Dave Mustaine Active Electronics Kill Switch?

[PimpDaDdy]

All,

I have a custom set of Dave Mustaine sig pickups in my '06 Les Paul Custom. I'm really digging them and love the sound I get out of them. When I get them jacked up relatively close to the strings they can kill for metal with all the harmonics you would expect from the passive JB and Jazz. Unfortunately this limits me to metal or hard rock type sounds.

Thinking back to a Carvin that I have, there is a switch that can engage the active electronics of the guitar. Is it possible to create a kill switch for the DM's? I know the pickups aren't just a JB and a Jazz with a preamp but my goal would be to maintain the natural tone of the pickups with significantly less output for cleaner passages or different styles of music. I have a few different guitars, yes, but I am one of those guys that wants one guitar to be as versatile as possible and do it all. LOL. Thoughts this might allow me to believably cover some other tones.

 

[sosomething]

Re: Dave Mustaine Active Electronics Kill Switch?

Sure, it's possible. You could have the switch engage an internal trim pot that basically acted like a rolled-off volume knob set to a specific value. Stick a treble bleed cap on there and you're good to go.

 

[frankfalbo]

Re: Dave Mustaine Active Electronics Kill Switch?

You don't even need a treble bleed because they're active. So a volume reduction retains the same tone.

 

[sosomething]

Re: Dave Mustaine Active Electronics Kill Switch?

well there you go!

 

[PimpDaDdy]

Re: Dave Mustaine Active Electronics Kill Switch?

I forgot to subscribe to this thread. I thought no one cared. Lol.

I was looking for something a bit simpler. I'm not an electrical engineer but would a trim pot set for a low value be any more beneficial than just rolling back my volume? I hesitate to use the term but perhaps it might be more accurate to say I want to "bypass" the active electronics or just render them ineffective as far as boosting the signal goes. Just let the natural, unaltered, tone of the pickups to come through. The resulting sound may or may not be beneficial or pleasing but I was considering trying it.

 

[jeremy]

Re: Dave Mustaine Active Electronics Kill Switch?

in general you cant bypass the active part of active pups. an emg or live wire has a preamp built into the pup itself and is an integral part of the function of the pup.

on the carvin you are using passive pups with outboard active electronics, so when you bypass the electronics you still have a passive pup that will work

 

[PimpDaDdy]

Re: Dave Mustaine Active Electronics Kill Switch?

Hrm ...what you said makes perfect sense. I had these picks professionally installed as opposed to work I've done myself on my Carvins. Unfortunately I didn't open the package or see what was inside I just took it all to my guy to hook up. I'm familiar with how EMGs are setup. Does this mean the the DMs are similar? I assumed the active portion of the electronics where "outboard" from the pickups themselves. I thought they were just contained in the chamber with the volume and tone controls. Is this not the case?

 

[jeremy]

Re: Dave Mustaine Active Electronics Kill Switch?

no. they are more like emg style with everything enclosed within the pup housing

 

[PimpDaDdy]

Re: Dave Mustaine Active Electronics Kill Switch?

Thanks a lot for the answer. I think it will be better to leave well enough alone

 

[Benjy_26]

Re: Dave Mustaine Active Electronics Kill Switch?

The coolest thing about actives (IMHO) is that if you want less output without changing your tone, you can just roll the volume back. I do this with my EMG's all the time and it works very well.