Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

G

guitardude1

New member
Hi, the guitar i currently have is an epiphone les paul plus top pro and i want to change the pickups to the Slash signature alnico 2 pro pickups but i am having trouble understanding what to connect and disconnect when taking out my old pickups which have coil tapping installed.

opening the cavity up the two volume pots have these like green circuit boards which i guess are used for the coil tapping purpose?... the volume pots are also shaped differently than normal pot shapes i think. The humbuckers that are currently in the guitar seem to be connected through a plastic clip on conductor which goes into another piece that is stuck on the green board. Im assuming this is so it makes it easier than just individually soldering each wire on the board?

My problem is that i don't know what to really disconnect and where to put my new pickups, which are single conductor wires, they just have the outer coating mesh and the black wire with a single bare wire in that.

i cant seem to upload a photo at the moment
 
Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

Yeah, i don't mind not splitting them, i dont really use the coil tap that much to be honest. So do you know how i would go about disconnecting the current setup? I have a wiring diagram at the moment from that website,
2h_2v_2t_3w_2pp.jpg
 
Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

Yeah, i don't want the coil splitting anymore. I just want to get rid of the pickups i have now and put the fresh ones in whatever way i can. The thing is im not too sure on what i do with that clip on thing that clips onto that green circuit board. It unclips, so do i just take it of and then solder the single conductor wire onto the green board? or just leave the board on there and solder the new pickups onto the back of the pots?

I have looked at the wiring diagrams before and i have 2 volumes, 2 tones, 3 way, 2 push pull
 
Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

From what I can find it's a connector for the pickups. Others don't care for it or the board mounted controls on some Gibsons. I prefer 50's wiring so the volumes are independent and easier to blend when using the middle position. I would get some better pots and then install everything at once. A buddy on another forum got a prewired harness (pots, caps, ground wires, etc.) and put in his Epi Les Paul Custom and said it made a world of difference.
 
Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

Don't rush this. Take your time and do the research. Start right now with your homework and get all the needed supplies and parts. You have the right idea about wanting to do it yourself and eliminate the coil splitting! Good Luck and have fun!
 
Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

Yeah, I got every tool i need now, been planning this for a few days and need the pickups ideally installed by Monday.. Just need to know whats what at the moment and how to eliminate the coil splitting.
 
Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

guitardude1 said:
Yeah, I got every tool i need now, been planning this for a few days and need the pickups ideally installed by Monday.. Just need to know whats what at the moment and how to eliminate the coil splitting.
Click to expand...
Take some close up pics of the electronics cavity and upload them to ImageShack or Photobucket. You have to have your pictures "hosted" to post them on here.


I'm gonna make a prediction right now and say your gonna need to order a couple long shaft CTS pots to do this right.
 
Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

Finally got the picture working. If i am having to buy pots and stuff like that then i think i will just be better off taking it to a tech guy. But im assuming he won't change the pots?
 
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Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

Yeah those look kinda like push pull pots with the six lugs on the side. I would get that pigtail outta there and see if there are the 3 lugs on the pots that work as signal/hot/ground and then you'll just have a push/pull pot that cuts out your signal when you pull it up. Let us know!

~Hey, that would be a cool killswitch idea for ya! I love killswitches!
 
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Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

Because im a beginner in this you're going to have to walk me through this a bit more slower... lol. What are you referencing to when you say pigtails? And when you say to look and see if there are 3 lugs on the pots, is that the 2 on the left or right?

by the way, the pickups i am installing are single conductors

edit - by pigtails you mean the things clipped on the green boards that look like pigtails xD? Lol.
 
Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

guitardude1 said:
Because im a beginner in this you're going to have to walk me through this a bit more slower... lol. What are you referencing to when you say pigtails? And when you say to look and see if there are 3 lugs on the pots, is that the 2 on the left or right?

by the way, the pickups i am installing are single conductors

edit - by pigtails you mean the things clipped on the green boards that look like pigtails xD? Lol.
Click to expand...


Yeah, if you're serious about this project just dive right in and start unhooking those plastic clippy things. Get those out of the way. And I would start heating up your soldering iron now too.

See your tone pots, how they have three lugs with solder points on them? That's the kind of configuration you want essentially on those volume pots too. Although your gonna do different wiring than those tone pots are wired to do.
 
Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

Yeah, the humbucker seems to be entirely attached to those pigtail things, once unclipped from that green board i can pull them out. The thing is now though, is that all i pull out? do i have to make any alteration to the rest of the setup before soldering on my new pickups.. and where do i solder my new pickups? it doesn't look like i can do it on the back of the pot so like u said ill have a look and see if there are lugs available to solder onto?

When u guys were suggesting getting new pots, is it because the setup that is built here in my guitar is fit perfect for a coil tap? and it would be beneficial to completely rip it out for my new pickups?
 
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Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

Once you can see what wires are hooked up lower down on those vol. pots you might be able to just "copy" the wiring and basically cheat your way through this.

The coil split capability most likely will be the wiring on those green wafer board looking things. The wiring that your looking to mimic is most likely down lower (closer to the round part of the vol. pot)

It's hard to say what color wire is for what as different pickup manufacturers use all kinds of different colored wires. What color wires do your new pickups have?
 
Re: Need help on changing my pickups (ASAP)

guitardude1 said:
When u guys were suggesting getting new pots, is it because the setup that is built here in my guitar is fit perfect for a coil tap? and it would be beneficial to completely rip it out for my new pickups?
Click to expand...

That and the fact that your getting into an upgrade project so you might as well put higher quality pots in there while you're at it.

And for ease of installation.
 
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