Questions/ideas: Wiring HSH Strat, coil-splitting neck only

jay4321

Hero Member
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Short version: I want to be able to coil-split a Pearly Gates neck pickup and am looking for options.

Medium version: I want to be able to coil-split a Pearly Gates neck pickup in an HSH ash Strat, preferably using the 5-way switch as opposed to a pull-pull or smaller extra switch.

I rarely use positions 2-3-4 on a Strat; the middle pickup is almost a sham (blame this on the SxS-pickup guitar I learned on). However if positions 1 and 2 are the neck humbucker full and split, and 5 is the full bridge (which I don't want to split), maybe there's something useful I can do with positions 3 and 4 - integrating a middle pickup or not. 

This is a 1 vol/1 tone setup that will be equipped with 250k pots, and yes I'm sure about that in this case.

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Heads up: I can follow a diagram but won't understand what I'm looking at & only have a vague understanding of current, grounding, resistance. That said I have done some wiring and soldering before and have a decent iron, the right solder and so on.

Thanks!

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About the guitar since I know people like to see stuff:

Natural nitro ash Strat, top rout, contoured heel, recessed chrome Wilky bridge, b/w/b pickguard.
12" radius maple/maple neck, PW tuners, 22 frets, black graphtech nut, standard frets, dots etc
Pearly Gates neck, ? middle, Pearly Trembucker bridge.

Nothing too unusual about it. I just needed a trem-equipped (non-Floyd) guitar in one-step-down tuning full time with these heavier strings I like. If I can get a somewhat ballpark single coil-ish extra sound out of the neck it would be perfect for my purpose.

Won't show up for a while as Warmoth still routing the body for me and I have to do the finishing, but doesn't hurt to get this sorted out.

Rough mockup

RkFPTvH.png


 
You'll need to use a super switch to get decent options, are you OK with that? The standard 5-way is extremely limited.

For HH you could have:

1. Bridge H
2. Bridge H + Neck S
3. Bridge H + Neck H
4. Neck S
5. Neck H

For HSH you could have pretty much whatever you want, say

1.Bridge H
2. Bridge H + Neck H
3. Neck S + Mid S
4. Neck S
5. Neck H
 
When you say decent options, what do you mean exactly? If I can get the three sounds I'm after on a typical 5 way I'm golden. The rest is gravy and I could use a real middle or just a dead one not wired up maybe, I do have one of those. The leftover two positions need to do something but if I'm limited with the switch I'll take what i can get. The ones you're suggesting work on a standard switch?
 
Both the schemes I gave would require a super switch. If you're allergic to those or something, and you want the three sounds you've listed, then this is what you could have with a regular switch:

1. Neck H
2. Neck S
3. Neck H (duplicate of position 1)
4. Neck H + Bridge H (or Neck S + Bridge H, you can decide which)
5. Bridge H

I guess you could do that, but it seems strange to just "take what you can get" to avoid using a super switch. They don't bite.
 
It's an option depending on what can and can't be done with the 5-way. Unless this guitar turns out to have some exceptional sound (to the point that it can replace one of my main two guitars), the simpler the better. I'm going to be trying a few more neck PUs in it if the PG doesn't work out and could wind up with an HSS config instead.

Your last setup there is actually pretty decent outside of the odd position 3. Are there any other options there, like a middle pickup? I dug out a flat-staggered GFS Grey Bottom and an SSL-2.

The priority here for me is to to get those 3 sounds out of positions 1, 2, 5 by the main switch. If going back and forth between those specific three involves flipping a switch or push/pull, it won't work.



 
No, due to the extremely limited standard 5-way switch that's all you can have if you want the three sounds you've listed there. Adding another pickup would just create further problems.

Your post makes me think perhaps you're misunderstanding what I mean by a "super switch". It's not an extra switch on your guitar, it's a replacement for your standard 5-way switch. From the outside of the guitar, it looks exactly the same and it acts exactly the same. It slides from position 1 to 5, and it's the same size etc so that there's no modifcation to the guitar needed. For illustration, this is a standard 5-way switch:

switch_generic_01_1390_detail.jpg


and this is a super switch:

Strat5WaySuperSwitch.1.jpg


The only difference is the number of contacts. It is a "true" 5-way switch, with 4 poles (ie 4 simultaneous circuits can be switched), rather than the standard switch, which is actually a 3-way switch with intermediate positions (where two of the three positions are active simultaneously), with only 2 poles.

With a super switch you can have whatever you want. The two schemes I gave originally are possible, but actually you can have any combination of pickups active in any position on the switch. So as another example you could have:

1. Neck H
2. Neck S
3. Neck H + Bridge H
4. Neck S + Bridge H
5. Bridge H

or whatever. You can do series and parallel stuff too, although if you get too ambitious you start to run out of poles, and honestly of all the different combinations possible, a lot sound the same. For example I had a Tele with two humbuckers in it. In position 3 I had both humbuckers active. In position 4 I had a coil from the neck pickup and a coil from the bridge pickup connected together in series to form a "wide humbucker". Positions 3 and 4 sounded almost completely identical, it was a waste of time.
 
I know what the switch itself is just no idea how it functions aside from having more poles on it. My understanding was they they're used in conjunction with 1 or 2 push-pulls and/or mini switch(es) to operate. If that's not the case (and I can skip the push-pull and toggle things altogether) that would be perfect. In fact I have a Stew Mac order about ready to go and could add on.

How about this here

Neck
Neck split (inner coil is where the adjustable poles are, if it matters)
Some combo don't care
Middle
Bridge

Now I have 5x 5-ways plus one more from Warmoth showing up this week. I suppose I have no alternative but to build 6 complete guitars around them. Oh well guess it's got to be done
 
With a standard five way there is only one set of combinations as the switch is in whatever position it's in. So unless you add extra switches to supplement it can only do what it does.

A superswitch with four poles, is basically four switches in one each with five positions. This makes it possible to achieve combinations just with that switch alone that would be otherwise not possible with a standard five way.

So the last combination would be possible with a superswitch.

Here's a link from the sticky at the top of this section of the forum.

http://unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=281.msg315585#new

In turn there is a link to where you will find it and other wiring explained.
 
No additional switches etc are required.

A standard split of a Pearly Gates will leave the slug coil active (non-adjustable) as it's more powerful. Can always swap that if you want.
 
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