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Post by ozboomer on Sept 28, 2008 5:05:12 GMT -5
Here is a Stratocaster modification that has recently been designed (see the discussion thread) and might be of use to some others, although it is only a theoretical design at this stage and has yet to be actually constructed. I'm currently preparing to make the modification to my Squier Bullet Strat (see the 'construction' discussion thread). The (kind-of) ordinary name comes from the fact that the mod is basically a Serial/ Parallel switching arrangement combined with a (neck pickup) b lender pot. Many thanks, once again, to everyone (at GuitarNutz, and elsewhere) who have helped me with the design. Schematic:Hook-Up Diagram:Some Notes:- The additional DPDT switch shown is used to select between the common/normal "parallel" pickup combinations and a specific "series" combination of the single coil pickups.
- One of the stock tone controls becomes a (neck pickup) blender in this mod. This means the circuit will provide a simpler arrangement of only one volume and one tone control.
- VR1, the blender pot, can be anything from 100k to 300k.. and note that you will need to take this pot apart and remove the carbon track in the centre of travel of the pot wiper... but see the discussion thread for detailed info.
- The use of R1 and C2 is often referred to as a "Volume Bleed Mod", which ensures the high frequencies don't drop-off when the volume is reduced. See Putting a High Bypass on Volume Control for more details.
Mod Usage Notes:Where "+" means a parallel connection and "x" means a series connection between pickups. Parallel mode: Standard 5 Strat settings with the option to blend in the neck with B or B+M, tone control works normally Series mode: Blender in mid position: BxN, (B+M)xN, MxN, N, N, all with 'full signal' neck pickup. Blender towards bridge: BxN, (B+M)xN, MxN, N, N, all with 'reducing signal' neck pickup Blender towards neck: BxN, (B+M)xN, MxN, N, N, all with 'reducing signal' bridge pickup Tone Control: Full signal/full treble at 10... reducing treble as the pot is turned towards 1 Further discussion/comments should be posted in the discussion thread. John
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Post by ozboomer on Feb 1, 2009 4:25:50 GMT -5
Now that the modification has been more-or-less completed, I thought I'd post a couple of tables that summarize the different sounds this modification makes available... and how to achieve them. The most significant sounds we can now get are these: ...and a summary of how to adjust the controls to get these sounds and their variations: The entries in bold are the 'basic' ways of achieving the new/extra sounds. Simply put, you might select a 5-way switch position, adjust the Blender pot to the middle of its range (on '5') and then select the "parallel" (normal) or "series" position of the DPDT switch... to get to the 'basic' sounds. Variations may be selected by rotating the Blender pot clockwise (where the setting varies from '5' to '10') or counter-clockwise (where the setting varies from '5' to '1'), which will boost or cut the level of the various pickups, according to the table. I hope these 'summary tables' prove useful -John
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Post by pete12345 on Feb 1, 2009 11:03:24 GMT -5
Looks a good design Though we really do need to source some strat type knobs with 'blend' written on them. Otherwise a 'tone' knob would be fairly sensible, or just use plain ones.
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