Les Paul Toggle/Kill Switch

C

cmac

New member
Hello all!

I have a project guitar with 2 single coils, master volume/tone, and a standard 3 way toggle switch...

However, I never use the middle position, is there anyway to wire a 3 way toggle switch to have the middle position as both pickups off?

That way between songs, I could switch to the middle channel and move around and not worry about extra noise.

Sidenote, could you have a mustang guitar with only one 3 way slide switch, to select between neck, both off, bridge?

Any suggestions? Thanks!
 
Re: Les Paul Toggle/Kill Switch

The standard sort of toggles you see won't do what you're asking, but I'm sure there's something available.
 
Re: Les Paul Toggle/Kill Switch

The only switch that will be able to is a 4PDT ON/ON/ON toggle switch. The only production model guitar I've seen them in is Ibanez and John Petrucci guitars.

One of the more popular ones is the Dimarzio EP1111. There are cheaper ones out there of course.
 
Re: Les Paul Toggle/Kill Switch

Piece-'o-cake. I did this quik-'n-dirty. Make sense? I can do more detail later.

3-way_middle_kill.jpg

Slide switch is just as easy. Just looks different.
 
Re: Les Paul Toggle/Kill Switch

Wow, Artie. That is very inventive. I never would have thought of doing it that way. Kudos to you for being the guru of wiring.
 
Re: Les Paul Toggle/Kill Switch

He is called "Artie" be cause he is an Artist.
 
Re: Les Paul Toggle/Kill Switch

You would need to install those three red jumpers on the switch itself. I picked red at random. It doesn't matter what color wire you use. You then connect the two pickups in series. Then, one lug gets grounded, one goes to the "hot" lug of the volume control, and the middle wire goes to the pickup "series" connection. In other words, you could simply solder the black wire of one pickup, and the white wire of the other to that terminal of the slide switch. No need to run an actual separate wire.
 
Re: Les Paul Toggle/Kill Switch

ArtieToo said:
You would need to install those three red jumpers on the switch itself. I picked red at random. It doesn't matter what color wire you use. You then connect the two pickups in series. Then, one lug gets grounded, one goes to the "hot" lug of the volume control, and the middle wire goes to the pickup "series" connection. In other words, you could simply solder the black wire of one pickup, and the white wire of the other to that terminal of the slide switch. No need to run an actual separate wire.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the insight! Now, would this differ in anyway if I DID NOT want to have a phase selector switch? My plan is to have one on/off/on switch, and would the hot of each pickup be connected to the selector switch?
 
Re: Les Paul Toggle/Kill Switch

No, no. Neither of my diagrams include phase switching. I missed that you even wanted that. Both diagrams will be in phase.
 
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