Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

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MattSA

New member
I was wondering if 18 AWG is acceptable gauge for re-wiring a guitar with 500K impedance pickups? How is wire gauge determined, by impedance level of pickups? Since the amount of energy in the circuit is uniform by the output jack, I would think impedance of pickups might require different gauge wire?

Thanks,
MattSA
 
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Re: Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

Dude, there is no pickup on Earth that's 500k. That would blow your amp straight to hell. You probably mean 500k pots?

Anyway, for rewiring a guitar, 20 or 22 guage will work, as long as it's braided.
 
Re: Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

Kam said:
Dude, there is no pickup on Earth that's 500k. That would blow your amp straight to hell. You probably mean 500k pots?

Anyway, for rewiring a guitar, 20 or 22 guage will work, as long as it's braided.
Click to expand...

"Stranded" is usually the term here. "Braided" refers more to the shield, if there is one.

I use 22 or 24 gauge for all my guitars.
 
Re: Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

18 guage wire will work, but it's pretty thick and more difficult to work with than 22 (or thinner).
 
Re: Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

Yeah 18ga. is massive overkill in a guitar circuit. The only thing it will do is be harder to work with and more expensive.
 
Re: Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

i just got done rewiring my jazz bass with awg18 .. i'll let ya know if it works - because if it doesnt , ill need some tips on soldering maybe . im pretty sure no cold solder joints. i just hope the awg 18 works like it should...
 
Re: Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

Near as I can figure, gauge doesn't matter at all for guitar wiring. I've used 22, 20, and 18 stranded with no issues. Also used a big roll of 20 gauge solid core stuff which works fine too. One time when I was out of wire I used some 12 gauge solid core house wire that I had lying around leftover from doing some electrical work in our house. They all sound the same. It's a lot trickier to work with the 12 gauge though because it doesn't bend nicely and doesn't fit inside the lugs. :P
 
Re: Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

just like solder diameter it's preference. Use what you're most comfortable with. Whether it be 1k pots which you see in pedals or anything beyond 1m (1000k). Getting bored with a flat head screw driver, a few odd tools and a multimeter I made 2M pots once. Was it worth it? not really. Go with a blower switch in that situation.

I like stranded 22 AWG wire myself. PVC (plastic) for the insulation. There is no need for fancy cloth wires or nickel braided unless it's a vintage restoration where you're either trying to be historically accurate, fixing up a guitar that originally had it you may sell one day or after an excuse to charge a premium. If it's a modern style build like hot rodding an ESP or Ibanez I'd stick to PVC and save the "Fancy" stuff for tube amps and all which will see the benefit.

some tips for soldering from common sense to just good habits to have
60/40 or 63/37 rosin core solder I like. I'm a fan of Kester brand. There is nothing wrong with lead free. Just turn the iron up a bit hotter if it's adjustable. (450-550f area). 63/37 solder cools down faster so it's easier to do stuff like push pull pots.

having a good template to do the main work on is a must- do as little inside the guitar as possible. Make them out of discarded cardboard boxes around the house.
tinning is entirely up to you. Bass cuts, coilsplits and all I'll usually put a component in first than solder but 9/10 I tin everything prior. Tin means apply solder to somewhere you know you'll be working on

strip every wire a bit longer than you may need. twist it. Apply solder. If it's too long cut the excessive bit off. Think of it like putting hair gel on. Ah the 90s... I don't miss them or the back street boys

pliers and wire cutters are a must have for more complex jobs but you should do fine.

besides that just practice, practice, practice. I used to buy beat up guitars on craigslist and fix them up so I didn't feel bad if I messed up a 1000$ guitar or so in my room.
 
Re: Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

Any "typical" wire will work for a guitar. But you don't want too thin or too thick, because it will be hard to work with.

My favorite wire to work with is push-back, cloth-insulated, pre-tinned, stranded wire. It's not too thick or thin, it stays where you put it, and it needs no stripping to reveal the ends.
 
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Re: Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

There isn't any current to speak of, 24 or 26 works fine and is easy to work with. 28 or 30 would work, but that's getting so thin it's hard to work with.
 
Re: Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

I use some old 20 gauge speaker wire I have lying around

Have used 24 gauge network cable
A 2 foot long section of network cable will provide enough wire to complete several guitars
 
Re: Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

GuitarDoc said:
I12 gauge solid house wire??!!!...no need to even say how insane that would be.
Click to expand...

The trick is to pre-bend it into shape with pliers before soldering. :P


Wouldn't recommend though. It's like working with coat hanger.
 
Re: Wire Gauge for 500K pickups

MattSA said:
I was wondering if 18 AWG is acceptable gauge for re-wiring a guitar with 500K impedance pickups? How is wire gauge determined, by impedance level of pickups? Since the amount of energy in the circuit is uniform by the output jack, I would think impedance of pickups might require different gauge wire?

Thanks,
MattSA
Click to expand...

500k pup?!!!

Are you kidding!
 
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