Before I reply to ssstonelover's previous post, here is a transcription of the relevant parts in the original GuitarNuts thread. Some may have had trouble downloading it, and also it was a long one containing posts that didn't relate directly to the subject in the title, and to this discussion over here. It will make my reply easier to follow. It remains possible to check the original one as a reference.
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12 tone Superstrat (Dan Armstrong mod.)
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Bill Horner
Joined: 29 Jan 2004
Posts: 33
Post subject: 12 tone Superstrat (Dan Armstrong mod.)
Posted: Sat Jan 31, 2004 9:44 pm
Anyone tried building this 12 tone modification?
It gives:
each pickup alone (three settings)
three parallel pairs
three series pairs
three pickups in parallel
three pickups in series
three pickups in series/parallel
Pictures and text (by Dan Armstong himself) were found on the Guitar Player website, and were also written up in the magazine circa 1993, and seem reasonably clear.
archive.guitarplayer.com/archive/gear/hrm3.shtmlI also found another schematic on it (below) but that site seems to have been taken down recently. I have it, and can email upon request.
guitarrage.virtualave.net/guitar/mods_electrical/fender/stratocaster_dan_armstrong_super_strat.htmlAll in all, this circuit looks quite interesting — w/o too many switches —lends itself to proper grounding and shielding, and for those with the thirst, can be tweaked further with phase switching on one or more PUs.
What I'd like to see:
---Is some reviews on this beyond the very positive one I read at
www.jt30.com/jt30page/micKguitars/Wiring-Schemes.html--Also an updated schematic (hopefully on the Guitarnuts site) which
1) adds to the tone controls slightly by giving tone control to the bridge PU too (i.e., 2 tone controls; 1 for Bridge, 1 for Neck/Mid)
2) adds a phase to either Neck or Bridge PU
3) wiring redrawn and shock cap, per Guitarnuts standard.
This would add greatly to the choices available on the site, and would be a good option for those intigued by either the Mike Richardson mod or to the "Double-Barrel Switching" schematic.
Bill
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lvs
Joined: 19 Jan 2004
Posts: 64
Posted: Tue Feb 03, 2004 2:20 pm
My 2c on Dan Armstrong's Superstrat...
He wanted to expand the Strat's tone palette and found some intriguing setups with the stock switch, but eventually realized it had to be replaced by something else available to reach what he had in mind. I might be wrong, but I think back then a 4x5 blade switch was not commercial.
In it's own league, I never saw another 3 toggle system having such a large set of sss combinations, without doubles AND in a logical sequence.
It doesn't seem to be widely used. Possibly, locating switches and butchering a pickguard (though that could be avoided with a little creativity) keep many from trying it.
Would I build it : no, because I tried the combinations and some don't sound interesting to me.
Would I build it if I were still uninformed and eager to hear possibilities of my sss guitar... hm, looks better than having my guitar's guts open and connected to a breadboard or something for a while. And strictly speaking about 3 SC pickups and not accounting for phasing, with a 4x5 it would take an additional 3-pos switch to beat the number of 12 combinations... design & solder that.
Well understood that the goal was to have many different pickup combinations, I think the DA Superstrat ain't half bad. But the more choices any circuit delivers (apart from being manageable), the bigger the chance that one or more tones will not prove useful to someone, making it no keeper. But still an informing hearing experience... to a certain extent : the picture becomes more complex than just an enumeration of coil combinations when adding pots, resistors, capacitors...
I don't think it's possible to add a pickup-dedicated tone pot to it, because of the series combinations. (edit : I will try to explain this later, since the DA mod DOES have separate tone pots.)
There's another (enthousiastic) article by Tim Stanley at
guitarstart.hypermart.net/faqs/faq_my_setup.txt*****************************************************************
lvs
Joined: 19 Jan 2004
Posts: 64
Posted: Wed Feb 04, 2004 9:31 pm
I dug up a table showing what the DA circuit reduces to for every switch combination. Btw there is an error in Guitar Player's diagram : the location of the bridge pickup's "c" terminal in the switch array is not correct; in the small schematic I included it is.
img.photobucket.com/albums/v496/lvs/DA-2.gifThe tone pots work as traditional lowpasses in all single and parallel positions, but have a different impact on tone when pickups are in series. Can that effect be used : yes, and it further expands the Superstrat's tonal range. Notice the small tone cap values; looks to me DA tweaked them for this purpose. A bit peculiar I find the master tone cap of 10nF, but it will work, be it less drastic than a greater value.
Imo, when tone controls are expected to work in a consistent way, a master tone is the best choice if series and parallel pickup combinations of pickups are both present.
I hope that clarifies why earlier I wrote dedicated tone controls for pickups in series are not possible. No law against installing them anyway, but know what to expect.
In DA's Superstrat, the two tone pots have a fixed place in the circuit, each shunting one pickup. Changing that to N/M and B tone controls always working as lowpass, would start from the idea of keeping one tone control terminal always to ground, and connecting the other terminal to the right place depending on the situation. That involves extra switching logic and poles. Possible... dunno, this is not an easy one to hack.
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Bill Horner
Joined: 29 Jan 2004
Posts: 33
Posted: Wed Feb 04, 2004 10:20 pm
Ivs,
Hm... I could not open the GIF at first. I kept getting a message that the server could not be found (rain.prohosting.com) but finally I tricked it into submission. Somehow some extra extraneous info got added to the name so I did some retyping and voila.
Very cool GIF. Interesting breakdown of all 12 PU switchings. Noted the Guitar Player error you found, yikes.
I like your idea of a master volume to avoid series/parallel problems or to avoid leaving a pickup out of the tone circuit — or I could go the way Cheshire was saying by using some (two) EMG controls in series for a tone circuit.
(see following message from Rick at EMG)
"Active/passive accessories:
EMG-SPC
EMG-RPC
EMG-PA2
EMG-Afterburner
EMG-VMC
EMG-BTC Control
EMG-BTS Control
EMG-BQS Control
EMG-BQC Control
"As you can see, our controls can be used with any pickup, active or passive. Our Systems, however, require low impedance inputs. Both the Guitar (EXG) and bass (EXB) Expanders need low impedance inputs also.
"Using our active accessories with passive pickups converts the output to low impedance. So if you put an SPC at the end of a signal chain, then you could use an EXG after it (hint, hint).
"The SPC and EXG both are better suited for guitar (IMHO), but there are some folks who swear by the VMC for guitar. I personally haven't tried a VMC in my guitars yet.
"As for your application, I'd try the VMC, then wire in the EXG. The diagrams supplied are fine, just disregard the battery connections for the pickups."
I'm not exactly sure why Rick prefers SPC in one statement and VMC in the next, but I hope to find out from him soon.
If I do that, of course all the circuitry you drew is still valid but the hook up to the tone and volume will need changing (not shown on your diagram). This should be pretty much similar to your master tone control idea w/whatever twists EMG needs....
You might want to check out
www.emgpickups.com/displayproducts.asp?section=Accessories&categoryid=32&catalogid=131 and download the PDF (covers ~3 or more of their tone controls including showing series tone connections...) to see what would be involved in terms of coupling it to your circuit
Bill
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