59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

[nast2112]

I made a 5150 replica (pics posted on my website - link below) with the classic one vol knob and no tone. The pickup is an F-spaced 59/custom hybrid I made (DC res about 14). Body is a Chandler/Charvel alder body and with the Floyd, it's pretty 'top end' without much fullness in the bottom through my Marshall. I'd like to change that. Is there a way to solder in a capacitor, etc.,. to do this even though there is no tone knob? I'm not looking to make it warm and fuzzy ala ZZ Top but keep it true to Ed.

http://home.comcast.net/~nast2112/

Chris

 

[BachToRock]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

What value Pot are you using? I generally use a 500k, but if the guitar is naturally bright a 250k might be in order...
In addition... you may prefer an Alnico II magnet...

 

[nast2112]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

What value Pot are you using? I generally use a 500k, but if the guitar is naturally bright a 250k might be in order...
In addition... you may prefer an Alnico II magnet...

Thanks. Can you explain to me by changing to a 250K pot what I am going to hear sonically in a nutshell?

 

[rinse_master]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

In a nutshell, less highs, bit warmer.

 

[TheArchitect]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

That DC reading seems high. should be closer to 11.5 or so. How did you measure it?

 

[BachToRock]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

There is a good possibility that you connected the individual coil leads wrong... this pickup is anything but thin sounding...

 

[Fusion1]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

There is a good possibility that you connected the individual coil leads wrong... this pickup is anything but thin sounding...

That was a question I had about your hybrid thread. Is it basically the black wire of one coil goes to the white wire of other coil and the same for the other coil wire going to the opposite color? How does the 4 conductor wire get connected in the scheme of things? The pictures didn't really tell the tale on that one.

 

[nast2112]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

That DC reading seems high. should be closer to 11.5 or so. How did you measure it?

I was wrong about the DC resistance. It's just a tad over 12 (not 14). The non-F spaced I got from you BTR was about 11.8. This one I built is F-spaced so it's a little bigger, size-wise. It's a full sound and is not out of phase, etc.,. I just think with all the metal of the Floyd and the maple neck/fingerboard it's just not helping. My Les Paul and Strat have plenty of bass through the amp (Marshall AVT50).

I may just end up going with a different type of pickup. Any suggestions that builds on this pickup concept but with a little fuller bottom end?? I like the clarity and midrange, just not enough umph in the bottom.

Thanks
Chris

 

[Benjy_26]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

I was wrong about the DC resistance. It's just a tad over 12 (not 14). The non-F spaced I got from you BTR was about 11.8. This one I built is F-spaced so it's a little bigger, size-wise. It's a full sound and is not out of phase, etc.,. I just think with all the metal of the Floyd and the maple neck/fingerboard it's just not helping. My Les Paul and Strat have plenty of bass through the amp (Marshall AVT50).

I may just end up going with a different type of pickup. Any suggestions that builds on this pickup concept but with a little fuller bottom end?? I like the clarity and midrange, just not enough umph in the bottom.

Thanks
Chris

You might want to put an Alnico II mag in there, or get a Parallel Axis Blues Trembucker. :burnout:

 

[nast2112]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

You might want to put an Alnico II mag in there, or get a Parallel Axis Blues Trembucker. :burnout:

Thanks. However, the Blues is a DC res of about 9 which is not quite hot enough for me.

Chris

 

[rspst14]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

DC resistance is not the best measure of output. I doubt you'd notice much difference in output between the Blues and the hybrid.

Ryan

 

[GHWelles]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

try wiring a resistor across the outer pot legs to bring the 500K pot down to 333K.

get a 1=meg resistor *be sure its a "1-MEG!" with 1/4 watt rating,
solder one end to the Hot lug at your volume pot (any 1 of the 2 hot lugs are fine) Now solder the other end to GROUND you now have turned a 500k pot into a 333k

 

[dr.barlo]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

There is a good possibility that you connected the individual coil leads wrong... this pickup is anything but thin sounding...

I also think that's the cause! I've done some hybrids, and none of them were weak or thin.

B

 

[GilmourD]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

I don't know if you want to take apart two guitars to do this, but my best suggestion to you would be to try the Custom/59 hybrid you know to work correctly in this guitar. Yeah, I realized it's not F-spaced, but the middle strings won't care. If it sounds the same, you know it's the guitar. If it sounds different, then you know it's the pickup you made.

 

[nast2112]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

I also think that's the cause! I've done some hybrids, and none of them were weak or thin.

B

I wouldn't consider it thin or weak at all. Maybe I have misconveyed somthing here. Just not enough bottom/warmth/a little shrill on the top end, especially through a Marshall (Marshall can be harsh sounding). I'm thinking of trying a Tone Zone. This was designed to take into consideration the treble that a Floyd puts out. It's a an Alnico 5, a little hotter than I would like but I'm not seeing anything like this except maybe the Original Trembucker (not the Blues model).

I know that EVH used the 59/Custom hybrid around the Fair Warning era. Keep in mind....

1. A lot of stuff was still recorded off a Strat bridge (or even a Les Paul) since they are warmer than a Floyd equiped guitar (listen to intro to 'Hear About It Later' and tell me that's not a vintage Strat bridge). Obvioulsy whammy stuff is on a Floyd equiped guitar but...

2. If you look at the pics of that Floyd it did not have micro tuners and the unit itself was not as big. The point here is that there just wasn't as much metal as Floyds ended up being.

My point is that this is a great pickup but with your high end Schaller made in Germany Floyd with all the metal glory it is, the pickup is going to not sound the same as Eddie's did on his guitar.

My .02
Chris

 

[GilmourD]

Re: 59/Custom Hybrid, Vol Pot, No Tone... No Bottom End.

I wouldn't consider it thin or weak at all. Maybe I have misconveyed somthing here. Just not enough bottom/warmth/a little shrill on the top end, especially through a Marshall (Marshall can be harsh sounding). I'm thinking of trying a Tone Zone. This was designed to take into consideration the treble that a Floyd puts out. It's a an Alnico 5, a little hotter than I would like but I'm not seeing anything like this except maybe the Original Trembucker (not the Blues model).

I know that EVH used the 59/Custom hybrid around the Fair Warning era. Keep in mind....

1. A lot of stuff was still recorded off a Strat bridge (or even a Les Paul) since they are warmer than a Floyd equiped guitar (listen to intro to 'Hear About It Later' and tell me that's not a vintage Strat bridge). Obvioulsy whammy stuff is on a Floyd equiped guitar but...

2. If you look at the pics of that Floyd it did not have micro tuners and the unit itself was not as big. The point here is that there just wasn't as much metal as Floyds ended up being.

My point is that this is a great pickup but with your high end Schaller made in Germany Floyd with all the metal glory it is, the pickup is going to not sound the same as Eddie's did on his guitar.

My .02
Chris

The only guitar that Edward had with a Floyd that didn't have fine-tuners was the Van Halen 2 black and yellow Charvel. That had a non-fine adjusting Floyd electroplated Gold. The original Frankenstein was originally the Strat trem from (supposedly) a late '50s Strat, but then it got converted to what is now called a Floyd Rose Original.

I've got a straight up '59 Trembucker in my Frankenstein wannabe and an OLD Floyd Rose Original from the '80s and it's got a nice tight bottom end to it. It's actually only SLIGHTLY brighter than my Wolfgang and a lot LESS bright than my Strats with vintage style trems.

I still say take the '59/Custom hybrid that you know works correctly and stick it in that guitar and see what happens. Worse comes to worse, it's a little piece of mind that you were right. :dance: