Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

[StrangeDay]

If I use a 250k pot with a humbucker, will the volume have less sweep?!! I know the tone will be slightly warmer, but will it change the output?

PLease let me know, because the 500k volume pot in my Tele sounds bright as hell - even with a CC. It must be that steel plate bridge.

 

[Grandor]

Re: Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

no change in output i believe.

 

[benji657]

Re: Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

yes the tone will be warmer, but the ouput won't change

and if the CC is too bright with a 500k, you don't need it. replace it with a 250k

also, some humbuckers were designed to be used with 250k volume pots..for ex)the JB model

 

[StrangeDay]

Re: Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

Are you guys sure the output won't change? What about the sweep (rotation on shaft)?

How much is the steel plate bridge (that surrounds the humbucker) affecting the tone? It HAS to be that steel plate because the CC sounded too warm in my Strat, and that one had a 500k!! I mean, what else could it be?

 

[Grandor]

Re: Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

also, some humbuckers were designed to be used with 250k volume pots..for ex)the JB model

oh ok. so thats why my JB was overly Bright! :smack:

 

[Dodger]

Re: Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

Are you guys sure the output won't change? What about the sweep (rotation on shaft)?

How much is the steel plate bridge (that surrounds the humbucker) affecting the tone? It HAS to be that steel plate because the CC sounded too warm in my Strat, and that one had a 500k!! I mean, what else could it be?

Did you put that 500k in yourself? I only ask cause if you didnt then it should be a 250k and i just went to make sure. After installing a dimarzio breed humbucker in the bridge of my strat i did notice that the volume shaft has become quite useless for the humbucker. I use 250k pots and the breed sounds fine and its a very very warm pickup theres no rules about it.

 

[Artie]

Re: Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

You will definitely have less output . . . sorta.

Its not that the pickup itself will generate any less voltage, but a 250k pot will present twice the "load" that a 500k will. That doubleing of the load will pull the output voltage down a noticable amount. The increased load, however, can be a good thing. It will tend to tame the highs, and the shrillness. Of course, if you don't have too much highs, or shrillness, to begin with, then it can be a bad thing.

Its just another "tone-shaper" in the overall scheme of your guitar.

Also, resistance value of a pot has no bearing on "sweep". They are all made to rotate around 270-300 degree's.

Artie

 

[StrangeDay]

Re: Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

Two questions I still have:

How MUCH of a noticable amount of output will be taken away? 20%?

And, how much does the steel plate on a Telecaster affect the tone? It seems to be what is giving it the high treble.

Thanks!

 

[Archer_of_Fish]

Re: Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

I used to have a strat with a JB in the bridge. I loved the sound of the JB with a 250 K pot.

 

[MikeS]

Re: Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

The bridge plate is IMO one of the biggest contributers to the distinct Tele tone. Of course it's affecting the tone. I would swap in a 250k and go from there.I think the percieved ouput will be less, in part by the 250k taking some bite out of the high end. I wouldn't expect the low end or the mids to be perceptively lower in output.

 

[Artie]

Re: Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

How MUCH of a noticable amount of output will be taken away? 20%?

Thanks!

The trouble is, its not that kind of loss. It won't be flat across the frequency spectrum. Think of it more as "tone-shaping" than volume reducing.

Artie

Edit: This thread has motivated me to try a little experiment. Later this week, when I put the JB in my Peavey, I'm going to re-wire the volume control to be a "variable load" instead. Just so I can see first hand the effect of different pot loads in real time.

I'll post clips or observations if they seem significant.

 

[Boston Joe]

Re: Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

I have a Jazz and Custom in the neck and bridge of an old Charvel respectively. Very bright with the 250k pot which I believe is due to the poplar body. I disconnected the tone to compensate for that "output" loss, which is really just the tapering of the upper frequencies.

 

[seafoamer]

Re: Do I really need a 500k volume pot for a humbucker?!!

I'm all about the 250k pots.