Blower Switch question

A

Ahpook

New member
Hello Everyone,

Lately I've been infatuated with this wiring gimmick. I've had them installed on a couple guitars and really like them!

Anyway, I am finishing up another guitar build and will be going with a simple circuit in this guitar. Just volume, bridge pickup and jack. My question is that simple circuit would already be considered "blown" wouldn't it? No need or even a way to install a blower switch, correct?

I just build em, not wire them and was just curious if anyone had some idea on this.

Thanks
 
What's a "blower switch"? Something that takes the tone pot or all pots out of the signal path so the pickup goes straight to the jack? I really like that sound on my darker guitars, not so much on the brighter/thinner-sounding ones.
 
you could wire a push/pull or push/push volume pot to bypass it, there would be a subtle difference depending on the value of the pot.
 
Ahpook said:
Just volume, bridge pickup and jack. My question is that simple circuit would already be considered "blown" wouldn't it? No need or even a way to install a blower switch, correct?
Click to expand...

Yes. Although, some would take it one step farther and have the "blower" switch bypass the volume pot also. In other words, bridge to jack.

Your guitar, your call. :headbang:
 
I wouldn't think it would be worth it on a one pickup, one volume guitar. Usually they are used on mulitple pickup guitars so you could be in some configuration like neck pickup with volume and/or tone rolled back (or whatever), then go straight to a lead sound, bridge pickup straight to the jack.
 
I had one on a single pickup '62 SG back in the 80's. It bypassed the volume and tone controls and went straight to the jack. Thus I was able to have 2 preset sounds. Back then it was referred to as the "11 switch" thanks to Spinal Tap. I thought it was useful.
 
My definition of Blower Switch is primary pickup (usually bridge) to output jack. My Elite Strat came with one. I actually think it’s more convenient as a way to go from one tone with volume/tone back to full on than it is to go from bridge full up to blower. (Like an easy switch to hit rather than the tonal change by bypassing volume/tone).

With my single pickup / single volume guitars I haven’t had a need to do one, in fact I might even go for a 1M pot which would be very close to the blower switch tone. Or even do a no-load pot for volume. Then back off when you don’t want that full on direct tone. (Kind of like Marty DiBergi saying “why not just make 10 louder?”)
 
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