both on-volume drop!?

[telemonster]

hi,
i replaced the stock bridge pickup of a friends new guitar recently with an old seymour jb.
now, he never ever uses the middle both on position-except he's just started to use it for some of the 'clean sound' songs, and when he flips into the both on setting, the volume drops in comparison to either of the 'either on' sounds.

the cable on the pickup was too short to reach the (master) volume pot and the leaf style selector switch. so i put a length of (4 conductor) cable in to make it reach.

i'm as sure as i can be that i connected like to like. if i didn't, could he be getting some kind of 'out of phase', or whatever volume drop?
i've used generic 2 humbucker and master vol master tone diagram (which was the same as the set up on the guitar) and the seymour diagrams off the web and followed them to the letter.

he says he's only just started using the middle setting, so it could have been doing it all along!?

i'll get hold of the guitar again sometime soon and double check everything, but in the meantime, any ideas????

 

[telemonster]

Re: both on-volume drop!?

maybe i wired it ok, but the stock is wired in reverse to the seymour? the stock is a 2 conductor no name on a no name axe, and i wouldn't know how they wire their stuff....

 

[Artie]

Re: both on-volume drop!?

Just reverse the hot and ground on one of the pups and see if that corrects the problem. Sounds like a simple phase problem.

 

[telemonster]

Re: both on-volume drop!?

hi,

thanks for your reply-i'll try it!

to be honest, the more i've turned it over in my mind, the more i thought it might be 'something like that'. so i'm really relieved that someone's come out and said "try this, it sounds like it's that!"

thanks again!

paul

 

[Loserchief]

Re: both on-volume drop!?

Well AFAIK the buckers are wired in parallel when both-on on a 3-way. Like resistors wiring them in parallel should result in an output level below each individual level.

 

[Artie]

Re: both on-volume drop!?

Well AFAIK the buckers are wired in parallel when both-on on a 3-way. Like resistors wiring them in parallel should result in an output level below each individual level.

You can't make that comparison between active and passive components. The reason two resistors read half as much is because they are dividing the voltage thats put out by the meter. Thats why your meter has a battery in it - to power the resistance ranges.

Anytime you put two power sources together, you double the power out. In series, you double the voltage. In parallel, you double the current. (10 volts x 1 amp is the same as 1 volt x 10 amps.) Since guitars are voltage sources, the added current capability doesn't count for much, so, the voltage, (and apparent output), stays the same.

 

[telemonster]

Re: both on-volume drop!?

hi,

thanks ArtieToo!

worked a treat!

---------
Paul

 

[Artie]

Re: both on-volume drop!?

Cool. Glad it was an easy fix.