How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

[Will S-T]

Here's the project:

ESP Ltd EC 401.2 x P-Rails with Triple Shots, master no-load vol pot from Stewmac,
(takes both tone pots and volume out of the circuit straight from switch/blend to jack)
one push/pull tone for each pickup ala Jimmy Page, series/parallel and phase in/out.

And most importantly I want to swap the three way selector with a blend pot
to balance the volume of any one particular pickup's configuration against the other.
IE- rail bridge and HB neck or P90 neck and HB bridge.

I prefer the idea of a centre detent on the blend pot as I can quickly learn the
relative reference points of where to dial in the "blended" sound in my head.

So, who does make the best/transparent blend pot and what value do you recommend.

Many thanks in anticipation.
Cheers, Will

 

[dystrust]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

I'm not aware of one that'll do what you're looking for unfortunately. A typical passive pan pot may run into issues with the two pickups loading each other, so that you can't really get an uncolored mix of the two. I've also never seen a 500K pan pot, and I would expect additional load from using a 250K pot.

The EMG Active Balance Control on the other hand won't load either pickup, but it's output impedance is REALLY low which may make the rest of your signal chain sound different. Whichever option you choose, there are trade offs involved.

 

[GoldenVulture]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

How many pups in this ? 2 ? 3 ?4?

 

[Will S-T]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

How many pups in this ? 2 ? 3 ?4?

Two P-Rails Wazza with Triple Shots, so all the available combos.

Want to swap out the three way for a blend to better balance all the
individuals pickup options when both on.

 

[GoldenVulture]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

You'll probably need a long shaft pot or modify the body.
The best Transparent blend employs a stereo pot.
Do you want it to be able to go to just one pup at either end of its turn ?
If you do you'd get a high K pot, 500 K.
If you want it just to give a variance beteen the two , a low K pot, 20 > 50K.
EG for a commercial " Blend Pot " . The size of this would suit the Switch hole. Centre detent too.
- https://www.realparts.com.au/electronics/blend-balance-pots/500k-cts-blend-balance-pot.html -
There's different ways of wiring a blend too.

 

[beaubrummels]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

The blend pot will undo the benefit of the no-load pot because it will have two resistors always connected in some degree. Also, there are no long shaft pan pots made (that I could find).

 

[GoldenVulture]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

Stereo dual ganged pots with long shafts exist.[ The postage for these to Aus is rather prohibitive ]
- http://www.ebay.com/itm/100K-DUAL-A...ol-/232307760418?_trksid=p2349526.m2548.l4275 - There's 50K ones available too but values other than that [250K 500K ], with long shats are elusive.
The body size of these would also differ from the realparts one. They are a bigger diameter.

 

[beaubrummels]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

Stereo dual ganged pots with long shafts exist.[ The postage for these to Aus is rather prohibitive ]
- http://www.ebay.com/itm/100K-DUAL-A...ol-/232307760418?_trksid=p2349526.m2548.l4275 - There's 50K ones available too but values other than that [250K 500K ], with long shats are elusive.
The body size of these would also differ from the realparts one. They are a bigger diameter.

Yeah, but that's a dual-ganged pot, not a blend pot.

 

[GoldenVulture]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

Yeah, but that's a dual-ganged pot, not a blend pot.

Sorry, there's no diff ? It's stereo audio taper. A blend pot is just that and how you apply it.
[ EDIT: I was mistaken, I was thinking of dual ganged pots with one reverse taper. ]

Stewmacs Blend Pot. 500K CTS balance / blend audio taper pot, with detent.

 

[Darg1911]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

^^ It's not the same as a "stereo" pot that I am aware of. With a blend, all the way CCW would cut output from pickup A with full output from pickup B. All the way CW would do the opposite. Center position would be full on, both pups. With "basic" wiring anyway.

A stereo pot on the other hand, is simply two mono pots in one. The level from both pickups would track the pots rotation in both directions. Now, maybe there is a way to wire a stereo pot so it works like a blend pot but I'm not aware of it ... which isn't saying all that much. If that's the case, maybe you can explain it. Seems like it would help the OP and others as well.

 

[beaubrummels]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

If it's linear taper, then you could wire one of the pots backwards and get a blender out of it, but you'd have no center detent for 50%/50%.

 

[GoldenVulture]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

If it's linear taper, then you could wire one of the pots backwards and get a blender out of it, but you'd have no center detent for 50%/50%.

Yes there's no center detent and the way i use it/wire it wouldn't suit Will's purposes.

I use low K pots 10/20K > 50K and wire them like this.

It gives an attentuation of approx. + or - 3Db > 6Db > 12 Db. Most of the blending happens in area either side of the central position [ equall input from each pup ] hence the low K pot. The only diff between using a Log pot or a Linear one is the apparent centre mix which will be in the centre position on a linear pot and towards one end [ around 60 > 70% along the taper excursion ] with a Log pot. Ganged Log pots behave linearly with each other over their excursion if they are both the same direction taper, just not inversely like a dual gang with a reverse taper or a center detent pot. It still gives an equal proportion of + and - over the excursion wired this way which is less extreme than the inverse action of reverse taper or center detent

Another " Blend " scheme I have in one of my guitars in conjuction with the above blend is a variation on Spin a Split. It uses a tapped pot. [100K from memory ] Turned to the tap position it gives you single coil; fully wound it becomes humbucking.

I also have a 20K single gang slider in a guitar as a blend. Different wiring again.

 

[Will S-T]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

The ideal is a pot that has both at 100% at the detent and gradually depletes the
corresponding pickup output as you turn towards the other one .

 

[Will S-T]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

What I really want is percentage variables of each pickup together if possible.

 

[beaubrummels]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

Well, then you need an official balance/blend pot, because the wafers in those go from 500kohm at one end to 0 at the detent, then the rest of the wafer is wire to wire; with the other half of the pot being the opposite. A stereo volume pot would have the same resistor material across the entire wafer for both pots, so the middle would be 50% each, or 250kohm each side (presuming linear).

 

[Will S-T]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

How does aFender Jass Bass blend pot work?

 

[GoldenVulture]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

^^ It's not the same as a "stereo" pot that I am aware of. With a blend, all the way CCW would cut output from pickup A with full output from pickup B. All the way CW would do the opposite. Center position would be full on, both pups. With "basic" wiring anyway.

A stereo pot on the other hand, is simply two mono pots in one. The level from both pickups would track the pots rotation in both directions. Now, maybe there is a way to wire a stereo pot so it works like a blend pot but I'm not aware of it ... which isn't saying all that much. If that's the case, maybe you can explain it. Seems like it would help the OP and others as well.

My mistake . I was thinking of a dual gang [stereo]with reverse audio taper.

Yes you can wire dual gang pot to mimic centre detent operation;
EG:

- http://sound.whsites.net/pots.htm -

Dual ganged pots come in a few configurations

Linear

Logarithmic
- dual with same direction taper
- Dual with one reverse taper
- Dual centre detent
- Antilog [ Reverse log - usually single pots ]
and - Tapped

 

[GoldenVulture]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

The ideal is a pot that has both at 100% at the detent and gradually depletes the
corresponding pickup output as you turn towards the other one .

There's the pot I pointed towards in my post #5
- https://www.realparts.com.au/electronics/blend-balance-pots/500k-cts-blend-balance-pot.html -
- https://www.allparts.com/EP-6386-000-CTS-500K-Balance-Blend-Detent-Linear-Pot_p_1503.html -

and there's Bournes
- https://www.allparts.com/EP-5386-000-Bourns-500K-Blend-Balance-Pot_p_1494.html -

There's not much else. Both of those come in 500k or 250k. No long shafts.
This is the standard wiring for them. You could swap it straight over for your pup switch

 

[Will S-T]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

Thanks Wazza

 

[Darg1911]

Re: How makes the best/transparent blend pot?

Thanks GV, good info. Appreciated.