Ok.. Lots of hum.....what did I do wrong? FIXED!!

boostedprozac

New member
Messages
10
Body is a tele deluxe.  Using gibson 57 classics for both positions.  Wired it up as a modern les paul wiring with 3 way switch.  I shielded the body cavities and a bit on the pick guard.  Here is a shot the schematics I used.

IMG_2327.jpg


Here is a shot of my setup.  Its not the best soldering...but I hope someone can help!

explainedwiringpic.jpg

IMG_2300.jpg

IMG_2307.jpg

IMG_2311.jpg


the rest of my pictures are in my photobucket here  http://s14.photobucket.com/albums/a303/boostedprozac/

The problem is that it hums...pretty loud.  I get all 3 settings working but the hum is there.  I understand there can be radio frequency or other things interferring but its they're all covered.  I can play my strat fine on the same amp, same setting, same spot.  When I plug this guy in...I get a loud hum with all 3 settings and it seems to get worse when I touch the METAL parts on the guitar...like the strings, knobs, pickups, switch.  But...here's the kicker...... The hum seems to go almost away when I touch the input cup where you plug your jack into.  I have tried to rewire the guitar 3 times now using differnt wires.  I followed the diagram ontop.  Anyone have a clue?  Any help will do!

Oh...all pots are brand new CTS from Acme.  The jack is a switchcraft...but the 3 way switch is...i don't know.  All wires used were vintage cloth type...but I changed some out to just regular wires. 

 

taez555

Senior member
Messages
628
Couple things.

With the foil on the back of the pickguard all of your pots are already electrically conected, so... by soldering that blue wire to the back of all the pots you're creating the a ground loop.

Unless I'm mistaken, shouldn't the capacitors be wired to the ground, not to the hot output?  (I'm used to wiring strats, so correct me I'm wrong here)

Also, are you grounding the insulation?

And last but not least, what's with all the burn marks on the pots?  You could have caused some damage with all your re-wiring.

erik
 

bpmorton777

Senior member
Messages
1,651
"With the foil on the back of the pickguard all of your pots are already electrically conected, so... by soldering that blue wire to the back of all the pots you're creating the a ground loop."

this is what i was going to suggest. This happened to my epiphone when i put foil on the back of the pickguard. I just scraped some of it away around the holes where the pot shafts go.

Brian
 

boostedprozac

New member
Messages
10
Those aren't burn marks!!  Bad lighting shots...they're just...my puddles of solder  :(  So....since they have the shield...I should NOT have a grounding loop?  Or should I just remove the shielding tape? 

What did you mean did I ground the insulation?  I used that exact diagram....I've compared them to other LP wiring and it's right.  The few differences were for the vintage style wiring.  I'll try pulling off the tape to see if that makes a difference.
 

jackthehack

Senior member
Messages
5,630
Your grounding is screwed up; hard to tell/see what's going on there...


Try using this circuit; disregard the .047 caps, keep your .022. A real vintage Gibson circuit would be like the one in this diagram, but with .022 caps and 250K tone pots.

http://www.seymourduncan.com/support/wiring-diagrams/schematics.php?schematic=2h_2v_2t_3w
 

boostedprozac

New member
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10
:guitarplayer2:  The guitar is ALIVE!!  The first schematic was faulty!  The SD one was perfect!  Wired it up...and it started up fine!  No more hum!  Thank you guys :icon_thumright:  :rock-on: 

Here's the end product!  My first warmoth guitar! 

IMG_2331.jpg
 

boostedprozac

New member
Messages
10
Thank you....and thank you for your help earlier.  I've been stuck on that wiring for 3 days!  Goes to show you that sometimes......instead of trying to figure it out....just start fresh with a new schematic....it might just work.
 

boostedprozac

New member
Messages
10
Just thought it'll be cool to be all chrome.....except.....I couldn't wait for a chrome 3 way switch...so I got a gold one :toothy12: 
 
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