Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

L

LesPaul1959

New member
Hi again folks. I have a new project that is frustrating me because I just cant seem to wrap my head around it. In the attached Picture I have a schematic for my Double neck strat which I am going to mod with Seymour Duncan Cool rails in the 12 string section and Seymour Duncan Hot rails in the 6 String section. The major problem I have, is that I have no Effing clue what to do to get a toggle between these two necks. The way that it is pictured below has both necks on at the same time and sounds disgusting.

Doubleneck Wiring Diagram.jpg

Cheers, Kris
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

With the schematic diagram as it stands, you cannot "split" the necks. Both are always on.

IMO, the circuit illustrated is a bad way to control your double-necked guitar. I particularly dislike the way that the corresponding pickups for any given position per neck are physically connected to the same terminal on the selector switch. This will almost certainly introduce noise and loading effects of one sort or another.
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

The operation of the tone controls is pretty clever, though I think some of the drawing conventions may be a little off. For example, I'm assuming it's the two outputs (commons) of the switch that are tied together and to the input of the volume control. If that's not the case, I have no idea what's going on here.

But yeah, definitely a switch to keep the necks separate.
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

I'm not going to assert what I'm about to say is realistic or will fit in your guitar, but I'm just going to say what I think it would take to be able to select each neck. I think you would need two blade switches, one for each neck. The tone controls would need to be stacked pots with the top pots wired to the blade switch for one neck, while the back pots are wired to blade switch for the other neck. Then the output of each blade before hitting the master volume would have a 3-way selection switch to choose which neck.

Whenever a wiring scheme gets that complex, though, I first try a prototype using alligator clip wires to validate the idea will work.
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

The question that you have to ask yourself is this. "How often will I wish to roll off the treble on the electric twelve string?"

I can see the sense of having dual pickup selector switches. I can also see the sense of having separate output sockets to drive discreet signal chains. This would permit individual effects processing. More importantly, it would allow you to select between necks using a footswitchable device.
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

You can use a 3 pole switch as Artie suggested in your other thread, but do you really need all those tone controls? You can do it easily with a mini-toggle or push-pull, if you change it so you have 1 vol & 1 tone for each neck.

I'll sketch up a diagram shortly, but what you would do is connect the three pickups from one neck to one side of the 5-way and then connect the other neck to the other side. Separate the two common connections on the 5-way, and run each to it's own vol/ tone combination, then use the toggle or p-p to connect the output jack to the controls for the neck you want to use.
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

Thanks for the Ideas gents! however, I am not interested in having essentially 2 guitars glued together as would be the case with either the option of separate outputs and 2 blade selector switches. The way this diagram is illustrated, is the exact way my scratch plate is, and the less amount of modding to the scratch plate the better for me, i don't mind throwing in a mini-toggle because its not as much work as routing the body even more than it already is. Artie informed me that I will need a rare type of mini toggle switch thats a 3PDT or a more common 4PDT mini toggle to essentially split the hot inputs from each neck to the master volume! just waiting on a schematic to wrap my head around

Cheers, Kris
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

I would be interested to see this Illustration as well Demina!! I do like the idea of each individual pickups Tone to be set at different places for tonal versatility, however the idea of having a volume/tone for each neck is also appealing because its guna be loaded with duncan rails so the EQ isn't gonna be too heavy of a difference and give much versatility in tonal shape anyway!

stoked to see it!
Cheers, Kris
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

OK here is your diagram revised to show what I was talking about. If you want you can used a push-pull in place of the toggle switch.

Doubleneck Neck Selector.jpg
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

Here's what I meant: (Thats either a 3PDT or 4PDT switch.)

LesPaul1959.png
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

Say, Artie, I've been meaning to ask: what is it you use to make your diagrams?
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

Thank you so much Artie and Demina, it all makes sense now!! I like both of your solutions very much. I'm gonna wire it up with Demina's style till I can find a decent 3PDT switch then I will try playing around with Arties amazing solution for a truly versatile tone monster! And as always, when its finished I will post some beauty shots of her, and maybe a 20 second stairway to heaven transition hahah

Cheers, Kris
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

Demina said:
Say, Artie, I've been meaning to ask: what is it you use to make your diagrams?
Click to expand...

It's a paint program that I've been using for over a decade called Neosoft's Neopaint. I've actually been using this since its DOS days.
The cool thing about Neopaint, is that you can make "stamps". (Think rubber stamps.) So, by building up a library of guitar part stamps, over the years, there's many things I can just "stamp" on the diagram with one click. Like pickups, switches, electronic parts, etc.
 
Re: Stratocaster Doubleneck Wiring Help

Did you ever find a diagram that worked? I've tried this one and I've had no success with it.
 
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