Output/tone from JB + 59 in Gibson Les Paul

[Varg]

Re: Output/tone from JB + 59 in Gibson Les Paul

Glad you got it sorted! I had a 59 bridge model in the neck of a guitar for a while and it was fine.

100K pots? Weird.

 

[Soulcrusher_X]

Re: Output/tone from JB + 59 in Gibson Les Paul

Upgrading to 500k pots all around will open up the tone considerably. What you MAY want to do (considering how bright the JB can often time be) is buy two 500k pots for the 59 in the neck and take the two 300k pots and use them for the JB in the bridge. I use Sprague orange drops for my tone caps, .015 for the neck and either a .022 or .047 for the bridge. I saw you had some ceramic disk caps in yours, which can sometimes lead to harshness. Some guys say the material of the caps doesnt matter when it's inside the guitar, but I disagree. I personally think the ceramic caps tend to sounds a bit 'grainy' no matter where they are in the tone chain. I have used them with success on REALLY smooth pickups, but I usually dont like them. Dilver mentioned the Vitamin T caps, which I hear are pretty nice too.

 

[Soulcrusher_X]

Re: Output/tone from JB + 59 in Gibson Les Paul

Glad you got it sorted! I had a 59 bridge model in the neck of a guitar for a while and it was fine.

100K pots? Weird.

Gibson did some weird pot combos a while back. My 86 Custom had 600k volumes and 100k tones. If I ever try a DD in this guitar again, I will be using the 100ks in there.

 

[Varg]

Re: Output/tone from JB + 59 in Gibson Les Paul

Yeah I would save the 300K pots and re-use them, maybe for the volume control on both pickups.

 

[hamerfan]

Re: Output/tone from JB + 59 in Gibson Les Paul

Yank out the complete pot set up with the grounding plate and put it aside/or to ebay (there are folks who want to reset a 80ies guitar to original for collectors). And get a full long shaft harness. I can recommend Jonesy http://jonesyblues.com/

 

[rlapid]

Re: Output/tone from JB + 59 in Gibson Les Paul

Wow, so many upgrades to think about! This forum is going to become addicting real quick. I do agree with the pot/capacitor upgrades, and that would be at the top of my list since they are relatively cheap parts and easy to install. I am thinking about hamerfan's idea of removing the grounding plate altogether - what are the drawbacks of the grounding plate and what can I expect to gain from removing it and installing a whole new harness (ie., one from Jonesy)? Is a harness really worth spending ~$100 or can I just upgrade the pots and caps and achieve a similar result?

I also like the idea of swapping the bridge, tuners and tailpiece for nickel or chrome locking parts. The factory black hardware is functional, but I like the look of nickel and locking hardware seems to be a generally positive upgrade. I'm also adding nickel covers to the JB and 59b, mainly because I prefer the 'covered' appearance.

dilver - what color is your Studio Lite? Do you have any pics? So far I am really enjoying this LP Studio Lite. I've played many LP's over the years and this one seems to have a rare set of features that combined, deliver great tone. I consider myself lucky to have found one locally, and at a bargain.