Hum cancelling single coil to go with Gibson 500T wired in parallel

[gregory]

Hi everyone,

My first post, but no need to be gentle. I've been doing some work on a friend's Squier '51 on a shoestring budget, recycling parts whenever possible.

There's a Gibson 500T in the bridge and we're currently working with an EMG HZ S1 in the neck. After trying to run them in a split configuration for hum cancelling, it was painfully obvious that the S1 was seriously under-powered in comparison. I decided switching the 500T between series and parallel was the best choice in order to have no options with hum based on the controls (a DPDT on the volume and a three-way rotary selector). The S1 is still extremely anemic, just being dominated when the two pickups are run together.

That said, any recommendations for a stacked single coil? I've been looking at the STK-S6 and STK-S7. He'd like the single to play well with the 500T when wired in parallel (which is still fairly hot). Running the 500T in series is being treated as a lead boost, which he really likes. If the single is just a little more powerful than then 500T in parallel that would be OK too. He's basically looking for something that still sounds like a single coil, which is why I've been looking at stacked designs.

Musical styles: Alternative/Indie Rock, Hard Rock, Post-Grunge

 

[gregory]

Re: Hum cancelling single coil to go with Gibson 500T wired in parallel

I know this generated zero interest, but just wanted to follow-up.

The 500T has been moved out of this guitar and paired with a DMZ LiquiFire in another guitar.

Each pickup can be switched between parallel and series. When combined the parallel-parallel configuration is replaced by a split-split combination of the inner coils. Of the parallel/series configurations, I prefer the 500T in series with the LiquiFire split over the 500T in series and the LiquiFire in parallel, but there isn't that big of a difference. Running the 500T in parallel with the LiquiFire in series sounded surprisingly well. I'm not a big fan of the 500T, but the pair go great together.

I've read a lot of posts maligning parallel wiring, but I gotta say it works very well for both of these pickups.

As for the Squier '51, the 500T will be replaced by an EMG ALX (another freebie). The 3-way rotary went with the 500T into the other guitar, so I'll be putting in second push/pull pot to act as a tone control (a stock Squier '51 is volume-only). The push/pull on the volume control will toggle between the S1 and the ALX. The push/pull on the tone control will combine the ALX in parallel mode with the S1 when the S1 is selected, or will split the ALX when the ALX is selected. At least that's the plan. If the ALX in parallel sounds like ass when combined with the S1 then I'll just split the ALX instead (or put it in series, but I'll have to revisit my schematic). Past experience gives me little hope that splitting the S1 in order to combine with the ALX in split mode for less hum will be worth a damn.

Can anyone recommend a place to get a cheap pair of flat-top chrome knobs for a coarse-splined metric pot? I'm not sure whether I need them recessed or not, assuming I have such an option.

 

[gregory]

Re: Hum cancelling single coil to go with Gibson 500T wired in parallel

I finally got the Squier '51 wired up.

The ALX is pretty bright in this guitar, but it balances nicely with the S1 with what are reasonable height adjustments. Running it in parallel when the two pickups are combined works pretty well. Split mode of the ALX is fairly disappointing. Currently it's split to the inner coil. I considered splitting it to the outer exposed screw coil and raising the screws, but I have a feeling it will shift the series tone in the wrong direction, without improving the split performance.

All the while, there is no amount of tweaking on the truss rod that's going to fix a hopeless neck, so I'm calling it done and returning her to the owner.