Vintage PRS controls

[The Jammin Salmon]

Hey guys, I was wondering if yall could help me out. My dad has an old 1987 custom 24 that he's been lending me a lot lately. I love it, sounds amazing, but I'm confused by the controls. There's a two way toggle switch and then the volume-tone like knob closest to the bridge only goes over five spots and clicks at all of them, as if it was a pickup selector. Since the controls on modern custom 24s are obviously different, I'm left unknowledgeable on the guitar I am playing. I'll include a pic, but if anybody knows the controls on vintage prs', please let me know what everything does. Thanks!

 

[The Jammin Salmon]

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-...7D1Eq-WWKUU/s640/blogger-image--991484265.jpg

 

[dergit]

I have no idea what the small toggle does but the "volume-tone like knob" is most likely a 5-way rotary switch.

It works like this (Custom, CE Bolt-On & Standard):

• Position 10: Treble pickup
• Position 9: Outside coils- deep and clear - parallel
• Position 8: Series single coils – Warm version of the "in between the treble and middle pickups"
• Position 7: Parallel single coils – Crisp version of the "in between the treble and middle pickups"
• Position 6: Bass pickup

(source: https://www.prsguitars.com/csc/switching.html)

 

[AP515]

The small toggle is called a "sweet switch". It was developed for Santana who wanted to replicate the response of his 50 ft guitar cable that he had used playing live. It changes the RLC circuit of the overall control system. They were standard on PRS customs from 85 - 91 when it was replaced with a normal tone pot. What you have on yours is a volume, a 5 way rotary switch and the sweet switch.

Beautiful and valuable guitar. Congrats!

 

[Rachmaninoff]

I didn't know this "sweet switch" thing, that's interesting:

 

[The Jammin Salmon]

I was looking into the history of the guitar on the website, turns out it has Brazilian on the fretboard! Didn't realize my dad had such a valuable guitar

 

[watelessness]

the key question is whether or not the sweetswitch has a washer or not :vroam:

 

[sleary]

Geez I love to have a sweet switch.....

 

[mojo1fan]

Interesting. I always assumed it just switched in a capacitor- http://prsguitars.com/forum/showthread.php?839-How-a-quot-Sweet-Switch-quot-really-works

 

[Jazzedout]

Post some more pics of this beauty!!!

 

[The Jammin Salmon]

Post some more pics of this beauty!!!

alright I posted more pictures, the link is here: http://gitfiddles.blogspot.com

(sorry for a bit blurry of pictures, I used an iPad camera. She's a beautiful old strumbox in basically mint condition, just aging such as the pickup rings going cream, but no real playing wear or dings.