gush
Where is that speedo pic
My 5310s are lonely
Bridge pickup too bright, neck pickup too dark
- Thread starter Torstein
- Start date
Rod/
Vibrato & String Bender
Rod/
Vibrato & String Bender
Toolmaster Of Brainerd
You know what a loon is, noodle head?
Tone capacitor value determines the frequencies that are dumped. Sweep of the potentiometer determines how quickly it happens.
darkbluemurder
New Member
Assuming you want to keep the existing pickups, the only things to make the neck pickup brighter would be to disconnect it from the tone control and/or go for a higher value volume pot. However, this is not a night and day difference. If you go to a 1 meg ohm volume pot to make it brighter you can add a 1 meg resistor from where the bridge pickup's hot wire is connected to the rotary to ground so that the other positions see a load of 500k as they do now. Otherwise the bridge pickup would be even brighter than it is now.
Making the bridge pickup warmer is easier. You could add a resistor from the point where the bridge pickup's hot lead is connected to the rotary to ground. In fact this is what I did with the Gibson Dirty Fingers pickup in my Custom because it was a bit fizzy on top. I installed a 2.2 meg ohms resistor from there to ground so that the bridge pickup and any combination where the bridge pickup is involved see a load of about 400k whereas the neck pickup sees 500k. With that mod, the Dirty Fingers now sounds like I wanted it to sound.
If you want to change the pickups a whole new world opens up. For a bright and tight neck pickup, my favorite is the Seymour Duncan SH-10n (Full Shred neck - ignore the name, it is misleading). I have it in my S2 Standard 24 and love it. Also splits well.
Making the bridge pickup warmer is easier. You could add a resistor from the point where the bridge pickup's hot lead is connected to the rotary to ground. In fact this is what I did with the Gibson Dirty Fingers pickup in my Custom because it was a bit fizzy on top. I installed a 2.2 meg ohms resistor from there to ground so that the bridge pickup and any combination where the bridge pickup is involved see a load of about 400k whereas the neck pickup sees 500k. With that mod, the Dirty Fingers now sounds like I wanted it to sound.
If you want to change the pickups a whole new world opens up. For a bright and tight neck pickup, my favorite is the Seymour Duncan SH-10n (Full Shred neck - ignore the name, it is misleading). I have it in my S2 Standard 24 and love it. Also splits well.
ViperDoc
Plugged In.
Technically true. Would you recommend a custom taper pot?
dogrocketp
I drank the PRS kool aid, and it was tasty!
This would be my first avenue. PRS pickups change immensely when you raise, lower, or adjust the polepieces.
Truer words were never spoken.
ruger9
New Member
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2014
- Messages
- 503
I didn't read the thread, but I have had the OP's problem many times over the years, especially with humbuckers. Even after dropping the humbucker for less woof.
My solution has been to do what is known as a "de-mud mod" on the neck pickup. It is putting a capacitor in series with the neck pickup's hot lead, before it reaches the pot/switch, which removes some of the bass. If you google this you will come up with several different formulas people prefer. IMO it works like a charm, I have done it many times. It allows you to EQ the amp for the classic "thick, Marshall+Les Paul" sound, but then switch to the neck and get some clarity instead of the overwhelming WOOF. The value of the capacitor determines how much low end is rolled off.
I keep thinking about doing this to my DGT, but have not yet. Splitting the neck to single coil does NOT achieve the same thing, not at all.
IMO, when people find a "perfect" vintage instrument where the pickups are "just right" in it, it is because the bridge was overwound and the neck was underwound, which helps balance them, the underwound neck has less bass than a fully-wound or overwound one does.
My solution has been to do what is known as a "de-mud mod" on the neck pickup. It is putting a capacitor in series with the neck pickup's hot lead, before it reaches the pot/switch, which removes some of the bass. If you google this you will come up with several different formulas people prefer. IMO it works like a charm, I have done it many times. It allows you to EQ the amp for the classic "thick, Marshall+Les Paul" sound, but then switch to the neck and get some clarity instead of the overwhelming WOOF. The value of the capacitor determines how much low end is rolled off.
I keep thinking about doing this to my DGT, but have not yet. Splitting the neck to single coil does NOT achieve the same thing, not at all.
IMO, when people find a "perfect" vintage instrument where the pickups are "just right" in it, it is because the bridge was overwound and the neck was underwound, which helps balance them, the underwound neck has less bass than a fully-wound or overwound one does.
Thanks for all the suggestions guys. About to fire up the amp after my vacation. Will try to tinker with the setup a bit. The problem is, adjusting the amp for the neck pickup makes the bridge pickup too bright and vice versa. The 59/09s are good pickups, but I've never changed pickups in this guitar, so I have nothing to compare it too. My strat have had dozens of pickup switches. There's a Suhr V60LP set in there now which I absolutely LOVE. Had a custom set in there before, and it was good, but not great. So I know pickup changes makes a huge difference.
JasonE
New Member
This is the second post I have seen on this mod in the last week. I had never heard of this before but this is definitely an interesting mod. I may give this a try at some point. I like the idea of being able to add a capacitor or a resistor to the existing wiring to get these tonal changes. I have changed volume pot values in a couple of guitars to get them where I wanted them. I have since learned that I could have added a resistor and not changed the pot and achieved the same result...
I love it when people share these types of things. I have been doing my own work on my guitars for many years. I have done work on many guitars for friends as well. I have changed out many pickups, pots and switches. However, the wiring of a guitar is probably where my knowledge is the weakest. I like learning these things. Thank you for sharing!
SinSir
Mad Scientist
- Joined
- Sep 7, 2020
- Messages
- 4,473
It's the second or third time in this thread. It definitely works. There's links above too.
I'd never heard of it either until browsing some random thread..So I tried it on a problematic Les Paul. Boom, It worked!
darkbluemurder
New Member
Yes, it is a very simple mod. Best to get a few capacitors of different value. A good point to start is 0.01uf. Want less bass - go lower. Want more - go higher. The voltage rating of the cap is not critical.
You only have to keep in mind that the cap introduces a phase shift. This is only noticeable when the two pickups are used together. If you mostly play bridge or neck individually, this may not be an issue. BTW - if the pickups are out of phase, the cap helps restore bass frequencies which would normally be cancelled (aka "half-out-of-phase).
You only have to keep in mind that the cap introduces a phase shift. This is only noticeable when the two pickups are used together. If you mostly play bridge or neck individually, this may not be an issue. BTW - if the pickups are out of phase, the cap helps restore bass frequencies which would normally be cancelled (aka "half-out-of-phase).
ruger9
New Member
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- Jan 30, 2014
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- 503
I did this on an SE, that I had put DGT pickups in. I think I ended up with a .0033uf cap, however I might have also had a resistor in parallel with it(?)... I think maybe the resistor helps with the phase shift in the middle position? It's been too long for me to remember correctly.
JasonE
New Member
This is good to know. I don't think I have seen this stated before now. Have you ever tried flipping the magnet in one of the pickups to compensate for it?
The simplest/fastest/cheapest thing you can try is buy a cover that fits the squabbin, slap it on the bridge pickup temporarily, and see if that equalizes the tonal profile vs. the neck pup to your liking. I have a cover sitting on my 85/15 Treble, which adds enough mids to nicely balance the 85/15 Bass (at least to my ear).
If that works, and you play loud, you'll want to solder it on to prevent feedback. If you get a stacked dual tone pot, I'd recommend plain old 500/500K. (Your 59/09 bridge pup might sound bright through your rig, but it's still a humbucker.)
If that works, and you play loud, you'll want to solder it on to prevent feedback. If you get a stacked dual tone pot, I'd recommend plain old 500/500K. (Your 59/09 bridge pup might sound bright through your rig, but it's still a humbucker.)
Going Modal
I should be practicing right now.
Unfortunately never gonna happen, because squabbins are designed to be uncovered and they consume all the space around the sides that you'd need for a cover.
Interestingly enough, some of the earliest 59/09 pickups were indeed "standard" uncovered pickups and not squabbin-bobbins, so theoretically those could be covered up.
Yikes, insane but true. In this case, I'd try just swapping in a dual concentric 500/500K tone pot. Low-cost, simple, and preserves all options.
I remember reading an interview with Paul years ago, where he lamented that everyone's humbuckers still had the same-shaped bobbins they had in the 1950s. I guess he "fixed" that by designing squabbins and 408s.
I remember reading an interview with Paul years ago, where he lamented that everyone's humbuckers still had the same-shaped bobbins they had in the 1950s. I guess he "fixed" that by designing squabbins and 408s.
Rod/
Vibrato & String Bender
Paul was right. They all looked the same. Still do.. Even the PRS covers on my 21 DGT are a nice more rounded shape to the corners than your typical humbucker cover. And the brushed nickel with gold screws are just beautiful … it’s all those little things that add up and make PRS’s so unique in so many ways. I love the Squabbins too…
darkbluemurder
New Member
Flipping the magnet would put the pickups out of phase with each other. In that case the "de-mud cap" would restore some bass in the both pickups on position. This is the set up I currently have in my Single Cut. The neck humbucker is a DiMarzio Humbucker from Hell. I used a .01uf de-mud cap and wired the HFH so that it is out of phase with the bridge pickup. It is easier to do by swapping the hot and ground wires than by flipping the magnet - unless you have a pickup with a single shielded conductor. With a single shielded conductor you cannot flip the hot/ground connections as you would then have the signal on the shield, which is noisy - flipping the magnet is the only option in that case if you want it to be out of phase.
I will probably add push-pull pots to make the out of phase sound switchable as I don't use it much.
