Please vet my "FREE Neck On" wiring

[D2o]

I have just wired a Peavey Predator in accordance with ChrisK's "FREE Neck On" idea.

It seems to work okay, but is fairly noisy as heck in some positions. Since the wiring was gefooey when I got, and I have not wired it stock yet, I don't actually know if it's just a noisy bleeper.

(Note: I had attached bridge ground to the cavity, and then attached it to the back of the pot - no change, so no issue there as far as I can tell.)

Here is how I wired it, IIRC - anyone see any issues with it?

Thanks,
D2o

[ChrisK]

OK, I'm confused.

You have the neck tone control's Wiper terminal connected directly to the neck pickup, that when turned up to "10" directly connects the neck pickup to the volume pot via the CW terminal .

This is the "Free Neck On Thingy".


You have the B/B+M/M/M+N tone control's CCW terminal connected to the volume pot.

Its Wiper terminal is connected to a cap to ground. Its CW terminal is connected to a different cap to ground.

There appears to be a square'ish big green thing that is shorted and connected to the pickup return wires and ground on one lead, as well as the ground on the other lead.

This space-time-brane B/B+M/M/M+N tone control instantiation is relativistically confusing.

[D2o]

OK, I'm confused.

You have the neck tone control's Wiper terminal connected directly to the neck pickup, that when turned up to "10" directly connects the neck pickup to the volume pot via the CW terminal .

This is the "Free Neck On Thingy".

Okay - that part works fine (and, yeah I did try some other stuff too ... you know - just to confuse you)

You have the B/B+M/M/M+N tone control's CCW terminal connected to the volume pot.

Yes

Its Wiper terminal is connected to a cap to ground.

Yes - it is connected from Btone wiper to Ntone CCW terminal to ground

Its CW terminal is connected to a different cap to ground.

Yes, that - in concert with the smallest jumper on the switch - seems to allow the bridge tone cap to affect the tone.

There appears to be a square'ish big green thing that is shorted and connected to the pickup return wires and ground on one lead, as well as the ground on the other lead.

Sorry, I forgot to mention that I attempted to incorporate this into QTB / star grounding.

The signal returns meet the 400VDC, which is attached to a ring under the Ntone, and it all goes to the CCW terminal on Volume.

This space-time-brane B/B+M/M/M+N tone control instantiation is relativistically confusing.

And you are not aksin' me, your tellin' me

I have not strung this up yet - just so you know. I am not crazy about the hum, so I am seeking input before proceeding further.

All I have done is have kylehead wire it, observing these hum levels and resistance readings:

HUM ; RES	Bridge	Bridge/Middle	Middle	Middle/Neck	Neck
Ntone at "10"	noticeable hum 3.13K	some hum 2.09K	silent 3.10K	silent 3.10K	noticeable hum 6.10K
Ntone at "7"	hum (not as noticeable as "10") 6.13K	silent 3.12K	noticeable hum 6.04K	silent 3.12K	hum (not as noticeable as "10") 6.12K

Thanks, Chris

D2o

[ChrisK]

The lower tone control places its cap in parallel with the upper tone cap when the lower pot is at "10".

The signal returns meet the 400VDC, which is attached to a ring under the Ntone, and it all goes to the CCW terminal on Volume.

I don't think so.

The pickup signal returns are connected to the grey node which is connected to the back of the volume pot which is connected to bridge ground, which is under the upper tone pot connecting it to the shell and threaded shaft of this tone pot, which is connected to the back of the lower tone pot.

The tone caps are connected to the pot backshells. They should go to the signal return, which is jumpered to the pot backshells.


The only thing that that isolation blocking cap is doing is loitering aboot, and not very well either. There is no AC isolation, DC blocking, nor safety enhancement as it is shown.

Regarding the hum, do these pickups including a RWRP middle, or are they all the same phasing and magnetic polarity?

[D2o]

Hey, Chris

Funny, I just found a diagram of what I was going to do (QTB / star ground) before I found the Free neck on. It was just fine.

I'm not sure what I was thinking about after I found the free neck on ... I think I tried to amalgamate 1) QTB / star ground, 2) the free neck on, 3) the "This could blend in another tone cap across the neck pot's cap" bit, and 4) a misread of the "Blocking Capacitor" thread ... etc, etc, etc (actually, no etc, etc, etc, come to think of it ...) and ended up confusing my ownself (easily done).

Anyway, I've currently wired it as stock - just to see what I have (it was not correctly wired before I got it ... or after I got it, for that matter).

Oh! and, yeah! I checked the pickups the moment I opened it up. There was no RWRP, so I flipped the magnet and reversed the wires on the middle one before I ever did any of this. That part of it is fine now - good call, by the way.

It's a 1992 Peavey Predator, and I have to say that it's quite a nice sounding guitar, and nicely built and nice looking, as well - I really like old USA made Peaveys. Although it turns out the pickups are just a bit noisey, even in stock wiring - not intrusive, but certainly not silent.

I'll keep you posted when I get around to having another go at it.

D2o

[ChrisK]

As long as you keep this in mind, and connect the guitar signal returns to the amp signal return, you should be fine.

The "Blocking" Capacitor


Also keep in mind that when the bridge and neck pickups are selected, they are in phase and will not be hum canceling.

When the bridge and neck pickups are selected, they are in phase and will not be hum canceling, and the middle will be RWRP, but the combo will not be fully hum canceling (two against one).

Good shielding is.....