1 meg volume pot?

[RG 2570]

has anyone used these with a darker warmer pup? i was told that if a pup is not as bright as you like it to be the 1 meg is the solution if you do like the pups tone but want it crisper?

[RG 2570]

Re: 1 meg volume pot?

?

[Kent S.]

Re: 1 meg volume pot, brighter clearer tone?

has anyone used these with a darker warmer pup? i was told that if a pup is not as bright as you like it to be the 1 meg is the solution if you do like the pups tone but want it crisper?

It will make a difference, but not that much as far as changing the overall tone of the pup, they are a bit brighter, and have a bit more volume to them.
the higher valued pots tend to clean up a bit better and retain a bit more highs when turned down as well. If you changed your 500k to a 250k, the difference would be *roughly speaking* the same, but the other way ... meaning a bit warmer, and a bit less volume. you can even jump up to a 2meg. If you like. They make excellent tone controls with a linear taper as well (although some prefer an audio taper there). Just make sure as a volume controls that the pot is an audio (or some form of log. or semi-log. taper).

[mjsever]

Re: 1 meg volume pot?

For a good guide on what happens when you change pot values, check out http://www.seymourduncan.com/website...techtips.shtml Basically, the peak frequency of the pickup will be enhanced although the change is not as dramatic with high output pickups. So if the pickup is a nid-range pickup, it will sound even more "mid-rangey".

Not sure if this helps...

[ranalli]

Re: 1 meg volume pot?

This bit of info from the Duncan site is very interesting:

We often get calls from people asking what value of potentiometer that they should be using for the volume controls on their guitars. As a general rule of thumb, for single coil pickups we recommend 250k audio taper pots, and for humbuckers we generally recommend 500k audio taper pots. The most basic reason for these recommendations is that it allows a smooth swell in volume from zero to full out. The purpose of this article is to show you what effect changing the value of the pot can have on your pickup's tone. Let's start with the pickup itself: a single coil pickup like our SSL-1 Vintage for Stratocaster. The SSL-1 has a DC Resistance of approximately 6.5k and a resonant peak (the pickup's voice, or sweet spot) of about 10kHz. The characteristic of an SSL-1 (and other single coil pickups) is such that when a note is plucked, the tendency is for the tonal spectrum to leap towards the peak frequency, giving that characteristic "sparkle" in the attack. The amount of "sparkle" can range from minor to overkill depending on what value of potentiometer you use to "load" the pickup's circuit with. In figure 1 you can see the peak characteristics of an SSL-1 with different values of volume pots attached to it. The top curve indicates virtually no load, the second curve down indicates a 1meg pot, the third down is a 500k pot, the fourth is a 250k pot and the bottom curve represents a 100k pot. As you can see, the peak doesn't shift in frequency, but it does shift in amplitude. The difference between a no load state and the load induced by a 100k pot is 19dB (a significant difference)! In figure 2, we show the same settings as they relate to one of our SH-8b Invader™ pickups. You'll notice that in a high output pickup, the difference is not as great. As you reduce the amplitude of a pickup's peak frequency, the surrounding frequencies come into play more and more. This can give a more pleasing balance of frequencies, and is part of the reason for the guitar manufacturer's selection of the volume control's value. What does this mean to you? It means that if you like a pickup's basic character (its peak), you can further shape the tone by increasing or decreasing value of the pot in your guitar. Have fun in your tonal quests!

What I'm getting from this is that a lower pot value will cut back the pickups peak frequency. So if the peak frequency is high like on a bright single coil it will make it tamer, not as bright sounding. But if the peak frequency is low like an Invader or Original Trembucker then the magnitude of those frequencies will be reduced which may result in a brighter sound actually.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong but I think this is what it all means.

[RG 2570]

Re: 1 meg volume pot?

It has been confirmed that with any givin pup a 1 meg will brighten it up, i think i
am going to try a air zone air norton set with this 1 meg pot and no tone pot hooked up? may be just right?

[Kent S.]

Re: 1 meg volume pot?

To ranalli, what it means is that the loudest frequency of resonance will become a bit louder or softer in volume, louder with a higher value pot, and lower with a lower value pot. Generally this means that the guitar will be perceived as being a bit brighter (in the first case), as most resonant peaks are around the mid upper mids and up. Also the lower value pots tend to damp a small bit of the high end as well, a slight roll off if you will.
To RG 2570, still a 2 meg might be worth a shot as well Torres Engineering has some I believe in an appropriate taper www.torresengineering.com. also a no load pot for a tone control is always nice, the 250k value gives a great sweep range, and of course at 10 it's totally out of the circuit, good option with the 2Meg at the 9 position it would probably still be a bit brighter, then a bit extra bright at 10. Food for thought either way.

[Dirtyking]

Re: 1 meg volume pot?

I have a good question. Are certain pups designed to work better with certain pots. For example, is a JB designed to work better with a 500k pot and a '59 with a 250k pot?

[jeremy]

Re: 1 meg volume pot?

actually the jb was designed for 250k pots in a tele but most people use it with 500k.

single coils tend to work best with 250k and buckers tend to work best with 500k but thats not written in stone.

2 meg pots tend to be waaaaay to bright and shrill for my tastes but with a super hot and dark pup it might help

[Kent S.]

Re: 1 meg volume pot?

actually the jb was designed for 250k pots in a tele but most people use it with 500k.

single coils tend to work best with 250k and buckers tend to work best with 500k but thats not written in stone.

2 meg pots tend to be waaaaay to bright and shrill for my tastes but with a super hot and dark pup it might help

Still though, with a 250k no-load tone pot, and a sizeable cap, I bet it would swing very well from warm and dark (jazz comping), to open and balanced (highs and lows in proportion), to very bright (good for clean cut, or cleaning up a muddy overdriven tone). Just and idea though ...
In addition to the value/ pup type ... one thing also is that the lower pots tend not to be as likely to pick up high frequency interference, and the higher pots are more likey to. Not really a problem, but say putting a 5Meg pot in a guitar in a EMI/RFI laidened area, and pushing that into a modelling amp, or other heavy digital processing, could create some problems noise wise. Just something else to consider, probably yet another reason why singles (which pick up more high end hash also), use the lower value pots, they cut out less of it.