Wiring Help Needed for HB/P90 Strat

[Frogman]

I need some assistance with wiring up one of my strats. I'm replacing the SSS configuration with a HB (b) & P90 (n).

It has: bridge volume, neck volume, tone & 3-way strat/tele switch. I have everything wired up (hopefully correctly) except the output jack.


1. Where does the output jack tip (hot) need to go? Should it go straight to the selector or does it need to go to one of the lugs and then to the selector?


2. If I wanted to have the tone to work ONLY with the bridge pup, what would I need to change?


Here's how the wiring currently looks:

[ArtieToo]

Re: Wiring Help Needed for HB/P90 Strat

Wow! That is all absolutely incorrect. The pickups wire to the switch. The switch goes out to the volume pot.

You probably have a 5-way now, but you'll probably want a 3-way for the new configuration. Do you want the basic - N/N&B/B switching?

Btw Frogman, I hope you don't think I'm busting your chops, but that might be the worst wiring job I've ever seen. Not to worry. We have the technology. We can repair him.

[Frogman]

Re: Wiring Help Needed for HB/P90 Strat

That is a 3 way in the picture. That's not the SSS pickguard, it's the new one.

I had this pickguard wired up a little over a year ago until I put in the SSS loaded pickguard. I left most the wiring as it was when I took it out, only taking out the pickups and obviously disconnecting the output jack.

All I have done so far is solder in the bridge HB and the neck P90. I just can't remember where I had the output tip initially and every diagram I see seems to have different instructions.

And yes, basic N/N&B/B switching

[ArtieToo]

Re: Wiring Help Needed for HB/P90 Strat

Ok, I see now. I thought is was a Strat setup. The "hot" of the output jack needs to go to that jumper on the 3-way that is connecting 4 terminals together. Doesn't matter where on that jumper that you make the actual connection. Ground of the jack just goes to the back of any pot.

Like this:

[AlexR]

Re: Wiring Help Needed for HB/P90 Strat

If you want tone only for bridge, then take a wire from the tone pot (I think it will need to be the middle lug) to the volume pot for the bridge pickup. For modern wiring attach it to the lug the pickup hot is soldered to. For 50's wiring attach it to the lug with wire to the switch

[Frogman]

Re: Wiring Help Needed for HB/P90 Strat

Thanks ArtieToo! I thought that was the correct way but wanted to make sure. I wired it as above and all is good, except........


......there's something wrong with the P90. It sounds very weak and low output, like night and day from the bridge pup. Before I installed the pups, I swapped out the ceramic mags in the P90 and installed an A3/A5 combo.

My initial thought is that I put the mags in N/S, instead of N/N or S/S, even though I recall being careful to install them correctly. I will check that when I get home today.

That brings me to another question though: the P90 is RW/RP; would it make any difference, either to the pup itself or to the middle position, if the mags are N/N vs S/S?

[Frogman]

Re: Wiring Help Needed for HB/P90 Strat

This had been bugging me all day, so i went home on my lunch break to cheack it out, and sure enough I had put in one of the mags incorrectly (was N/S, now N/N).

I'll be able to restring it after work and test it out -- hopefully everything's g2g now.


I still am curious about the S/S vs N/N scenario with a RWRP neck P90: say you have a normal bridge humbucker with the magnet facing north (towards the neck) and you have a RWRP neck P90. Would it make a difference if it was S/S or N/N (mainly speaking of how the middle position sounds)?

[ArtieToo]

Re: Wiring Help Needed for HB/P90 Strat

That brings me to another question though: the P90 is RW/RP; would it make any difference, either to the pup itself or to the middle position, if the mags are N/N vs S/S?

Man, I'm not sure. I've never taken apart a P-90. Not sure of the correct orientation. Hopefully, someone else will chime in here.

[AlexR]

Re: Wiring Help Needed for HB/P90 Strat

I think it depends......I've found most of mine to be N/N, but I think these might have been Gibson ones.