RayBarbeeMusic
New member
Custom 5? Duncan Distortion? '59/custom Hybrid? If so what were your results?
Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
- Thread starter RayBarbeeMusic
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the guy who invented fire
Fuzzy. Guitars
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
250k pots with humbuckers is, by and large a bad idea IMO.
They strangle the life right out of most buckers. If you think the pickup I'd to toppy use the tone control.
Be ready because this thread will soon fill with bedroom players that are scared of treble but will claim they don't like shrill top end and are after a thick or warm tone.
Just take advise with an open mind.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
250k pots with humbuckers is, by and large a bad idea IMO.
They strangle the life right out of most buckers. If you think the pickup I'd to toppy use the tone control.
Be ready because this thread will soon fill with bedroom players that are scared of treble but will claim they don't like shrill top end and are after a thick or warm tone.
Just take advise with an open mind.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
STRATDELUXER97
Stratoblaster Tone Meister
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
I'm kinda ole fashioned...I still prefer 250k for single coils and 500k for humbuckers..Some folks do use the 250k with a bridge humbucker though also.Use your ears and whatever works for you.
I'm kinda ole fashioned...I still prefer 250k for single coils and 500k for humbuckers..Some folks do use the 250k with a bridge humbucker though also.Use your ears and whatever works for you.
JeffB
Let it B
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
Actually, the only way I have EVER been able to get along with the Custom5 was in a Gibson V with the stock 300k vol. It shaved off the extreme bass and treble, and in combo with the midrangey V , was nice and full. An exception of course, not the rule: I have put the Custom 5 in several other guitars with 500k all around and hated it every single time.
Worth a shot, anyway.
Actually, the only way I have EVER been able to get along with the Custom5 was in a Gibson V with the stock 300k vol. It shaved off the extreme bass and treble, and in combo with the midrangey V , was nice and full. An exception of course, not the rule: I have put the Custom 5 in several other guitars with 500k all around and hated it every single time.
Worth a shot, anyway.
RayBarbeeMusic
New member
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
So yeah, has anyone actually ever done it?
1) I use 250k, really lots of varying resistances achieved by resistors across the pot, on a lot of pickups;
2) I already know what the pickups in question sound like with a 500k
So not really looking for opinions on resistive loads or those pickups in general, just if anyone has actually used them with a 250k pot.
So yeah, has anyone actually ever done it?
1) I use 250k, really lots of varying resistances achieved by resistors across the pot, on a lot of pickups;
2) I already know what the pickups in question sound like with a 500k
So not really looking for opinions on resistive loads or those pickups in general, just if anyone has actually used them with a 250k pot.
DreX
New member
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
Can't you approximate the effect of a 250k pot by just turning down the volume ever so slightly?
I put 500k in all my guitars, even strats, and I have some 1M and no load pots on hand that I haven't deployed yet. They say the 500k is too bright for strat, well there's this thing, the tone knob which has the effect of removing said brightness. You could make the case that the bridge on a strat has no tone knob, I reconfigure that as well, and I recommend every does, because it's bizarre that the only pickup most given to brightness is the only one without a utility to tame it.
Having a 500k pot on the strat is especially tasty for overdrive uses, the 250k throws away a lot sparkle for no reason.
Can't you approximate the effect of a 250k pot by just turning down the volume ever so slightly?
I put 500k in all my guitars, even strats, and I have some 1M and no load pots on hand that I haven't deployed yet. They say the 500k is too bright for strat, well there's this thing, the tone knob which has the effect of removing said brightness. You could make the case that the bridge on a strat has no tone knob, I reconfigure that as well, and I recommend every does, because it's bizarre that the only pickup most given to brightness is the only one without a utility to tame it.
Having a 500k pot on the strat is especially tasty for overdrive uses, the 250k throws away a lot sparkle for no reason.
W
wolf5150
Guest
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
Duncans own wiring diagrams show 250k pots in HSS setups.
Duncans own wiring diagrams show 250k pots in HSS setups.
blueman335
Mojo's Minions
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
No it doesn't reduce treble the same way, and therefore doesn't sound the same. There's been a couple guys here knowledgeable about electronics who have said that. Plus I know myself from experience, that while turning down a tone knob reduces treble, it definitely sounds different than using a 250K/300K. Some people care about that difference, others don't.
No it doesn't reduce treble the same way, and therefore doesn't sound the same. There's been a couple guys here knowledgeable about electronics who have said that. Plus I know myself from experience, that while turning down a tone knob reduces treble, it definitely sounds different than using a 250K/300K. Some people care about that difference, others don't.
DreX
New member
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
But treble is lost in both cases, and a volume pot is variable, so somewhere within the sweep will exist a spot where the treble loss is audibly similar.
But treble is lost in both cases, and a volume pot is variable, so somewhere within the sweep will exist a spot where the treble loss is audibly similar.
blueman335
Mojo's Minions
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
Not according to the guys that really know about it. You're making the common assumption.
Not according to the guys that really know about it. You're making the common assumption.
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
I haven't done it with the pickups you have listed but I have done it with a S-S-H with true singles in the neck and middle and a JB in the bridge. Otherwise the singles were just too bright and I didn't mind the JB with the 250K. It does sound different though.
I haven't done it with the pickups you have listed but I have done it with a S-S-H with true singles in the neck and middle and a JB in the bridge. Otherwise the singles were just too bright and I didn't mind the JB with the 250K. It does sound different though.
Myaccount876
Amira-Maker
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
The difference in a volume pot value is minimal IME. It does change the sound, but not drastically by any means.
The difference in a volume pot value is minimal IME. It does change the sound, but not drastically by any means.
Zhangliqun
Questionologist
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
250k pots with a humbucker is a very GOOD idea if said humbucker is just too bright or icepicky. Pot and cap values to me are always a matter of taste and of context (your guitar and/or rig's tonal personality).
250k pots with a humbucker is a very GOOD idea if said humbucker is just too bright or icepicky. Pot and cap values to me are always a matter of taste and of context (your guitar and/or rig's tonal personality).
Lewguitar
New member
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
To me, a humbucker would have to be annoyingly bright with normal/modern wiring (not 50's mod wiring) before I'd consider using 250K pots with it, and there aren't many humbuckers that strike me that way. Most don't really have a lot of treble - not to a guy who's been playing Teles and Strats most of his life.
I used to play Hamers. JB's sound bright as all get out in a Hamer. So does the Custom 5.
But it could just be the 50's mod wiring Hamer uses - that makes any humbucker sound bright, grainy and sizzley. Those same pickups fatten up with modern wiring.
I've used 250K pots with the JB, but it was in a SSH Strat.
To be honest, the JB sounded a little muffled to me with 250K pots - but it sounded OK in that guitar.
It did lose a lot of its piercingly bright edge and it sounded smoother and not so ice pick in the ear trebley.
I suspect that a Custom 5 would respond to 250K pots in a similar fashion.
So if you're thinking of using these humbuckers in a SSH guitar, the JB and the Custom 5 would both be good candidates, IMO, for use with 250K pots.
Wish I could be of more help, but to me, humbuckers sound muffled and like they're being played under a blanket with 250K pots.
To me, a humbucker would have to be annoyingly bright with normal/modern wiring (not 50's mod wiring) before I'd consider using 250K pots with it, and there aren't many humbuckers that strike me that way. Most don't really have a lot of treble - not to a guy who's been playing Teles and Strats most of his life.
I used to play Hamers. JB's sound bright as all get out in a Hamer. So does the Custom 5.
But it could just be the 50's mod wiring Hamer uses - that makes any humbucker sound bright, grainy and sizzley. Those same pickups fatten up with modern wiring.
I've used 250K pots with the JB, but it was in a SSH Strat.
To be honest, the JB sounded a little muffled to me with 250K pots - but it sounded OK in that guitar.
It did lose a lot of its piercingly bright edge and it sounded smoother and not so ice pick in the ear trebley.
I suspect that a Custom 5 would respond to 250K pots in a similar fashion.
So if you're thinking of using these humbuckers in a SSH guitar, the JB and the Custom 5 would both be good candidates, IMO, for use with 250K pots.
Wish I could be of more help, but to me, humbuckers sound muffled and like they're being played under a blanket with 250K pots.
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blueman335
Mojo's Minions
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
That's just it, some of us are coming from a very different perspective than you are. As Zhang once said: "When a Fender guy plays an LP, it sounds thick and muddy to him. When a LP guy plays a Fender, it sounds like a mosquito to him." For us on the other side of the fence, Strats can sound pretty shrill and piercing. In the wrong hands, they can be pretty unpleasant to listen to.
That's just it, some of us are coming from a very different perspective than you are. As Zhang once said: "When a Fender guy plays an LP, it sounds thick and muddy to him. When a LP guy plays a Fender, it sounds like a mosquito to him." For us on the other side of the fence, Strats can sound pretty shrill and piercing. In the wrong hands, they can be pretty unpleasant to listen to.
STRATDELUXER97
Stratoblaster Tone Meister
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
Years ago I actually did use a 250k volume pot in one of my strats..It had a PG+ in the bridge that I always felt was just too toppy! I didn't want the 2 single coils to see the 500k pot,so in this guitar it worked out..Later I ended up with the DMZ Fred which turned out to be a better pickup in this guitar.Sold the PG+..Guess I'm just not a PG guy and didn't like the stock PG either.
Years ago I actually did use a 250k volume pot in one of my strats..It had a PG+ in the bridge that I always felt was just too toppy! I didn't want the 2 single coils to see the 500k pot,so in this guitar it worked out..Later I ended up with the DMZ Fred which turned out to be a better pickup in this guitar.Sold the PG+..Guess I'm just not a PG guy and didn't like the stock PG either.
STRATDELUXER97
Stratoblaster Tone Meister
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
Lew has said many times about his loss of highend from years of playing..I'd bet any pickup would have to be really toppy/trebly for Lew to think it's too bright!
Lew has said many times about his loss of highend from years of playing..I'd bet any pickup would have to be really toppy/trebly for Lew to think it's too bright!
Lewguitar
New member
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
In the wrong hands any guitar can sound unpleasant. I've found that many of those guys with the wrong hands are also afraid of treble because treble exposes weaknesses in their playing technique.
I have a good friend like that. Sounds like he's playing under a blanket most of the time. He lacks confidence because he lacks hand coordination and the ability to produce a beautiful tone.
Might just be the way his nervous system is wired or something, but he has a hard time producing a consistently beautiful tone.
A lot of guys hate Joe Barden's pickups and complain that they're to bright and sterile. However, they sure don't sound sterile when I hear Danny Gatton or Bill Kirchen playing them.
I play a lot of steel string acoustic guitar. That's about as revealing as a guitar gets.
To me, a beautiful tone comes first. I love being surrounded by beauty and a beautiful tone is a must.
I've worked hard at achieving just that, so I don't have much trouble moving from my Taylor to my Fenders or to my Gibson.
I love playing them all.
I even love playing my Tele with the Joe Barden pickups.
In the wrong hands any guitar can sound unpleasant. I've found that many of those guys with the wrong hands are also afraid of treble because treble exposes weaknesses in their playing technique.
I have a good friend like that. Sounds like he's playing under a blanket most of the time. He lacks confidence because he lacks hand coordination and the ability to produce a beautiful tone.
Might just be the way his nervous system is wired or something, but he has a hard time producing a consistently beautiful tone.
A lot of guys hate Joe Barden's pickups and complain that they're to bright and sterile. However, they sure don't sound sterile when I hear Danny Gatton or Bill Kirchen playing them.
I play a lot of steel string acoustic guitar. That's about as revealing as a guitar gets.
To me, a beautiful tone comes first. I love being surrounded by beauty and a beautiful tone is a must.
I've worked hard at achieving just that, so I don't have much trouble moving from my Taylor to my Fenders or to my Gibson.
I love playing them all.
I even love playing my Tele with the Joe Barden pickups.
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STRATDELUXER97
Stratoblaster Tone Meister
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
Not taking sides,but in my many years of playing strats mostly and Teles,but not as often,I get compliments on my playing ability and sometimes my tone..I've "never" had any other musician,guitarist,or person tell me that my strat tones were to piercing or that my tone just sucked..We always seem to leave out the other gear in our tonal equations like the amp,pedals,string types etc..Whether I play a strat,Tele,LP,SG or whatever,it sounds like me..I so much agree about how much the tone is in our hands also.
There are better players and I'm not the best,but piercing strat tone or bad tone,just isn't part of my playing experiences..To this day,most of my favorite players,play strats!
Not taking sides,but in my many years of playing strats mostly and Teles,but not as often,I get compliments on my playing ability and sometimes my tone..I've "never" had any other musician,guitarist,or person tell me that my strat tones were to piercing or that my tone just sucked..We always seem to leave out the other gear in our tonal equations like the amp,pedals,string types etc..Whether I play a strat,Tele,LP,SG or whatever,it sounds like me..I so much agree about how much the tone is in our hands also.
There are better players and I'm not the best,but piercing strat tone or bad tone,just isn't part of my playing experiences..To this day,most of my favorite players,play strats!
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ItsaBass
New member
Re: Anyone tried 250k volume with ......
I have not. I have used 250K pots with a Suhr SSH, though, which is very similar to the specs of the '59/Custom Hybrid, and not terribly far off from the Custom Five (the C5 would be even thicker). I had that setup in a Strat, along with two single coils (one hot P90-esque pickup and one stock vintage-style Strat pickup). I ditched the Suhr pickup because it was far too thick and did not have enough bite. It would have been OK in a single humbucker guitar, or matched with another thick neck humbucker. In that case, I could have set the amp up to sound good for both pickups. But along with the two singles, the tonal mismatch was too great. It was either set the amp up for the humbucker and the P90, and have the vintage style pickup sound like shattering glass, or set the amp up for the vintage single and have the other two sound like mud. 500K or 1M pots would not have made the situation any better. They just would have given a tiny bit of top end snap, not actually reduced the bottom end, which is what needed to be done.
In the end, I went to a humbucker with a lighter wind (Seth first, then PG+), ditched the vintage-style single coil for a Twang-Banger-type pickup, and I went to 500K pots all the way around. The guitar is much better balanced and much easier to set up.
At any rate, my main points are: 1) Those pickups that you listed probably wouldn't be terribly different with either a 250K, a 500K, or a 1M pot. The basic tonal character of each is there regardless, and the changes due to pots are minor at best. 2) You will probably be fine with that combination, as long as every pickup in the guitar is in the same basic neighborhood in terms of tone.
I have not. I have used 250K pots with a Suhr SSH, though, which is very similar to the specs of the '59/Custom Hybrid, and not terribly far off from the Custom Five (the C5 would be even thicker). I had that setup in a Strat, along with two single coils (one hot P90-esque pickup and one stock vintage-style Strat pickup). I ditched the Suhr pickup because it was far too thick and did not have enough bite. It would have been OK in a single humbucker guitar, or matched with another thick neck humbucker. In that case, I could have set the amp up to sound good for both pickups. But along with the two singles, the tonal mismatch was too great. It was either set the amp up for the humbucker and the P90, and have the vintage style pickup sound like shattering glass, or set the amp up for the vintage single and have the other two sound like mud. 500K or 1M pots would not have made the situation any better. They just would have given a tiny bit of top end snap, not actually reduced the bottom end, which is what needed to be done.
In the end, I went to a humbucker with a lighter wind (Seth first, then PG+), ditched the vintage-style single coil for a Twang-Banger-type pickup, and I went to 500K pots all the way around. The guitar is much better balanced and much easier to set up.
At any rate, my main points are: 1) Those pickups that you listed probably wouldn't be terribly different with either a 250K, a 500K, or a 1M pot. The basic tonal character of each is there regardless, and the changes due to pots are minor at best. 2) You will probably be fine with that combination, as long as every pickup in the guitar is in the same basic neighborhood in terms of tone.
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