Does brand of pot matter?

[Ewizard]

There are three main players in the potentiometer game. CTS, Bourns, and Alpha. When I build amplifiers, it is CTS all the way. They have the feel ( a little stiff ) and the sweep that is just perfect for amplifier operation. For guitars, I prefer Bourns. I think Bourns has the best feel for guitar, not too loose and not too stiff while still having a great sweep for guitar use. While Alpha pots do feel decent, I have not had good luck with their sweep being smooth and consistent. By that, I mean that they seem to be notchy or abrupt in their operation as you sweep from 0 to 1 for instance.

Seymour Duncans pots are rebranded Bourns ( which I do believe they state ) and have a custom taper. I have some, I like them. Ernie Ball has their own rebranded pots as well, which I believe are actually CTS made. I have some of those as well and they feel and operate great. So it goes to show that if you have enough money, you can get a pot made however you want by any of the makers. Most OEM pots seem to be Alpha, and I think it's because they do feel great, are relatively cheap, and not too many people operate the full range of their pot, so the sweep may be of little consequence.

I think if you are going to buy a pot for a guitar application, it is best to buy a pot from one of the rebranders such as Seymour D, Ernie Ball, DiMarzio, etc., for one simple reason. They will be a custom taper and feel that is made specifically for the guitar, will likely be CTS or Bourns, and will be the correct type of sweep ( Audio taper as opposed to Linear taper ).

Where I differ from many is that I like custom taper or linear taper pots for my volume controls. It requires a very long sweep to get a small change in volume, allowing you to really fine-tune where you are at for the volume between what would be about 7 to 10 on the dial with an audio taper pot. With linear taper, you have to sweep between about 4 or 5 to 10 to have the same effect. The extra sweep allows you a little more resolution in that range if you manipulate the volume a lot in that area. If you don't really use the volume pot much other than to mute the guitar or for a really subtle volume roll-off to mute the HF content, then a linear taper is probably not your flavor. This is another reason why I like custom taper pots if I can find them the way I like them. They are really nothing but a hybrid between a linear and an audio taper pot. It just gives you a wider sweep in adjustment within a usable volume range.

[GuitarStv]

Don't get too concerned about brand, just pay attention to the THC count.

[Mincer]

Pot brand, tolerance, taper, and value is something every guitarist should experiment with. It is much cheaper than experimenting with pickups, and for less than the price of a pickup, you can try many types out. Some people like one brand over another, but it is such a personal choice. To me, I care about the ease of turn and the taper more than anything.

[ArtieToo]

I was replacing a potentiometer in on my tone knob ( it broke after 5 years) anyway I realized I had a replacement part that had the same values / specs but it was a Rheostat not a POT. I guess Rheostats and POTs are almost identical parts.

Does anyone know the difference between the two?

Any and all help would be great .. don't want to buy another POT

A potentiometer is the physical part. How you wire it up determines if it's a rheostat or voltage divider. In a rheostat, you wire it as a 2-terminal device so that it's effectively a variable resistor, as used for a tone control. If you wire it as a voltage divider, (volume control), they tend to just use the term potentiometer. Some specialty rheostats will have one terminal cut off or inaccessible, so that you can only use it as a rheostat.

It's also important to note, that whether you're talking about CTS, Bourns, or Alpha, they all make a premium line and a cheap line, and usually a few in between. So a "good" CTS will feel better than a "cheap" Bourns, and vice-versa.