Greetings. I'm building a homemade guitar with a Warmoth made neck and I need help wiring a 6-way (4-pole) rotary switch to 3 EMG pickups with one volume and one tone control. I would like the switch to select all pickups on at once, neck only, bridge only, middle only, neck and bridge, bridge and middle. Any information on this would be helpful. A diagram would be especially helpful if anybody can supply one. Thank You
Need help wiring 6 way rotary switch to HHH setup
- Thread starter bmh3d
- Start date
Verbally (diagram may or may not come, sorry). Assuming regular solder connections.
Use any old 1vol 1tone diagram,
Ground all your bare wires.
Connect your neck white wire (w1) to your hot (from your volume pot).
Neck red (r1) to the first pole of your 4p6t.
mid w2 to 2nd pole.
mid r2 to 3rd pole.
Br w3 to 4th pole
Br r3 to batteries (which are then connected to sleeve).
T1P1 is the lug corresponding to the first throw of the first pole (now connected to r1), T2P1 is the lug RE to second throw of 1st pole, T2P2 is lug corresponding to second throw of second pole etc...
Connect your batteries however you like to T1P1, T1P3, T2P1, T4P3, T5P1 and T6P3. (you can connect your batteries individually to each lug, or connect to the first which is connected to the second etc. It doesn't make a difference, you'll have electrical continuity regardless. Just make it clean, short distances.)
Connect your hot (white from volume pot) to T1P2, T1P4, T3P4, T4P2, T5P4, T6P2 and T6P4.
Throws from one to six as follows: all pickups on at once, neck only, bridge only, middle only, neck and bridge, bridge and middle. All combinations of pickups in parallel (could provide series, but three active pickups in series will be an absolute dog's breakfast). You feel like all the pups will be on all the time, but the circuit works.
If you're working with solderless, I can't help you, and I wonder where you'll find a solderless 4P6T.
It worked for my 3 pup tele, similar combinations (except in series, on purpose).
Don't wait for the diagram - ask for it if my explanation is completely useless.
Use any old 1vol 1tone diagram,
Ground all your bare wires.
Connect your neck white wire (w1) to your hot (from your volume pot).
Neck red (r1) to the first pole of your 4p6t.
mid w2 to 2nd pole.
mid r2 to 3rd pole.
Br w3 to 4th pole
Br r3 to batteries (which are then connected to sleeve).
T1P1 is the lug corresponding to the first throw of the first pole (now connected to r1), T2P1 is the lug RE to second throw of 1st pole, T2P2 is lug corresponding to second throw of second pole etc...
Connect your batteries however you like to T1P1, T1P3, T2P1, T4P3, T5P1 and T6P3. (you can connect your batteries individually to each lug, or connect to the first which is connected to the second etc. It doesn't make a difference, you'll have electrical continuity regardless. Just make it clean, short distances.)
Connect your hot (white from volume pot) to T1P2, T1P4, T3P4, T4P2, T5P4, T6P2 and T6P4.
Throws from one to six as follows: all pickups on at once, neck only, bridge only, middle only, neck and bridge, bridge and middle. All combinations of pickups in parallel (could provide series, but three active pickups in series will be an absolute dog's breakfast). You feel like all the pups will be on all the time, but the circuit works.
If you're working with solderless, I can't help you, and I wonder where you'll find a solderless 4P6T.
It worked for my 3 pup tele, similar combinations (except in series, on purpose).
Don't wait for the diagram - ask for it if my explanation is completely useless.
line6man
Epic Member
- Messages
- 6,443
I can draw you a full diagram if you want it, however, I drew this partial diagram a while back that can be modified for what you want.
As you can see, there are seven positions. Omit the position you don't want, and reorder the terminals how you want them.
As shown:
Position 1- Pickup 1.
Position 2- Pickup 2.
Position 3- Pickup 3.
Position 4- Pickups 1 and 2 (Parallel).
Position 5- Pickups 1 and 3 (Parallel).
Position 6- Pickups 2 and 3 (Parallel).
Position 7- Pickups 1, 2 and 3 (Parallel).
The output in the diagram will connect to where the pickup's black wire is shown in this diagram:
]http://www.seymourduncan.com/support/wiring-diagrams/schematics.php?schematic=1hum_1vol_1tone]
As you can see, there are seven positions. Omit the position you don't want, and reorder the terminals how you want them.
As shown:
Position 1- Pickup 1.
Position 2- Pickup 2.
Position 3- Pickup 3.
Position 4- Pickups 1 and 2 (Parallel).
Position 5- Pickups 1 and 3 (Parallel).
Position 6- Pickups 2 and 3 (Parallel).
Position 7- Pickups 1, 2 and 3 (Parallel).
The output in the diagram will connect to where the pickup's black wire is shown in this diagram:
]http://www.seymourduncan.com/support/wiring-diagrams/schematics.php?schematic=1hum_1vol_1tone]
line6man
Epic Member
- Messages
- 6,443
bmh3d said:
"C" refers to the common terminal, and the numbers refer to the terminals that the commons are connected to in each respective position.
Terminal one connects to the common in position one, terminal two connects to the common in position two, etc.
Each of the three sets of "C123456" represents a pole on the switch. Which pole is used for which pickup is irrelevant, you can use any three poles out of the four your switch has available.
As far as the actual switch layout goes. you're going to have to either figure out the terminals by visual inspection of the switch function (If possible.), or whip out an Ohm meter or continuity tester.
line6man said:
typical rotary switches have the commons located in the center and the other lugs located around the perimiter. if there are not any unusual gaps between lugs you will have to test for the #1-#6 lugs. it is usually sequencial and extra gape between sets of lugs usually give away what is what. though there is no "rule" this will apply to the more commonly available switches.
:icon_scratch: i thought you had emg's :icon_scratch:bmh3d said:
on passive humbuckers there are 2,3,or5 wires. in the case of 2 wires one is hot and one id the shield/ground, with 3 (not common anymore) there is a hot, ground and a center tap. with 5 wires there is a hot and a ground for each coil so it can be configures in several ways plus a shield that you solder to ground.
on emg's there is a ground, a power and i thought only one hot. am i mistaken?
iamdavidmorris
Junior Member
- Messages
- 132
One thing that's gonna help is if you post exactly what you have, especially the rotary switch. Where did you order it?
line6man
Epic Member
- Messages
- 6,443
the_Dan said:
That's not a center tap, it's the connection between two coils that are internally wired in series.
A center tap is a tap somewhere in the winding of an inductor. (The term is usually applied to transformers, but also applies to any coil, such as a guitar pickup.) In the case of a guitar pickup, a center tap allows you to select a lower impedance wind than the full coil. It's not a common feature, at least not with any mass-produced pickups.
Staying on topic-
EMG pickups usually have two conductors and a shield. The shield is a ground, the white wire is the hot, and the red wire is the supply lead for the internal buffer. You connect the red wire to the positive terminal of a 9V battery, and the negative terminal then goes to the ring terminal of the output jack. If you wish to run your EMGs at 18V, the negative terminal of the battery would connect to the positive terminal of a second battery, and that battery's negative terminal would go to the ring terminal of the output jack.
For any other four conductor pickups, for series wiring, the north coil's positive phase lead is the hot, and the south coil's negative phase lead is the ground, and the remaining two leads are connected together.
For parallel wiring, the positive phase leads of both coils are hots, and the negative phase leads of both coils are grounds.
Quote Line6man "on emg's there is a ground, a power and i thought only one hot. am i mistaken?" End Quote
Sorry for all the confusion, There is a black wire and a white wire wrapped in a white wire and then you got the red wire. I have to
solder the black and white wire onto the 6-way 4 pole switch because the switch does NOT have solderless connectors so it does not go along with EMG's solderless system - I was wondering wether to wire the black and white wires that are in the white wire together or seperate
Sorry for all the confusion, There is a black wire and a white wire wrapped in a white wire and then you got the red wire. I have to
solder the black and white wire onto the 6-way 4 pole switch because the switch does NOT have solderless connectors so it does not go along with EMG's solderless system - I was wondering wether to wire the black and white wires that are in the white wire together or seperate
