250k vs. 500k taper? & 50s wiring questions?...

[C8rockin]

Hi guys,.. I recently bought a new amp (Rebel 20 :cool2, and now I'm able to crank my amp to get the tubes cooking without killing my ears, which over the last few months, has led to a complete change in my approach to playing and getting my sound. I'm learning to use my guitar volume and tone to get what I need instead of relying on pedals. It has has led me to do some rewiring on my guitar as well, and now, things that were insignificant to me before are starting to be a concern. So I have a couple of questions, and I need your expertise... so here goes...

1. Why do my 250k pots have better taper than my 500k pots? (all CTS from Wymore) My (6) 500k pots drop off significantly at about 8, while my (2) 250k pots have a smooth taper all the way down to around 2 before they drop off. Is there a reason for this?..

2. I recently rewired my 4 knob LP style from modern wiring with treble bleeds to 50's style with indepentant controls, and now, with the switch in the middle position, my neck tone also has an effect on the bridge pickup and the bridge tone also effects the neck pickup. Is this normal or do I have a bad ground or something? I have reheated all the solder points and it made no diff. so I wonder if this is common?
Whats the diff. between 50's style and modified 50s style wiring?

...and just for kicks,... If I order a custom shop Custom 8, will it be better than the ones I made myself?.. and if I order one a little lower output, would it still be a Custom coil, and sound the same, or would that make it a different pickup all together? (did MJ retire yet?)

Thanks,

Steve

 

[C8rockin]

Re: 250k vs. 500k taper? & 50s wiring questions?...

Thanks hermetico. Is there a way to tell just by looking at the pots if they are linear or audio pots? I don't remember paying any attention to that when I ordered them.

Now that I know it's normal to have bleed over w/ 50s mod, I will learn to use it to my benifit. I just wanted to be sure my wiring was ok.

I have several wiring diagrams that I've printed on line, (several of your's in fact, hermetico) and some that came with pickups and pots and things I've ordered. when I went to rewire my guitar I found 2 different diagrams. One says 50s style wiring, and the other says modified 50s wiring, and they are different. I don't have them with me right now (i'm at work) so I cant tell you what the differences were. I'll look tonight when I get home. I just thought maybe someone here would know what the difference was in what they do.

 

[C8rockin]

Re: 250k vs. 500k taper? & 50s wiring questions?...

I appologize for not being more clear about the 50s wiring before. I just assumed all this was common knowledge around here. My bad...

This is the 50s Style diagram I used... and this seems to be the most common way out of the several diagrams I have.

and this is the Modified 50s Style diagram I recieved from Wymore that I'm curious about...

I was wondering what the differences are between the two in how they work. I believe the Modified 50s diagram is for dependant volume. The only reason I didn't try that one is because I want independent volume and I wasn't sure if reversing the switch lead and hot lead from the pickup (like the first one) is all that I would need to do. So I didn't try it... but if it will work with indepenant volume I would like to maybe try it...

 

[C8rockin]

Re: 250k vs. 500k taper? & 50s wiring questions?...

Thank you very much Hermetico, my confusion was in the wording I guess. I didn't realize "Modified 50s" meant "Modern"... You've certainly cleared things up for me. I didn't have a chance to look at the link yesterday, but I've been studying since I posted this morning, and I think I'm putting 2 & 2 together now. You've been most helpful,.. Thank you very much!

Steve