FenderStrat:2 P90s, 1 volume knob, 2 tone knobs, 5 way blade

[keozma]

Hello, let me preface that I am completely new to the world of mod-ing guitars. I've been scouring the web and how-to videos to try and figure this out on my own, but alas am stumped. So I thought I would ask the experts and see if we can triage what I'm doing wrong. 

Equipment:

• 2 Seymour Duncan Antiquity P90 single wire pickups
  
• Fender Mexican Stratocaster
• Original electronics that came on the strat. 1 volume, 2 tones, and the 5 way blade.

Schematic graphic:
www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/b20txv4cyn4bifbxbl5wq/Strat_Wiring_P90_Schematic.png?rlkey=szjt9aftjyyx9axpz426uxydr&dl=0


Photo for reference:
www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/7ig46tid7pu5bmso8vade/Strat_Wiring_P90s.jpg?rlkey=e76vejri6l7qr9qdma0i11o5q&dl=0


Sorry for the links. I couldn't figure out how to embed images. Let me know if you have issues viewing the links.

[reTrEaD]

Dropbox images aren't meant to be hotlinked so I uploaded them to an image host the allows that.

Oct 16, 2023 13:56:06 GMT -5 keozma said:

So I thought I would ask the experts and see if we can triage what I'm doing wrong.

I reckon there is more than one problem here.

Not sure what's going on with the wiring from your p-90s but it kinda looks like one wire plus shield. IF that's the case the braided shield needs to be connected to ground and the inner conductor should be connected to the switch.

Also, a standard strat 5-way is meant for three pickups, not two. If your braided shields are connected to ground, the result of your wiring diagram would be:

Position	Pickup(s)	Tone Control(s)
5	Neck	Neck
4	Neck + Bridge	Neck + Bridge
3	Bridge	Bridge
2	Bridge	Bridge
1	Open Circuit	None

[newey]

keozma-

Hello and Welcome to G-Nutz2!

As reTrEaD said, you'll have redundant positions with a 5-way. Wouldn't be that much out of pocket to get a 3-way switch instead, but if you're wedded to using the existing 5-way switch, I think the functionality would be improved if you didn't have a dead position at one end of the switch. With a 5-way, it's easier to switch while playing if you can just brush it over to the end of the travel with your hand rather than fingering the knob to get one of the middle positions. On the fly, it's easier to find either 1 or 5 than it is 2,3 or 4.

So I would wire it such that the end positions gave the Neck and bridge alone, a flick of the hand through the whole switch travel gets you to one or the other. Positions 2, 3 and 4 would all be redundant, N + B

To do this, you'd move the tone controls off the 5-way and wire each tone control across its pickup, before the 5-way switch. This frees up the second pole of the switch. The 2 common lugs will stay connected together as shown on your diagram, connecting to the V pot. The neck pickup + will then get wired to lugs 2 and 3 on one pole of the switch; the bridge + gets wired to lugs 1 and 2 on the other pole of the switch. This will then give you, (from 1 through 5 with 1 as the bridge pickup): Bridge /Br + N/Br + N/Br + N/ Neck. Any of the 3 middle positions gives you both pickups, either end gives you the N or Br respectively. And you can't accidentally switch to a dead spot mid-song.

[keozma]

That did the trick! Thanks for the advice!

[keozma]

Oct 16, 2023 21:07:48 GMT -5 newey said:

keozma-

Hello and Welcome to G-Nutz2!

As reTrEaD said, you'll have redundant positions with a 5-way. Wouldn't be that much out of pocket to get a 3-way switch instead, but if you're wedded to using the existing 5-way switch, I think the functionality would be improved if you didn't have a dead position at one end of the switch. With a 5-way, it's easier to switch while playing if you can just brush it over to the end of the travel with your hand rather than fingering the knob to get one of the middle positions. On the fly, it's easier to find either 1 or 5 than it is 2,3 or 4.

So I would wire it such that the end positions gave the Neck and bridge alone, a flick of the hand through the whole switch travel gets you to one or the other. Positions 2, 3 and 4 would all be redundant, N + B

To do this, you'd move the tone controls off the 5-way and wire each tone control across its pickup, before the 5-way switch. This frees up the second pole of the switch. The 2 common lugs will stay connected together as shown on your diagram, connecting to the V pot. The neck pickup + will then get wired to lugs 2 and 3 on one pole of the switch; the bridge + gets wired to lugs 1 and 2 on the other pole of the switch. This will then give you, (from 1 through 5 with 1 as the bridge pickup): Bridge /Br + N/Br + N/Br + N/ Neck. Any of the 3 middle positions gives you both pickups, either end gives you the N or Br respectively. And you can't accidentally switch to a dead spot mid-song.

Thanks for the advice. I’ll likely try this at some point or, like you said, just get the three way switch. I was getting a little antsy and just wanted to hear how these pickups sounded on the strat.

[unreg]

Hi keozma,

This is a bit late; hope you are still reading…


Um, your Vol pot looks almost exactly like my original volume pot looked; lots of useless solder spots = lots of heat applied to that pot case. Newer pots are made with cheap materials; so when my guitar was drowning in noise, I learned about replacing the pot and implementing a “star ground”.

If a star ground is used, that means 0 (or a small) amount of heat is applied to pot cases. The lack of heat prevents melting or destruction of sensitive materials inside your pots; that equates to pots not being a source of hum.

A star ground can be any conductive material not currently in your circuit (i.e. a *conductive* washer, a paperclip). DON’T USE A FENDER WASHER. Then you solder all grounding wires to your star ground, plus the wire from your jack’s ground to ground your star ground.

If you are going to use a 3 way switch, that will require even more heat applied to the back of your volume pot to ground that. A star ground would be a good plan, if noise is a detriment to music creation for you. Though, perhaps your guitar is still noise free!


EDIT: Sry, not ALL ground wires… signal grounds should be kept separate from shield grounds until the jack’s ground:

Signal grounds: anything grounding a guitar sound (i.e. pot grounds, switch ground, etc.)

Shield grounds: any grounding of your guitar cavities, or as was mentioned, if you apply a small amount of heat to each pot case for a pot case grounding wire; that’s a shield ground; that’s what I did, but many have encouraged avoiding that wire since my electronic cavity’s walls have been painted with a recommended to me self made conductive paint; they are shield grounded and that ground transfers to the pot cases since each are touching that shield grounded paint. Your’s is a Fender Strat; perhaps your cavity has already been grounded.


FINAL-EDIT: my pots are shield grounded bc they are touching the rear accessed electronics cavity’s floor which is already conductive… the shield grounded paint touches that floor. You have a picguard and it’s underneath looks obviously conductive; your pots are touching that so it seems like they are already shield grounded.

[stevewf]

Anybody got a detailed description of how exactly how that paperclip or washer is used/positioned/located? Photo, maybe?

[unreg]

Oct 20, 2023 0:14:57 GMT -5 stevewf said:

Anybody got a detailed description of how exactly how that paperclip or washer is used/positioned/located? Photo, maybe?

That is an old photo, but the just-added large orange dot shows about where I inserted a screw for newey's paperclip idea.  Just screwed that screw into that wood wall (that was already coated with that conductive paint AFTER this picture was taken).  I previously used a needle nose pliers, or a pencil, to make a small loop on one side of the paperclip; then just attached that paperclip with the screw through that small loop to the wall (pointing the paperclip diagonally upwards).  Then I bent the paperclip to match the curve of the wall there.  Removed that screw; the paperclip was soldered to outside of the cavity; then inserted back in place.  That seemed easier to solder to it outside of the cavity.

Oh, and I trimmed the paperclip a bit before use... it would have been way too long.  Just be careful, if using a paperclip, that you don't trim it too much.

See, my volume pot looked about the same with lots of useless solder spots.

EDIT: Oh, and I lightly sanded the paperclip before it was soldered to.  ...and you can add electrical tape to cover the paperclip... that or cover the clip with a small sheet of foam and attach that with the electrical tap to the wall.

FINAL-EDIT: And, it does seem like I’m mixing signal and shield grounds before the jack’s ground… since the entire paperclip is a signal ground, but it’s screwed into the shield grounded wall. It seems alright though bc the mix of the ground-types is done away from the electronics, so it doesn’t mess with the sound… at least my guitar is free of noise. Ground isn’t a signal; it is a destination; it doesn’t travel.