Wiring Help

[blackwaterstout]

I picked up a Duncan Performer Scorcher HB rail pickup today for an old cheap Kramer SSS strat clone. I want to simply use it to replace the stock EMG bridge pickup. I am completely competant at soldering but this is admittedly the first time I've upgraded guitar pickups and don't know a whole lot about the wiring. I scanned the two pages of wiring instructions and uploaded them so that maybe some of you might take a look at them and walk me through this.

I want it wired exactly like the stock pickups. It will be in the bridge so it will not be wired to a tone pot. THe scorcher came with 5 wires (Black, bare, green, white, red) As you can see in the inset the black and the bare wires are twisted together and the red and white wires are twisted together. The green wire is the standalone wire.

The top of second page states, "If you are combining your duncan performer pickup with fender pickups then you need to reverse the black and green wires on the duncan performer....." Does this literally mean "Fender Brand"? Would this not apply to a Kramer strat clone?

I guess I'm just a little confused because the picture shows the green and the bare wires soldered together to ground but the pickup came in the box with the black and bare twisted together.

From the looks of thing I assume I use the first picture as reference. I tape off the white and red, solder the green and bare to the volume pot and then solder the black wire to the 5 way selector switch in the same location as the pickup that I'm replacing. Correct?

 

[blackwaterstout]

Re: Wiring Help

Could someone explain to me what the symptoms are of improper wiring or reverse polarity?

I installed the Duncan Performer into the bridge position by following the instruction on the sheet. I soldered the green and bare wires to ground and soldered the black wire to the 5-position switch at the same location as the previous pickup was taken off.

Re-strung the guitar and noticed that the output level of the duncan pickup is substantially lower than that of my single coil middle and neck pickups. The scorcher pickup is a rails pickup similar to the hotrails. I wouldn't expect it to have a lower output. I've raised the height of the pickup as high as it will go.

As the directions stated some fenders require soldering the green wire to the selector switch and soldering the black to ground. Since mine isn't a fender I assumed this wasn't the case. But now I'm wondering.

 

[blackwaterstout]

Re: Wiring Help

Did you remember to solder together Red & White and tap them?

OOP sound is weak, nasal, thin and strident.

Good call. After getting the low output I went and resoldered the green and black wires. Still had a low output but sounded tinny. So I knew they were definately out of phase. I went back and noticed that when I cut the lead wires down to fit I had neglected to solder the red and white wires together. So I did that and it worked. I just came to report on this fix and sure enough you had already guessed it correctly.

Good troubleshooting my friend.

I didn't play much on the new pickup but from what I heard I liked it. Better than the stock pickup for sure.