Could someone help me with fixing the 3 way switch wiring in my 24SE?

[SaintTachyon]

So about a month ago i bought a used PRS 24 SE in great condition with one exception...
Both neck and middle selection on the three way switch select both pickups.
The former owner claims he did no modifications to the wiring (he changed the tuners to locking gotohs and put covers on humbuckers so perhaps he modified the wiring too and just forgot?).
Now i have absolutely zero expirience with wiring and the only thing i ever solderd was a jack cable on my squier but theres a first time for everything and i think i could take a shot at it and restore it to original/working wiring if someone was willing to tell me what to do.
I can provide higher quality pictures if needed.
I c

 

[shimmilou]

Hi Saint,

Those pictures are awfully blurry, did Sergio take those for you? Yes, better pictures would help.

Although hard to see, it seems that something is off, or at least unusual with the push-pull switch for the coil splitting.

What do you get with the push-pull knob pulled up?

 

[SaintTachyon]

Hi Saint,

Those pictures are awfully blurry, did Sergio take those for you? Yes, better pictures would help.

Although hard to see, it seems that something is off, or at least unusual with the push-pull switch for the coil splitting.

What do you get with the push-pull knob pulled up?

Seems like i wont get better photos in. Atleast in current lighting.
Push pull is working perfectly and reliably.

 

[shimmilou]

Does the red wire on the 3-way terminal, go to the push pull terminal, or are there 2 red wires?

 

[garrett]

Tracing the wires and comparing to pics of one I used to own, the wiring looks original and correct.

Therefore, something is going on with the blade switch. The wires on the switch look good, so there could be some debris inside, or the switch may be faulty. If you're handy at all, these switches are really easy to take apart, so you can try that and see if you can fix it.

Or now would be the perfect time to upgrade to a CRL or other quality switch...

 

[SaintTachyon]

Does the red wire on the 3-way terminal, go to the push pull terminal, or are there 2 red wires?

There are two red wires

 

[SaintTachyon]

Tracing the wires and comparing to pics of one I used to own, the wiring looks original and correct.

Therefore, something is going on with the blade switch. The wires on the switch look good, so there could be some debris inside, or the switch may be faulty. If you're handy at all, these switches are really easy to take apart, so you can try that and see if you can fix it.

Or now would be the perfect time to upgrade to a CRL or other quality switch...

Do you think i could upgrade to a 5 way switch and wire it like the full price model?
Also maybe one of the solders is bad?

 

[garrett]

Do you think i could upgrade to a 5 way switch and wire it like the full price model?
Also maybe one of the solders is bad?

Yeah the sky is the limit for upgrades.

What you described wouldn't be a solder issue unless it was really sloppy, which isn't the case going by the photos.

 

[SaintTachyon]

Yeah the sky is the limit for upgrades.

What you described wouldn't be a solder issue unless it was really sloppy, which isn't the case going by the photos.

Alright. Which switch should i purchase then?

 

[shimmilou]

There are two red wires

It sure seems to me that the wiring on the push-pull is incorrect.

 

[SaintTachyon]

It sure seems to me that the wiring on the push-pull is incorrect.

Could that cause splitcoil to work correctly while the switch is malfunctioning?
There are two groups of cables, one going to the switch, second to the splitcoil

 

[garrett]

It sure seems to me that the wiring on the push-pull is incorrect.

Could that cause splitcoil to work correctly while the switch is malfunctioning?
There are two groups of cables, one going to the switch, second to the splitcoil

There is one weird thing about the push/pull, but it does not impact the function of the blade.

Find out which coils are active in the middle blade position with p/p up. To do this, plug in to an amp and turn up the volume. Use a flat head screwdriver to tap on a pole piece of each coil. The active ones will make a big thump.

Also let us know if it is hum canceling in the middle blade position with the p/p up.


Neck pickup is easy. You should have the screw coil:
Red is hot to blade switch
Black is ground connected to blade switch housing
Green/White is the split. Connected to bottom most lug of p/p switch. Middle lug of p/p connects to ground. So p/p down, no impact, you have a humbucker. Pull it up, slug coil is canceled.


Bridge pickup is the weird one:
Black is ground connected to the body of the p/p
Red is hot. Wired to top most lug of p/p
Green/White is split, wired to bottom most lug on p/p.
Then there is a black wire from middle lug of p/p to the blade. So p/p down sends the whole pickup signal to the blade. Pull it up for split.

The mystery is which coil remains active. Once I know that I'll explain more.


tl;dr:
Even if the split were malfunctioning it would not make both pickups active in blade position 3. There is a problem with the blade switch.

 

[shimmilou]

If I understand you correctly Garret, this diagram should show the way the p-p is wired, but interchange neck and bridge labels, and green/white wires instead of the black/white wires shown.

 

[garrett]

If I understand you correctly Garret, this diagram should show the way the p-p is wired, but interchange neck and bridge labels, and green/white wires instead of the black/white wires shown.

Exactly. If pickups are same polarity this splits one pickup to slug and one to screw. If they're opposite polarity, this splits both pickups to the same coil.

 

[SaintTachyon]

There is one weird thing about the push/pull, but it does not impact the function of the blade.

Find out which coils are active in the middle blade position with p/p up. To do this, plug in to an amp and turn up the volume. Use a flat head screwdriver to tap on a pole piece of each coil. The active ones will make a big thump.

Also let us know if it is hum canceling in the middle blade position with the p/p up.


Neck pickup is easy. You should have the screw coil:
Red is hot to blade switch
Black is ground connected to blade switch housing
Green/White is the split. Connected to bottom most lug of p/p switch. Middle lug of p/p connects to ground. So p/p down, no impact, you have a humbucker. Pull it up, slug coil is canceled.


Bridge pickup is the weird one:
Black is ground connected to the body of the p/p
Red is hot. Wired to top most lug of p/p
Green/White is split, wired to bottom most lug on p/p.
Then there is a black wire from middle lug of p/p to the blade. So p/p down sends the whole pickup signal to the blade. Pull it up for split.

The mystery is which coil remains active. Once I know that I'll explain more.


tl;dr:
Even if the split were malfunctioning it would not make both pickups active in blade position 3. There is a problem with the blade switch.

In split middle position outer coil of the bridge humbucker and the inner coil of the neck humbucker seem to be active. Middle postion is hum cancelling.

 

[garrett]

In split middle position outer coil of the bridge humbucker and the inner coil of the neck humbucker seem to be active. Middle postion is hum cancelling.

OK thanks. That makes sense. It just seemed weird to me because PRS have usually split to outside coils. Maybe they've changed the spec.

Anyway for the switch, it's up to you what you want. If you like the current functionality and can't get this one working right, I'd go for a CRL or Oak Grigsby brand switch. If you want to expand function, that opens up a whole world of modifications. You'll need a good tech unless you're ready to dive into soldering.

 

[SaintTachyon]

OK thanks. That makes sense. It just seemed weird to me because PRS have usually split to outside coils. Maybe they've changed the spec.

Anyway for the switch, it's up to you what you want. If you like the current functionality and can't get this one working right, I'd go for a CRL or Oak Grigsby brand switch. If you want to expand function, that opens up a whole world of modifications. You'll need a good tech unless you're ready to dive into soldering.

"Cant get this one working right" are you implying i can just fix it instead of replacing it? How would i go about doing that?
If i decide to go with the 5 way switch what are the odds i could wire it correctly by myself with pretty much no expirience at all?

 

[garrett]

"Cant get this one working right" are you implying i can just fix it instead of replacing it? How would i go about doing that?

Yes, you can spray in some electrical contact cleaner and move the switch back and forth several times. If that doesn't work you can take it apart to see if there is debris lodged in there or if maybe the tangs inside the switch are bent. If that doesn't work, I'd buy a new switch.

If i decide to go with the 5 way switch what are the odds i could wire it correctly by myself with pretty much no expirience at all?

Converting an SE to a 5-way switch is not something I'd take on as a novice to soldering. Simplest thing would be to replace with another Alpha switch, so you're just doing like-for-like. Or if you want the higher quality CRL switch, it's easy enough to learn how to wire. I personally like the 3-way with push/pull split better than the 5-way anyway.

 

[SaintTachyon]

Yes, you can spray in some electrical contact cleaner and move the switch back and forth several times. If that doesn't work you can take it apart to see if there is debris lodged in there or if maybe the tangs inside the switch are bent. If that doesn't work, I'd buy a new switch.




Converting an SE to a 5-way switch is not something I'd take on as a novice to soldering. Simplest thing would be to replace with another Alpha switch, so you're just doing like-for-like. Or if you want the higher quality CRL switch, it's easy enough to learn how to wire. I personally like the 3-way with push/pull split better than the 5-way anyway.

I see. Three way switch it is. Thank you!

 

[PDC]

The blade switch in my SE went bad also. I replaced it. Not too difficult.