The Strat SP hss - 85 sounds, no extra knobs

[bajaking]

So I'm going to swap the middle and the neck to be true to your design, will redo the diagram based on this and hopefully get the ok...

[bajaking]

Maybe?! 

[bajaking]

JohnH does this look right (parallel/in-phase)

[JohnH]

Looks ok to me, paralldl-in phase, assuming they all have hot pointing up

[bajaking]

May 22, 2018 4:54:51 GMT -5 JohnH said:

Looks ok to me, paralldl-in phase, assuming they all have hot pointing up

Great, thanks. On with the soldering!

[genmce]

I have had this in two strats for several years now, I LOVE it!
First I had to change one thing on mine - the series blend would go darker as I turned toward 10, seemed wrong so I just swapped the lug to to the other on the series pot. Now when I turn knob toward 10 it brightens up like I would expect.

Are there favorite sounds?
YES, I really love m+b and m+n in the stock strat!
Go figure...
I love the quack I can get with pickup height balancing.

So why the heck do I need the 85 sound beast?
I find that as a work on different songs, I write my own crappy songs..., I find I write differently given different sounds coming from the guitar. Also, on my fender superchamp x2, changing amps and sounds is a pleasure to explore. Having all the sounds is like having different colors of paint.

Would I do it again, maybe...
Thankfully I don't have to and it works great in both guitars.
One has an S1 switch, for series and one has a push pull.

One thing I would like to improve is the Neck Bridge twang.
Any suggestions on how to get more twang on the e string?
I was going to say twang on the g string but that seemed inappropriate...

[frets]

Hi John, I would’ve PM’d you in this topic; but as you know, I’ve yet to master posting pics to PM’s, plus, it might be interesting for others to see/read.

I just finished your Strat SP HSS.  It was a moderately difficult wire and took me an hour.  I’ve got it all wired up correctly, triple checked; and, I’m a bit confused with SW3 Series/Fader part.  For you guys that might not know what I’m talking about, it’s this one.


Here it ‘tis Wired up.




Ive got the pickup wires on the switch/pot for testing.

It all works great except for one piece and maybe I’m not testing it right. When I have it in Series, I’m not getting the Neck fade.  I’ve got the Coil Cut working fine off that pot; but, for the life of me, I can’t get the fader.

Like I said, I’ve cross checked the wiring 3x and still can’t get the fader.  Again, I’ve got it in Series.  I’m in either position 3 or 4.  And no fade.

What do you suspect this ditzy brunette has done wrong?👩🏻

[JohnH]

Hi frets, this was probably my most twisted scheme, thanks for trying it.

Building it in an hour is something that would take me 6 hours at least

To troubleshoot, id suggest resistance readings across the jack output with volume and tone at max, knobs pushed in. Test all the main series and parallel options, check phase doesnt change the readings, then in series mode try max and min on the fade.

The scheme has been built before so it should work, but it hasn't been built often! I've not built it myself.

[frets]

John,  I just figured it out.
I had it wired right, ditzy Cindi thought the fade took the whole neck out of the picture; but, now I get it. It takes the Neck and reduces the Series. Duh! 😛.
I have it in a guitar now. It is a really super mod. The tonal variations are killer. I recommend this build to anyone contemplating a change to their HSS. Just be aware that it is a moderately difficult build. Thanks John.

Happy Thanksgiving to all you guys. Stay safe and happy.

[JohnH]

Thanks frets

Looking at it again after a few years, that Rev B version looks like its fade control isn't quite what I'd intended. If you follow the wires from the fade pot, they go directly to two lugs on the tone pot. So if tone is at max, those lugs are all connected anyway and the fade pot does nothing, just as you reported!

I think the intent may be better realized if the blue wire from the fade pot is taken to the other end of the 47nF cap, where it connects to the switch sw1.

The intent of the fade pot, in series only, when two pickups are selected, is that it fades down whichever pickup is nearer the neck. Tbus could be the neck pickup, or it could be the M in an B x M series combo.

The idea is to control the muddiness of some series combos by partly bypassing one coil. The tone control also has this effect, but via the 47nF cap when at max treble.

So there's heaps of variations even just using tone and fade. But also some redundancy.

A couple of simpler variations are possible, given moving that blue wire above.

1. The 47nF cap could be omitted, in which case its just a normal tone control using the 22nF cap, or
2. in a guitar that is not trying to look like a 3-knob Strat, the fade pot can be omitted, just keeping the switch to do coil split, and keeping the tone circuit with its two caps.

There's another thing on Rev B, which was requested by treguiers, the guy who first built it. As drawn, the bridge coil split happens with switch sw3 pushed in. If I built it, Id want it in the pulled out position by moving the wire furthest from the pot biody to the corresponding lug nearest the pot.

Your diligent work has allowed these quirk to be uncovered, so thanks!

If its ok with you, I'd like to shift all the posts in this thread back to the main schematic thread, for reference.

[frets]

Hi John,
Thanks for providing additional wiring changes, I am going to move the blue wire to where you suggest. I kinda like the SSS config requiring the pull up on the coil cut to kick in the other humbucker coil.

What happens with the fader, s the neck in series becomes seemingly parallel as you roll. At least it sounds that way.
If you think about it, that’s a nice tonal nuance to reduce the series as you have mentioned.

Nonetheless, despite what was originally intended and what is the reality, it’s the most powerful HSS harness I’ve ever built. As you know, there’s not much out there for mods with HSS setups; usually, just a simple coil cut to the Bridge. But this configuration is so tonally diverse. I really like the Phase and don’t find the Series to be too muddy. I’ve not yet decided if I’ll remove the .047. I have to play it some more. But for the hour and fifteen minutes I played on it, it has become one of my favorites of your mods.
I’ve built every mod you have dreamt and published to the forum. This was the last one I had never built. Wait, I still have to build your new Jimmy Page!!

I was playing some Rush songs given Alex Lifeson would often use an HSS setup during his Moving Pictures to Power Windows phase. The Series effect was immense.
Thank you John and Happy Thanksgiving!!

[thetragichero]

i.... don't think they have Thanksgiving where John is from

[JohnH]

We dont, but I really liked it when we lived in LA.

On HSS, this is the one on my own HSS Strat. Its way simpler than the SP Hss and gets all the best combos, except it doesn't do phase reversal. Its my daily player:

guitarnuts2.proboards.com/thread/6873/strat-ssm2-hss-sounds-dpdt

[frets]

John,
Thanks, I have built the other with the switch and it is much easier.
BTW - I moved the blue wire SW3 to lug 1 on SW1 DPDT and it did nothing. Am I missing something? Thanks!

[JohnH]

I dunno! Im quite sure you have built it as drawn (there are few people who I would say that about)

This circuit has so many tone options, and it hasn't been built a huge number of times so this interaction may never have been explored fully. Fade should do something! maybe try with the tone rolled down very slightly.

With that wire move, it should be possible to measure a difference in overall guitar resistance as you sweep the fade pot. Its basically taking a series combo of two pickups and gradually shunting one.

[frets]

John,
I’m a big enough girl to admit that I moved the wire from SW2 instead of SW3. You see, too much Turkey on Thanksgiving put me into a Tryptophan Stupor and I should have know better than working on guitars when inebriated by “Fowl” Amino Acids in my system. So now it’s fixed and it works great. This is my favorite mod you have done. Everybody with an HSS should have this harness.

I left the .047 in because I really like how it sounds. And like I said, I also am fond of the guitar being an SSS until you pull up on the coil cut switch.

Thanks again John, we love you!!

[JohnH]

Now that frets has built this (see discussion above), there's a few good built examples that we know of. Ive updated the diagram in the first post to Revision C, which is this:




It picks up on a quirk that we found on the fade control that was in Rev B.

The bridge coil-cut is wired so pushed-in in single coil. If preferred, it can be shifted so that pulled-out is single.

[allana]

Hello all.  I just recently found this website and am amazed at the amount of very useful information that is available from such a lot of experienced people.

About three years ago I built my first guitar from a kit, a telecaster. I just used the body and neck and binned the hardware preferring to source my own parts of better quality.  Subsequently I have completed 2 Les Paul style guitars using the Jimmy Page wiring mod. 

Now I'm going to turn my attention to my 2007 Yamaha Pacifica 112XJ. It has just 1 tone and 1 volume pot as standard but I think I can squeeze in an extra pot and complete this wiring project. 

I'll use 3 x push push A500k pots, a matched set of classic vintage pickups, a Kaish superswitch and caps/resistors as shown in the Mod C schematic.

Will keep you informed of progress.

[JohnH]

Hi allana ,good luck with your project! Happy to discuss any aspect. The first thing to do for this HSS build is to get the pickups and figure out what magnettic polarity each coil is (relative to each other, absolute N and S doesn't matter), and which wires go to which coil and how they are connected for an in-phase combination. These things are indicated by the pink and blue shading and the 'plus' symbols. I wouldn't trust any suppliers data to get this right, but its easy to test placing pickups face to face to see how opposites attract, using a meter to determine which leads work together, and the 'screwdriver pull-off test' (see our reference section) to check which coil goes with which leads and also relative phase.

[allana]

Hi John.  Thanks for a quick response.  Pickups are N = north, M = south, Hum slug = north and Hum screw = south.  I'll check the screwdriver test tomorrow.

[stevewf]

Feb 7, 2024 14:49:58 GMT -5 allana said:

I'll use 3 x push push A500k pots, a matched set of classic vintage pickups, a Kaish superswitch and caps/resistors as shown in the Mod C schematic.

Will keep you informed of progress.

Some feedback about the Kaish Superswitch I bought online: overall it's good quality. The overall build is similar to Fender's version, including the detente mechanism. It's a solid piece of HW, but I do have one knock.

Good:
The center shaft has a snug fit in the frame and in the two hubs, which feels nice and avoids unwanted shorting.
That detente works well - it's synced with the contact positions, feels decisive and has no wiggle.
Its outward lugs (like Fender's) give easier soldering access than inward ones.
The mounting screws are clear of the soldering lugs, since the lugs are outward-facing - no unwanted ground-outs.

Bad:
There's a little bit of play between the handle and the center shaft. The tip of the handle (without plastic cover) can move about 1mm before the shaft will begin to move. My Fender switch does not have this looseness. I don't notice this looseness unless I'm paying close attention, and only when moving the handle the in the opposite direction from the last time I moved it.
Since the Soldering lugs face outward, the switch needs more room than a "standard" Strat/Tele switch needs; in contrast to the Oak Grigsby inward one.

I've only bought one Kaish Superswitch, so of course I can't say whether they all behave as above.

[allana]

Hi stevewf.  Thanks for the heads up.

I ordered 2 of the Kaish switches and having checked them both I agree with your good points above.  Good firm construction and action.

Additionally, both my switches have that free movement of about 1mm at the outer end of the lever. when moving the lever between 1 and five there is no slack, same with 5 to 1.  It's just that initial bit of movement when going to the opposite direction.

I will use the switch and contact Kaish to make them aware of the situation.

[allana]

Hi John. A few other commitments got in the way of this project thereby delaying it but just to let you know I completed the project using you Rev C diagram and squeezing in an extra pot between the standard two pot layout on my Yam Pacifica.  It works well but the control knobs are a tad close.

So I'm considering going back to a two pot design, eliminating the fade pot and using a micro switch between the two pots for bridge coil split.

Alternatively I'd really like to change the position B+M/BxM to B+M+N/BxMxN so effectively getting a two humbucker configuration in that switch position.  Any advice on the wiring mod of Rev C would be much appreciated.

[JohnH]

hi allana , thanks for posting. The basic idea behind the SP designs is to pick two out of three pickups and then be able to combine them freely. So three-pickup options don't fit in well and although it might be possible to force them to occur, it would likely mess up the other settings and would be a wiring do-over. But it does already have the basic humbucker-like NxM sound.

[stevewf]

Sounds like a job for the



6P5T Franksuperenswitch! Yours for only $750 with Sight Warranty included (once it out of my sight, it's out of warranty).

[allana]

 Wow, that is some mega switch.  Bargain price too!!

[dram773]

May 6, 2024 16:04:05 GMT -5 JohnH said:

hi allana , thanks for posting. The basic idea behind the SP designs is to pick two out of three pickups and then be able to combine them freely. So three-pickup options don't fit in well and although it might be possible to force them to occur, it would likely mess up the other settings and would be a wiring do-over. But it does already have the basic humbucker-like NxM sound.

Hi John,

Many thanks for your brilliant Rev C - I love it!

But would it be possible to add the N+M+B(coil split) wired in series as an independent switched circuit without messing up the Rev C - eg wired on/on for either RevC or 3 pups?
I do use the 3-in-series for that Brian May extra drive and I've got plenty of room for wiring as already routed out for internal sustainer and GK3 pcbs.

All suggestions welcome!

[sumgai]

dram773,


First, hi, and to The NutzHouse! "D

Aug 30, 2024 6:37:12 GMT -5 dram773 said:

All suggestions welcome!

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and suspect that you have either a VG88, a VG99 or a GR55.... am I correct? In such a case, you do realize that you can get the all three pickups to sound out at the same time, yes? (You may need to use both modeler channels, depending on what model you have.) But the wildly variable tone control capabilities of these units will let you achieve that 'series' tonality, with a little bit of tinkering.

Or is your hex pickup feeding something else?

HTH


EDIT: It only now occurs to me that we should take this line of discussion to a new thread, and not derail the topic of this thread. Your call.





sumgai

[JohnH]

hi dram773

Thanks for your message and interest in this scheme. I'm sorry but I'll decline to pursue that idea though for reasons per the earlier post that you quoted. To do it properly and without creating quirky dead spots in the settings, it needs a switch with multiple poles to rip all the pickups out of the SP circuit and reconnect them in a new arrangement. Its just too complex.

But if you have some active electronics in there anyway, or even if not, we could easily add a very simple active booster (one jfet transistor) that will push a bank of AC30's into meltdown!

[dram773]

Hi sumgai,

You are, of course, correct and I hadn't considered that option. I guess because I mainly use the synth for non-guitar parts, so it didn't occur to me.
Many thanks for the tip and the warm welcome!
Cheers
dram