Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

[Mukobi]

Hi,

I just rewired a guitar (Dean EVO Special Select, like a Les Paul, but with 1 volume and 1 tone) with 2 3-way DPDT mini-switches so that each pickup has series/coilsplit/parallel options by following this schematic and the wiring codes for my pickups (GFS Brown Sound in bridge, Gibson 490R in neck). After I had done this, it sounded fine on my tiny test amp, but the middle pickup selector position had the pickups out of phase with each other, so I swapped the hot and ground of the bridge pickup where it connects to its mini-switch. Once again it sounded fine one my small test amp.

But when I plugged it in to my louder Hot Rod Deluxe later, I noticed that the neck pickup sounded significantly quieter than the bridge pickup in all settings of the series/coilsplit/parallel mini-switch. Also, the series mode on the bridge pickup is much louder than the split or parallel modes, as it should be, but the series mode on the neck pickup is just a tad louder than the other two modes for it. I tried adjusting pickup height already, but the problem persists. I measured the DC resistance of the neck and bridge pickups as 7.8 and 11.64 KOhms respectively which is within specifications, so I don't think it's the pickup, either.

Judging by the fact that this happened after I rewired the guitar, I'm fairly certain I screwed something up in the wiring. Should I try switching the hot and ground of the neck pickup at the mini-switch because I saw somewhere online someone said that fixed a similar problem? Should I rewire just the neck pickup's mini-switch? Should I try something else first? I wanted to see what you guys think the problem may be because I don't really want to have to go and redo the whole thing, just the bit that is messed up.

Thanks!

 

[Johnny the Kid]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

Pics will be helpful in this situation.

 

[Mukobi]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

Pics will be helpful in this situation.

Here are some pictures that may help. I wasn't able to attach them via SD's reply box for some reason.

http://imgur.com/a/koQNY

 

[dotsdad]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

No offense but that looks like a rats nest in there. It wouldnt hurt to get a new switch and try it again, but neatly this time.

 

[Rschan.Ziar]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

I think it's the huge amount of solder on the bridge wiring. Try getting the solder off and solder it another time but with less solder. If it didn't help please tell me.

 

[Mukobi]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

No offense but that looks like a rats nest in there. It wouldnt hurt to get a new switch and try it again, but neatly this time.

Is there a way to test if a switch is broken? Should I just test for continuity between the terminals that are supposed to be connected at each position?

 

[Mukobi]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

I think it's the huge amount of solder on the bridge wiring. Try getting the solder off and solder it another time but with less solder. If it didn't help please tell me.

I'll try that redoing that and the neck wiring and see if it works. Do you think I should cut some of the green cables to shorter lengths to make it neater?

 

[Nostalgic Distortion]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

Something's definitely amidst, if anything you should be having the opposite issue? Try cleaning up the wiring and see how that goes. I think you need a little more heat and a little less solder? If that doesn't work then I'd definitely have a look at the switches.

It could be something as simple as the iron wasn't hot enough which caused a need for it to be left on the prongs too long and it burnt out??? Are you using a variable heat iron or just a plug into the wall one?

 

[Mukobi]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

Something's definitely amidst, if anything you should be having the opposite issue? Try cleaning up the wiring and see how that goes. I think you need a little more heat and a little less solder? If that doesn't work then I'd definitely have a look at the switches.

It could be something as simple as the iron wasn't hot enough which caused a need for it to be left on the prongs too long and it burnt out??? Are you using a variable heat iron or just a plug into the wall one?

Mine just plugs in to the wall. How can I test if a prong is burnt?

 

[Nostalgic Distortion]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

I'm guessing there's some way to test it with a multimeter but I'm not exactly sure how to do it with those switches? I'm sure someone more knowledgeable will weigh in with a answer though?

Burnt pots & switches happen a lot with those kind of irons. The problem is that they take too long to make a decent joint? I like mine fairly hot, I have to work fast but the solder lays down pretty much immediately & is nice and shiny every time. Not being able to adjust your heat that not really a option for you though?

Try to keep the tip of the iron as clean as possible with a wet towel or something & then let it heat up really well again before making your joints. That should help some...

 

[dotsdad]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

Yes, you can cut the green cables back to save some room. It would sure make it easier for you to see what you are doing and less likely to burn the cable insulation, which it looks like youve done

 

[Mukobi]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

So I unsoldered and took out just the mini-switch for the neck pickup and then wired it in series like humbuckers normally are... and the problem is still there; the neck pickup is still substantially quieter than the bridge pickup.

I'm pretty sure this means my mini-switch may still be good, but the problem is probably in either the pickup (AHH!) or some of the 4 pickup conductor wires. I'll try hooking it up directly to the output jack next to see if somehow the PU selector or one of the pots is not working right, but do any of you have an idea of what might still be wrong?

 

[dotsdad]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

The color code could be wrong. Do you have red to switch, green and white soldered together and taped off, black and bare to ground?

If it is wired correctly, you can check for a dead coil with a multimeter. Check the dc resistance from red to black. You should get something around 7.5-8k. Then measure from red to green/white. 3.5-4.5k? Then green/white to black/bare? 3.5k-4.5k?

 

[Mukobi]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

The color code could be wrong. Do you have a multimeter? What dc resistance are you getting from the pickup? How does it compare to the published spec for that pickup?

The DC resistance of the Gibson 490R is 7.8 kOhm measured with it wired in series. Published spec is 7.2-7.83 kOhm, so it should be fine.

 

[dotsdad]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

Yep, that is good news! sounds like the switch is the culprit then.

 

[Mukobi]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

Yep, that is good news! sounds like the switch is the culprit then.

Do you mean the pickup selector switch because I don't know how that could cause a partial loss of volume? And if you mean the mini switch, the neck pickup was still quiet with that switch out of the circuit.

 

[AlexR]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

Wire the pickup to the jack directly.
if the issue exists still, then the pickup has problems despite the K reading.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

Are you accidentally shorting a coil? Tap on each coil with a screwdriver to see if you are getting sound.

 

[Mukobi]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

I wired it directly to the jack, and it's the same volume as it was earlier when it was quieter than the bridge pickup. I'm pretty sure that means the issue is the pickup now.

The 490R I have is a weird one with a plastic cover that cannot be taken off to expose the coils, so I can't tap them to find out if one is shorted for some reason. That being said, I've messed around with the 4 conductors and am pretty sure that the Gibson color code, which I'm using, is in fact what the pickup follows. The pickup also sounds like a humbucker and not like a coil-split humbucker; the only problem is its pretty quiet.

I have the neck pickup height as high as I can get it without muting the strings and lowered the bridge pickup significantly, but the neck is still quieter. However, all I'm sure I'm raising on the neck is the plastic cover that won't come off.

I wonder if it's possible for the actual 490r pickup to have fallen down so that the cover is higher than the magnets. This would make it impossible to raise the pickup high enough to get a good signal. Have you ever heard of something like this happening, or is it even possible? And if so, could I safely fix it just by taking out the pickup assembly and pushing the pickup further into the cover?

 

[Mukobi]

Re: Neck Pickup Significantly Quieter than Bridge

I took the strings off and took the neck pickup out... and I was right! Not only did the pickup slide down from the pickup cover, but it completely came out and was just sitting in the pickup cavity! I guess someone who thinks they may have a similar problem could diagnose this by shaking the guitar and listening for a pickup banging around inside.

I pushed it back in the cover with a good amount of electrical tape adding extra support, so hopefully it will stay in there and the problem will be all fixed. I'm going to rewire it anyway to see if I can try to clean up the insides a bit.