S2 Custom 24 tone control

[IceTre]

I just bought a used 2018 S2 Custom 24 on Reverb. I was disappointed to find the tone control didn't work well. Starting at 10 for maximum brightness, when I slowly turn it down, there is little or no drop in treble until you get to 2 or 3, when the treble is cut drastically. In short, it's pretty much unusable. Is this normal for S2 customs? Or is it defective?

I have an SE Custom semi-hollowbody 22 and the tone control on that works as I would expect-- the treble dropoff is gradual all the way down. That is, it's usable.

Also, back to the S2, how do you take the knob off the pot? I see a slot for a screwdriver, but it's covered up by clear plastic. And I don't see any set screw on the side. So I can't figure out how to take it off if I wanted to change the pot.

If I do need to replace the pot, what would you recommend? Are these 250k, 500k or 1M ohms? It's a push-pull for the split coils.

Thanks for the help.

 

[garrett]

I just bought a used 2018 S2 Custom 24 on Reverb. I was disappointed to find the tone control didn't work well. Starting at 10 for maximum brightness, when I slowly turn it down, there is little or no drop in treble until you get to 2 or 3, when the treble is cut drastically. In short, it's pretty much unusable. Is this normal for S2 customs? Or is it defective?

I have an SE Custom semi-hollowbody 22 and the tone control on that works as I would expect-- the treble dropoff is gradual all the way down. That is, it's usable.

Also, back to the S2, how do you take the knob off the pot? I see a slot for a screwdriver, but it's covered up by clear plastic. And I don't see any set screw on the side. So I can't figure out how to take it off if I wanted to change the pot.

If I do need to replace the pot, what would you recommend? Are these 250k, 500k or 1M ohms? It's a push-pull for the split coils.

Thanks for the help.

Sometimes the taper of those cheaper pots is very on/off like you describe. Switching it out for something like a CTS, DiMarzio, or Alpha would get you a better taper. 500k.

For the knobs, you just have to yank 'em off. Push/pull makes it a lot easier to get your hand underneath to pull it. You can use other stuff like a shoelace or a rag to get under the knob and pull it up. Or, StewMac sells a special knob puller tool.

 

[IceTre]

Garrett,
Thanks for the info. Would you recommend an audio taper push-pull pot as opposed to linear taper, assuming that's available?
-Rob

 

[garrett]

Garrett,
Thanks for the info. Would you recommend an audio taper push-pull pot as opposed to linear taper, assuming that's available?
-Rob

Definitely. Linear will be much more on/off for a tone control.