JB/Jazz: Taking the Plunge

[lpmarshall]

I recently decided (about an hour ago) I'm going to replace the pickups in my Gibson Les Paul Studio. I've done plenty of searching on this forum and google and decided to give the JB(Bridge)/Jazz(Neck) Combo a shot.

A few questions/comments, as I have never done a pickup swap before.

a.) Will I need any extra parts (other than soldering iron)?
b.) Are there any tricks/gotchas I might run into along the way?
c.) I've yet to find a schematic for a 2 bucker 2 volume 2 tone Les Paul
d.) Are there any dealers you normally go through to get your pups?

Once I get everything ironed out I'm going to order a set. A guy I work with has done several pickup replacements before, so he is going to help me along with the project. I decided its time to learn all this stuff myself instead of throwing money at shops.

Hopefully everything goes smoothly, just a few questions before I jump in.

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[APB_4]

Re: JB/Jazz: Taking the Plunge

Hoe about this one? http://www.seymourduncan.com/website/support/schematics/2hum_2vol_2tone_3way-w-spl.html

 

[CronoDL]

Re: JB/Jazz: Taking the Plunge

You won't need any extra parts, unless you wanted to change the pots and caps while you're at it. But that might make things more frustrating. Otherwise, you'd just solder the ground shield and hot for each pickup, unless you're going to do coil splitting or anything else.

http://guitarelectronics.zoovy.com/
That site has plenty of schematics, and you'll find what you need. Also, when you buy the pups, they'll come with schematics.

Black Rose Customs is good to order pups from. Very good and reliable service.
http://www.blackrosecustom.emerchantpro.com/

It isn't too hard to install pups, but it might be frustrating the first time. Do it on a flat surface with good lighting. Use a 30 to 40 Watt iron, and get some solder flux for soldering onto the back of pots.

That's all I can think of. Good luck!

 

[Kelsey]

Re: JB/Jazz: Taking the Plunge

If the HBs are 4-conductor, then read the included instruction sheet to figure out which is hot vs. ground, and wire the remaining pair together (but not connected to anything else). You might want to do one pickup at a time, so that you don't get confused about which volume and tone pot goes to the neck vs. bridge pickup. And be careful with the hot iron and solder around the guitar to avoid damage to the finish. Good eyes and good lighting help a lot.

 

[lpmarshall]

Re: JB/Jazz: Taking the Plunge

Thanks for all the help!!! Going to order the pups in the next week or two and get started.

 

[BlueSnMettle]

Re: JB/Jazz: Taking the Plunge

Yep, All good advice. Just take your time and make sure you have everything you need ahead of time. A hand drawn schematic of your present set up doesn't hurt for the the first few swaps. Just keep the solder off the guitar, your skin & your eyes (don't yank anything with hot solder on it). Good luck & have fun.

Peace,

Darrin

 

[Amateur]

Re: JB/Jazz: Taking the Plunge

You may want to go to Radio Shack and get a couple of 0.047 uf capacitors just in case your LP does not have them in the wiring already.

 

[theodie]

Re: JB/Jazz: Taking the Plunge

I would start with the pickups and see what they sound like with the current pots that are in your guitar. If you decide you want the guitar to sound a bit brighter, chance your pots to 500K pots in the future. I think The JB/Jazz should sound good with the factory 300K pots though.