different kinda dual humbucker selection? Kinda confused by that. Now I know i'm fairly new to guitars but when coil splitting it normal leaves the far end of the coils engaged. er, ( north coil of the neck and south coil of the bridge).

Since I've kinda got the gibson style 3 way pickup selecter is there a way to replace it with a push/pull or should I use one of the volume pots and then have both controlled by the volume. Or perhaps I could installl a couple of push pull pots (kinda like an Ernie ball bass eq controls) where the volume is on the lower outside of the pot and the tone is on the higher top part of the pot?