J P J Wiring help

[Gammit10]

You guys were a lot of help in the last thread. I need help wiring my pickups.  :bass:

Twist 1: I have a J in the neck position, a P in the middle, and a J in the bridge position and I can't find wiring diagrams for this. Closest thing I can find always involves switches like this one: http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg152/captainbraindamage/3pickups.jpg

Twist 2: I have 3 volume knobs, and no control knob.

I was thinking to use a combination of a normal J wiring diagram (with two J pickups), and a PJ combination.


What I have planned so far

orientation: viewed from underneath the pot with the three prongs on the bottom, as seen in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K33Xj95095I

pot 1: neck J pickup (following regular Jazz wiring diagram)

black wire from pickup connected to bottom of pot
output connected to left prong
white wire from pickup connected to middle prong
small wire connecting right prong to bottom of pot

pot 2: middle P pickup
black wire from pickup connected to bottom of pot
white wire from pickup connected to left prong
output wire connected to middle prong
small wire connecting right prong to bottom of pot


pot 3: bridge J pickup (following regular Jazz wiring diagram)
black wire from pickup connected to bottom of pot
output connected to left prong
white wire from pickup connected to middle prong
small wire connecting right prong to bottom of pot


I was then going to connected each output to each other, then from the bridge's output to the output jack's tip.

Then connect each pots' ground to each other, then from the bridge's ground to the output jack's sleeve. Finally, connect ground from bridge also to bridge's pot.


Is this remotely close to correct? Wiring pickups has always been my weakest area of fixing my instruments.

 

[Cagey]

The diagram you show above leaves the middle pickup in the circuit all the time.

I can see three ways to do it that sorta make sense.

1. Wire each pickup to its own volume control, common output, no switch. On/off/mix using the three variable controls.
2. Wire each pickup to its own mini-toggle, one master volume. Limited mix using discrete switches.
3. Wire it like a Strat with a 5-way blade switch, one master volume. Limited mix using single switch.

For my money, option 3 is the way to go, but everything I know about playing bass could be engraved on the head of a pin with a blunt rock.

 

[Gammit10]

The diagram you show above leaves the middle pickup in the circuit all the time.

I can see three ways to do it that sorta make sense.

1. Wire each pickup to its own volume control, common output, no switch. On/off/mix using the three variable controls.
2. Wire each pickup to its own mini-toggle, one master volume. Limited mix using discrete switches.
3. Wire it like a Strat with a 5-way blade switch, one master volume. Limited mix using single switch.

For my money, option 3 is the way to go, but everything I know about playing bass could be engraved on the head of a pin with a blunt rock.

I'm definitely pursuing option 1. But so far I only get volume if all three volume knobs are at least on to some degree (not 0).

 

[Cagey]

That's the problem with passive controls, and why the single master volume solution works best. You gotta reach down to make any adjustment, whether it's a switch or a pot, so why not make it always be the same pot? Then it becomes an automatic muscle movement. Nothing to think about. No target to aim for. Don't even have to look for it.

If you buy into that way of thinking, then you're down to options 2 or 3. Option 2 gives you more combinations (8, although one of them is "all off") than option 3 (5), but you sometimes have to move more than one switch to get where you wanna be. That can be a bit fiddly. I've done it to a couple guitars, and reversed it later. Dinna like it.

So, option 3. Lotsa sounds, simple to use, easy to wire. What's not to love? If you need more control than that, put something at your feet like the rest of us control freaks, and leave your hands free to play.

 

[Fat Pete]

Standard Jazz Bass wiring goes the other way on the pots - pickup to middle (wiper) and output from the left (looking from below). I think this avoids the interactivity problem you're getting. Someone who understands why might chime in...

 

[ByteFrenzy]

I have the feeling you're going the wrong way about this... There's a reason why you don't find schematics for this setup, and the reason is that this is something that is not commonly done. Doing something others don't is not necessarily a bad thing, but then you usually have a clear idea of what you're trying to accomplish. Do you want to switch between pickups, using them either/either/either, or do you want to be able to blend them? If I was doing this setup, I'd probably want to be able to switch between the P pickup and the pair of J-pickups, and be able to blend the two J-pickups. I'd also want some sort of tone control, either on the total output or just on the P-pickup, but maybe that's just me. Anyhow, I think you should first figure out what you want to be able to do tone-wise and the schematic will follow from that.

 

[Logrinn]

I believe you shouldn't have any problems with a separate volume control for each pickup. As long as they are wired the same way. And that involves how you connect the middle and left prong.
I believe you will find the answer to the difference in wiring in this video (dependent vs independent wiring - should be applicable to three pickups as well):

[youtube]39XdnQDxuw4[/youtube]

 

[Fat Pete]

Sorry, I didn't read the OP's first post correctly. For the 3 volumes/no tone option you'd just wire the P the same as the 2 Js - white to middle, output from left.

The issue with switches/tone controls etc. is lack of space in the control cavity.

 

[TonyFlyingSquirrel]

If I were using that many pickups on a bass, I'd just wire it up like a Strat with a Master Volume & Master Tone.  If you had to have three pots, then I'd opt for the Master Volume, Master Tone, and Blend knob to bring the bridge into play when the neck pickup is selected, which would provide a very wide pickup sensing area as an unconventional option.

Straightforward & simple.