Standard Strat Plus Series

[reTrEaD]

This is a stealth mod. Looks like a stock strat. Cost of admission: One superswitch. Adds two (hum-cancelling) series combinations to the stock tonal palette. NxM and BxM.

One (or both) of the tone controls are repurposed as a blend control. In version 1, there is no tone control.  One blend takes us from Neck only at position 5 with the blend at max CCW to Neck in series with Middle with the blend at max CW.  The other blend performs a similar function at position 1.  Bridge only (CCW) ---> Bridge in series with Middle (CW).

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In version 2, we have a master tone and the blend pot takes us from single to series in both positions 5 and 1.

[newey]

Both diagrams look OK to me. I'm not seeing the added usefulness of the version with 2 blend controls as outweighing the loss of the tone pot. It would allow one to preset different degrees of blending for both neck and bridge, so perhaps it would ease things if switching from neck to bridge mid-song, but I think I'd use the tone control more often than I would need to switch between two different blended combos on the fly.

[reTrEaD]

Thanks newey,

I reckon some would share your preference, even if they always keep their tone control on 10. A bridge single without the added load of a tone control tends to be ice-pick-to-the-forehead brittle. I presented the first version in the evolutionary process because "options are", as well as to make it apparent how I solved the issue of only having the shunt (blend) across the Middle pickup in the two positions where it's needed by reworking that section of the superswitch.

[newey]

It's a clever solution. I added what I said above because, after years of this, I see players who focus on the "more is better" aspects of a wiring scheme than on asking themselves "How will I actually use this modification in my music?"