This is terrible!

Re: This is terrible!

Rohan, as a tech I can tell you, just because someone has your guitar for a long time doesn't mean anyting go fixed. From your pics I can't see what is going on very well. What I do not see, that I should, is that the red and white from each SD pup should be together and taped off, NOT soldered to anything. If you do not see this SOMEWHERE (like I said I don't) that is your problem. Also if that is them soldered to your volume pot the wiring is wrong.

Luke
 
Last edited:
Re: This is terrible!

I wish I had a dollar for every time some "professional" has misswired my guitars. I do it all myself now.

Snowdog
 
Re: This is terrible!

The pics make it look like its wired correctly. The red and white are shorted together, insulated with heat-shrink tubing, (nice touch), the green and bare go to the back of the pot, and the black goes to the lug of the volume control.

Its looks ok from what I can see.
 
Re: This is terrible!

On second thought, I do see one potential problem:

prob01.jpg


Where the black wire of the DD connects to the pot, (pointing finger), there's two additional white wires that shouldn't really be there. At least, not with conventional wiring. One of them is the one with red arrows, that looks co-axial, and goes off into the guitar, and the one with a green arrow that I can't tell where it goes.

Find out what those are and why they're there.
 
Re: This is terrible!

The one with the red arrows looks like it would be the bridge ground possibly, or from the switch. Very strange.

The green arrow one looks like it jumpers the wiper with lug 1, at least it looks that way to me. That is definitely not right. Lug 1 goes to ground.

Oh man, what a mess.
 
Re: This is terrible!

As I look closer, I think the one with the green arrow is the center conductor of the big blue wire, which goes to the tone control. That part would be normal. But the white wire with the red arrows is yet another co-axial cable. (That is, shielded.) They wouldn't use that for a ground wire, but then again, it shouldn't be there. You can just make out where it goes into the shield right under where it passes under the big red wire thats over the pot.

I wonder if they didn't hard wire two pups to the same volume control. Maybe, out-of-phase.

Edit: Isn't a "Black Beauty" a 3-pup guitar? I'm wondering how they have three pups connected to two vol/tones. That might be the problem.
 
Last edited:
Re: This is terrible!

Know what, you're right. I'd like to know how a Black Beauty 3-pup guitar should be wired myself. That could be the problem. The DD may be out of phase with the stock Epi pickup. Hmmmmmmm. Curious indeed. :)
 
Last edited:
Re: This is terrible!

I have the exact same guitar and I can say JB will do you justice and nothing else will period.
 
Re: This is terrible!

Sounds like a wiring problem. But you have a couple of strong recommendations for a JB. Don't wait too long, though. SD has a return policy, but it is for 21 days.
 
Re: This is terrible!

not a real pretty wiring job IMO. hell, i opened up my gibson explorer today to install a JB, and gibson did a f*cking mess of a job in there :smack: my ltd's have much better looking wiring jobs. oh well, still sounds good
 
Re: This is terrible!

ArtieToo said:
. The red and white are shorted together, insulated with heat-shrink tubing, (nice touch)
Click to expand...

And I thought it was a shadow! :laugh2:

I still say the guy still should have cleaned up the bird's nest wiring job.

Luke
 
Re: This is terrible!

Thanks for the replies guys. I appreciate it.

I think I'm going back to the shop to get my money back and the stock pup. Then I'll most likely go for a JB. And also I think I'm not including the middle pup into the wiring, cause I never used it. So then it can be wired as a normal 2 pup LP.
 
Re: This is terrible!

rohan said:
Thanks for the replies guys. I appreciate it.

I think I'm going back to the shop to get my money back and the stock pup. Then I'll most likely go for a JB. And also I think I'm not including the middle pup into the wiring, cause I never used it. So then it can be wired as a normal 2 pup LP.
Click to expand...

Whatever you do good luck man, we'll help you out however we can, but I just think you'd be best off doing it yourself.

Luke
 
Re: This is terrible! *Update*

Re: This is terrible! *Update*

rohan said:

I have to say that it sounded a little better with the tone knob turned way down. But it's still very thin sounding and I get the feeling that the sustain is gone too.
Click to expand...

thats exactly what i thought of it. my buddy has one in the bridge of his early 90s les paul studio and its absolutely terrible. icepicky, scooped and no bass. its just the pickup.
 
Re: This is terrible!

It does look as though two pickup hot leads are wired to the same lug, probably the middle and bridge hot leads, which would certainly cause the very problems you describe.

If you happen to live in the LA area (if you don't, read no further), just bring it to me and I'll fix it in a hurry for less than half of whatever this clown is charging. Just keep the Duncan pickup because it's a fine pickup for the sound you're looking for -- just lousy wiring won't let you hear it. I can wire it so that you can have all 7 possible pickup combinations.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top