JB Jr & HR, which for neck & which for middle?

R

Reid

New member
Hi. I've got a parts-bin strat (which I fondly call the DisasterCaster). Briefly:

Maple neck & fretboard
Alder body (I think... definitely nothing extreme like maple or mahogany)
Vintage style trem that I keep screwed down tight. Heavy block & saddles, so better-than-average sustain for a strat.
HSS config
Stock wiring, except I added a push-pull pot that adds the bridge pickup in series. I'm thinking about moving the middle tone control to the bridge as well.

As for desired tone, my musical tastes are all over the map. I'm not really a metalhead, but I almost never use a really clean tone either. If I had to name a tone, maybe "Early Clapton". Yeah I know, he played an LP, but you get the idea.

So... I've got a TB5 in the bridge position, and I have a JB Jr. and a Hot Rails, both neck (-1N) models. My question is which of these to put in the neck position, and which in the middle. Any opinions? I suspect that these pickups are similar enough that it doesn't make a lot of difference, but tell me if I'm wrong (I so love that...).

Thanks.

Reid
 
Re: JB Jr & HR, which for neck & which for middle?

I would go with the Hot Rails in the middle and the JB Jr. in the neck. The Hot Rails has a bit more output and I think the JB Jr should sound great in the neck. I don't think you should particularly have any big balance issues with those pickups.
 
Re: JB Jr & HR, which for neck & which for middle?

If you find the Hot Rails too hot, try wiring it in parallel. Lower output but sounds great that way.

A humbucker wired normally is in series. Don't you mean you either split or go parallel with the push/pull? ;)
 
Re: JB Jr & HR, which for neck & which for middle?

Thanks for replying.

ErikH said:
A humbucker wired normally is in series. Don't you mean you either split or go parallel with the push/pull? ;)
Click to expand...

No I don't. The humbucker's internal wiring remains in series at all times. The push/pull switch adds the bridge pickup in series with whatever is selected by the five-way switch. It would do exactly the same thing if the bridge PU were a single-coil.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top