Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

clip+(2015-04-16+at+05.54.48).jpg
heres one drawn by swyse that i used for my Ibanez HSH layout, pegasus, YJM, sentient with a split on the sentient
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

@DrNewcenstein

I want to make a full wiring diagram for my idea, but there seem to be different types of rotary switches and wiring diagrams (e.g. two separate wafer diagrams) for them. Would a template like the one used for this diagram be correct?

attachment.php

Pickup ground wires should go to the system ground (pot casing, jack ground, bridge ground) instead of switch poles. From there, you jump grounding wires to the switch tabs where you want the pickup coil connected to that tab and in that switch position to be grounded. For example, to get the slug coil active, ground the red + white with either green or black to hot and the other to ground. To get parallel operation, ground the white + green and send the red + black to hot.

While it's theoretically possible to wire the pickup bare wire to those places on the switch directly, you'll still need jumpers from the switch to the system ground.


As for the various wiring diagrams for 2-wafer rotary switches, there's really no "standard" format from what I've seen. Jackson's diagram in the old 80s electronics catalog was the worst - looked like a bowl of spaghetti to me. Didn't help that it was the size of a postage stamp.
But, the diagram template you posted is closer to what you'd hold in your hand - the inside wafer (closest to the knob) has tabs around the outside, and the bottom wafer's tab are inside the perimeter of the wafer. While both wafers are constructed the same, the inside wafer's tabs have to be bent further out to keep them from touching the bottom tabs once wired. The Common tabs for both wafers are in the center.

As for the diagram itself being correct, I can't say from looking at it, as multi-pole switches like the rotary and Superswitch still give me fits. I can set them up as 3 or 4 different switches via push/pulls, but the one I posted above is the most advanced I've ever done with one.
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

Thanks, but I meant only the switch itself from that diagram, not any of the wiring displayed there (didn't even look what it's about). So I'll use a similar one for my diagram.

But:

Pickup ground wires should go to the system ground (pot casing, jack ground, bridge ground) instead of switch poles. From there, you jump grounding wires to the switch tabs where you want the pickup coil connected to that tab and in that switch position to be grounded. For example, to get the slug coil active, ground the red + white with either green or black to hot and the other to ground. To get parallel operation, ground the white + green and send the red + black to hot.

While it's theoretically possible to wire the pickup bare wire to those places on the switch directly, you'll still need jumpers from the switch to the system ground.

Well if I want to put two pickups in series, one of the ground wires has to go to the switch, no? And the switch then connects it either to ground or to the other pickup's hot wire. That's what I did with my Phat Cat SG and it works fine.

Or so I thought. While thinking about this, I checked again what the bare wire in humbuckers is for (as in, why two ground wires?). SD says it's for shielding and grounding. So if I understood that correctly, bare goes to pickup shielding (always grounded) and green is just south start. Which aside from the rare occasion that you want two pickups in series, is usually grounded too.

So, two HB's in parallel:

HB1 green -> ground
HB1 bare -> ground
HB2 green -> ground
HB2 bare -> ground

In series:

HB1 green -> ground
HB1 bare -> ground
HB2 green -> HB1 black
HB2 bare -> ground


However, the Phat Cat I already put in series has no separate bare wire. It just has a hot output and a ground+shield braid. My switching:

Parallel:

PC1 braid -> ground
PC2 braid -> ground

Series:

PC1 braid -> ground
PC2 braid -> PC1 hot

The problem with this is that PC2's shielding now isn't connected to ground anymore. Instead it's in the signal chain between the two pickups. It does work somehow, but now I don't know if and how different it would be if PC2's shielding was correctly grounded instead?

I wanted to make a wiring diagram of this, but now I suspect it's faulty.
 
Last edited:
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

Of the Gibson 2-conductor pickups I've had, the braid is wrapped around a cloth sleeve, and the hot passes through the center of the sleeve. The braid goes to ground and the inner wire goes to hot (switch, pot, etc) but you can invert the wiring so that the braid goes to hot and the coil wire goes to ground. I'd imagine SD's 2-conductor "vintage-style" pickups (59, PhatCat, etc) operate on the same principle.

With SD's 4-conductor pickups, however, I'm pretty sure the bare wire is only for ground, as the coils have useable Start and Finish wires, unlike a 2-conductor where they're hard-wired for a single operation style (series) and truncate in one hot and one ground.
 
Last edited:
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

Could use a wiring diagram or description for 1 Cool Rails PU, 1 Volume and 1 Tone POT (CTS 250K). Thanks in advance
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

Could use a wiring diagram or description for 1 Cool Rails PU, 1 Volume and 1 Tone POT (CTS 250K). Thanks in advance

Try here. The fact that the Cool Rails is single-coil sized and that you are planning to use a 250k pot instead of a 500k won't make any difference to how it will be wired.
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

Thanks BriGuy1968. That's the diagram that I found too and used. I think it has has the PU coil tapped. My guess is that red and black need to be connected to 1st terminal of volume POT and (green, white and bare) need to be soldered to ground for humbucking. Wanted to get definate answer first before trying.
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

Thanks BriGuy1968. That's the diagram that I found too and used. I think it has has the PU coil tapped. My guess is that red and black need to be connected to 1st terminal of volume POT and (green, white and bare) need to be soldered to ground for humbucking. Wanted to get definate answer first before trying.

When you have the red and white connected together, green and bare to ground, and black to hot (like in the diagram), S-D pickups are operating as humbuckers (in series)... so if you want it to work as normal, the diagram I pointed you toward is the one to use.

If you're looking for a coil-tapped version, they have that one too. [emoji41]


[emoji450]Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk [emoji441]
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

Description of SVR-1 from S-D website:
"description
Vintage Rails use a unique split rail, twin coil design and special (parallel) wiring to achieve true, vintage, single-coil tone without hum. The sound is clean, clear and bright, with all of the "quack" you love in the notch positions. Though tonally similar to Duckbuckers, the rails design eliminates any potential dropout in string bending. Comes with four-conductor cable. USA Patent No. 5,525,750."
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

Oh, okay. The diagram you have is running the coils in parallel instead of series. Both ways will cancel hum. Running in parallel will sound more single-coilish. I would say try them both and choose the one that sounds like what you want.


[emoji450]Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk [emoji441]
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

I apologize for stealing and horribly editing your diagram but here's how I just did a pickguard for a 2 Volume, one tone HSS
View attachment 63225

It basically somewhat isolates the two halves of the switch. The right side essentially chooses which pot to use by utilizing the common lug for the hot output. Then the two volume pots are connected to their respective places on the right side so only the correct volume pot is being used in a given switch position. So in the bridge position only the 500k volume is being utilized... and so on... However in the bridge, middle position one volume does affect the other. If one is turned down low enough the other goes down with it.
The left side is pretty much wired like a standard strat switch except for basically a jumper that connects the left side of the switch and the right side of the switch by going to the lug on the 250 volume pot and another jumper that connects the bridge pickup to the left lug on the 500k volume pot. It's also a master tone for all three pickups unfortunately... couldn't figure out how to make it only neck and middle...

Ok, question about this diagram that I didn't think of until just now: I see the bridge pickup jumping straight to the 500K, but it's on the same side of the switch as the singles, and the Common on that side goes to the 250K. Does rolling the 250K around when the bridge is selected have any effect?
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

I'm looking for something to do with a second push/pull if I add one (when i replace my volume pot) in a strat with 3 single coils. There is not a lot available on the site for 3 single coils and push pulls. I think I may have the second push/pull be a phase reversal for one of the pickups, I just have to decide which one...

Going back through the thread to work on suggestions:

Is there anything specific you're looking for here? Most of the SSS diagrams I'm seeing also include a 5-way, which lends itself naturally to auto-splits for all 3 pickups (assuming 3 or 4-conductor). I can think of a few push/pull options off-hand, such as phase reversal, inserting a given pickup anywhere (bridge+neck is really the only one, since default wiring allows bridge+middle and middle+neck), series/parallel, and maybe one coil of adjacent pickups if we're talking rails.

Then there's various passive circuit mods like treble bleed, varitone, that Cocked Wah thing mentioned in another thread.

Hmmm. Actually all those sound like fine candidates for diagrams. Wondering if the Cocked Wah mod can be done so the pot it's attached to acts as a frequency sweep?
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

Sorry. The PU I have is an SVR-1 Vintage Rails not Cool Rails. I think this PU is different from typical humbucker wiring. Here is the wiring diagram that comes with it. http://www.seymourduncan.com/images/products/electric/stratocaster/501015-130.pdf Notice how black red are paired to the switch and green,white and bare are grounded. Any thoughts?

Put in a push-pull and hook up the pickup like this:
http://www.seymourduncan.com/support/wiring-diagrams/schematics.php?schematic=ssp

And you'll be able to switch between series and the SVR-1's standard parallel wiring.
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

How about this one I ended up doing for my H-H-H? Not for the faint-hearted or for those who want control simplicity.... but for those who want LOTS of options it's a winner (at least it has been for me). Although I gotta admit, I've been thinking of removing the varitone and making the center pot a master tone.. but then what to do with the varitone? Maybe a multiple passive distortion or something!

Anyway... here it is:
View attachment 63063

And here's the "formatted" version:

BriGuyWestone.jpg


Thanks to BriGuy1968 for the clarifications :beerchug:
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

here is an updated version of the wiring on my strat..i wired the guitar up a few weeks ago but i never updated the drawing..dont really need it but i want it for archival purposes.. i changed it from its previous incarnation by adding an always on bridge mod and replacing the schaller mega E switch with a standard 5 way.. didnt really care for the mega E like i thought i would. Much happier now.. very versatile tone machine.. i think im done but then again i might put add phase switch for each humbucker or atleast for one of the humbuckers

one of the only guitars that the tone control really gets any use..
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

Had an idea the other day as I was contemplating changes I'd like to make to Rachel...

She has a typical 2-Volume, 2-Tone setup (like a Les Paul) with the usual dependent volume controls. I've been toying with the idea of going to independent controls because I think I'd like to be able to blend, but am not sure if I'll like it better or not. All of a sudden I got this crazy thought of having my cake and eating it too... a switch that would allow me to choose whether it was set for dependent or independent controls. So here's what I came up with (it would need to be a 2-way 4P/DT switch).

2V-2T IndepenDependent Controls.jpg

  • Question #1: Do you think it will work?
  • Question #2: Do you think it would be something people would want? (Besides me, that is!)

I ordered a couple of 2-way 4P/DT switches, so eventually I'm gonna give it a try... but who knows when I'll find the time.
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

Phostenix wiring diagrams is a good place. I agree more wild diagrams or better yet multi functions of parts is a great thing. How to turn a push pull into .......

Ill try to figure out how to make a decent legible diagram to present my steinberger hh 5 way 4 pole - mini toggle - stereo jack dual concentric pots v/t v/t
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

image.jpgimage.jpg

This is my original diagram, if it makes any sense to you newscentein.

The switch list is

Seymour duncan "black back" pu's

Neck. / bridge

1seriesout of phase/paralell out of phase
2series out of phase/ paralel in phase
3 coil cut / parallel in phase
4parallel in phase/ coil cut
5coil cut/ coil cut

They go to mini toggle 1 neck 2 neck bridge 3 bridge
Then dual concentrics and then sterio jack. The signals never connect until the y plug they are on separate poles. If you want to send neck only to one amp and bridge only to anonther amp or mixer.
 
Re: Gaps in the Wiring Diagrams?

image.jpgimage.jpg

Ibanez 7420 7 string slightly moded

The switch goes

Bridge/neck

1series in phase/series in phase
2parallel out of phase/series in phase
3coil tap/coil tap
4series in phase/coil tap
5parallel out of phase/parallel out of phase


Mini toggle n n+b b
Mini toggle hums hums+single single
Vol tone

V7 in neck
V8 in bridge i turned into a 4 conducter wiring.
Sd ssl1 for 7 string

I used seymour duncan color codes in the diagram. The real colors inside are different.
 
Back
Top