One thing to keep in mind also is that most pots aren’t exactly 250k or 500k. They have a tolerance of 10-20%! It’s not a bad idea to test your pot with a meter and choose a 470 or 520 accordingly.
this is exactly what I needed, I've been scouring so many online forums on how to mod an HSS strat and all of them have different wirings and methods which made me incredibly confused. Thanks for clearing things up!!!! I can finalize my plans for my first modded guitar now (a very cheap HSS superstrat)
5:30 very fortunate that used specifically this guitar, as I intented to buy it and thought about if I'd have to adjust the wiring because of the hss pickup combination. Now I know exactly where to do that on this specific guitar :)) thanks
I've been usually setting my neck and middle pups a bit closer to the strings vs the bridge pup to try and compensate for the volume drop. But this works way better and I already have the resistors!
The blending of two pickups just puts them in parallel so when both pickups are on, the extra resistor is tehre loading down both pickups. In a passive circuit that combines the pickups in parallel, you just cant have the resistor on one, because the switch connects the hot wires (that's were you connect the resistor) together. However, if it sounds good to you, it is good. Probably biggest issue could be that HSS configuration with 470kohm resistors on both single coils. In position 2 of the switch (two single coils combined) the combined resistance to ground would be about 160kohm. Even that might sound just fine. It depends on what you like.
Great tip, thank you Edit: Just added a resistor to my HSH parts-caster and it's like night and day. I purposefully got a hot pickup for the middle to compete with the humbuckers but it was really harsh to the point where I had to lower it. Added a 500K resistor and BAM, could raise it up and it sings. In the 2 and 4 positions I also have the buckers partially split and those positions also have more of the strat quack now.
Finally! I've been waiting for something like this! I've done so much internet scouring to find good info. I've just been using 300k pots on an hss strat I moded. I'll have to try this out! I'd probably err on the side of brighter resister since pots themselves have tolerances that tend to be lower than their listed value
Thanks Rob! Yeah I also haven't found a similar video that addresses the HSS situation. That fact that you should use one resistor for each single-coil. Cheers //Kris
@Thomann's Guitars & Basses on the topic of new video ideas, I'd love to see a video on dummy coil solutions for sss, hss, and tele setups! Maybe look at wiring a dummy coil in either series or parellel, which affects the amount of high end, or looking at having one or 2 dummy coils. Also, look at making your own coil out of a cheap chinese pickup. That's another area where I haven't found a good solution anywhere.
@@ThomannsGuitarsBasses I recently purchased the hss classic vibe 70s Squier from thomann, do you have any idea whats going on under there and if it need this type of mod you showing us? thanks so much for the eye opener video!!!!
I ve bought a RG 370AHMZ with Push Pull Pot for Single Coil Sound at Position 1 + 5 ( suhr aldrich Bridge and ibanez V1 Neck Humbucker) This 470 Resistor is built in👍 seems it was a good tech
Hi, I purchased a PRSS2 Vella semihollow guitar, and the pick ups are rather chummy a little more than I would like I have been researching the best pick ups for the guitar are trying to, however, finding combinations is not as easy as I had anticipated I am thinking about just contacting Fralin And seeing if he can custom wand me a set of his blues boy, tea, style neck, and a bridge pick up with a PAF sort of tone it’s his own original, and they give off a fantastic jazz tone as well and that’s kind of the reason I purchased the guitar I was hoping to do more with it from a jazz perspective, but I still need to use it because I only have three guitars, and I am not the richest musician. I am a student, going to Berkeley and truly playing my fingers to the bone all day and in a bar all night it seems never ending lol thanks again for the demo and the information. If you have any suggestions for pick up combinations, that would give me those blues and jazzy tones, or a pick up maker that you like I would love to hear any feedback. Thanks again for the great demo. Like I said, I appreciate the information. 4:585:06
I have a tele I'm putting a p90 in the neck of, and a Seymour Duncan Quarter Pound in the bridge. It apparently sounds best with 500k pots, but I'm so ready for this mod...my tele actually already has it with its current humbucker
Idk I dont get an ice picky sound on my single coils after swapping over to an hss style strat, I took my middle and neck single coil out of my 1993 Mexican strat and added a humbucker from my old arbor that I saved after putting dark moon pickups in that guitar. My strat sounds like a beast, even when soloing
Great video! My concern has been about the tone pot. Actually it is a third resistance in the wiring. Nobody seems to talk about it, all the concern goes only to the volume pot. So my question is, how does the pot value influence on the overall resistance therefore the sound? Thanks
@Thomann's Guitars & Basses How about a cheap guitar like a Squier Bullet Mustang that comes from the factory with 250K pots and two humbuckers, and let's say I put a single coil in the neck to make it an HS pickup layout? Following your logic, in this case the single coil would be "balanced", but what about the humbucker in the bridge then? For that matter, I think the two factory humbuckers sound fine with the 250K pots. Cheers!
Hey, I wouldn't overthink this whole subject. If a humbucker sounds great with a 250k pot and works great with a neck single-coil, just stick to it. TBH this Harley Fusion-III (the HSS guitar) sounds great without the resistor mod so I leave it as it is. This mod is only relevant if you feel like the pickups need to be balanced better. Cheers //Kris
I have a SSH guitar, almost exactly as in the video. I always wondered what it does when the switch is in position 4. Is it middle pick up and humbucker, or does it split coil on the humbucker? If the last is the case, would be be possible to rewire it and make it always split coil? Thanks
What if your HSS guitar only has a volume control? I have a Fernandes LA 85-KK (L'Arc~en Ciel) Ken signature and that's how it's wired, with a coil tap.
Hi Kris, I have a question (and a story) for the next Q&A: We, the metalheads are known for not (or maybe sometimes) using the tone pot. I was recently watched a video (coffee with Ola), with his guest (Chris Broderick) and he said that on his guitar he activates the tone pot with a push/pull pot (when he pull it, the tone pot is activated and when it's not it's just not working, so it's like a tone kill... or something), so, please respond to me/us and if you want/can to explain this circuit (with a wiring diagram). Thanks... a lot. God bless you!
How about HSS with coil split? Same? Resistor on Neck and Middle? Also, I am super confused on polarity. I have Neck South, Middle North, Bridge North/South. Is that correct? Or should my humbucker be South/North. Also the electrical polarity...Neck and Middle are Lollar and the bridge is SD. I am not sure if they are correctly configured.
Beware the two resistor HSS solution if you like middle+neck "quack". Adding two 470k resistors to a 500k pot in an HSS guitar will give you ~250k in the middle position and neck position, but will further drop the impedance down to ~160k in the middle+neck position. That has the potential to affect the strat "quack" in the middle+neck position by reducing it from the more traditional 250k impedance as you would see in an SSS pickup config.
Yes, it needs to be tested and the value might have to be different to get the result you want. In this case with my green T-style the middle position is perfect, even though both pickups are active. I was expecting it to sound a little too dark but it wasn't the case. So it's best trying out different value resistors to find the best solution. Cheers //Kris
@@marcusvaladao9839 It doesn't matter if the pickups are HSS or SSS. If you add the impedance of the pots and resistors in parallel in the middle+neck position with SSS, it will still reduce the total impedance as described. It would even be the same if you had HHH pickups. The impedance to ground comes from the pots and resistors, not the type of pickups.
You can get avoid this by using a Fender Strat/Tele 5-way Super Switch. This allows you to wire resistor(s) to the switch position rather than the pickup itself, meaning you can avoid having two resistors connected while in positions 2 and 4.
Thanks for the video, I am hoping to try this on a Squier '51 soon. For the t-style guitar, would the tone pot also be 500k in this scenario or would it be 250k?
Great insight on pots and resistors! I never figured that could make so much difference. Now would that apply the other way around? I have a strat style that I use for hard rock and while I'd like main riffing on the bridge beefy and humbucky I'd like to switch to the neck pickup for soloing and get that clean attack that fenders have (think Blackmore or even Malmsteen, but just for neck soloing) so it could be considered a 2 guitars in 1 concept in some way. I take it that the output volume stays more or less the same and that the main difference is tonal. Should I try and use a 500K pot and cap off the neck pickup with a resistor to make it warmer or would that kill the "strat neck pickup" experience? I don't want to make the difference between pickups all that evident but I sure want a single coil neck pickup sound for some soloing at any given time. Thanks!
I just wonder, if an HSSS Config on a Strat style guitar would work and makes sense at all!? So, for example a Seymour Duncan JB Jr. + 3 Fender noiseless single coils... asking for a friend 🤭
I have a question for „the other way around“:) I habe a tele that I installed a 4-way switch to and I was asking myself if there was a way to balance the pseudo-humbucker out?
Wow, that's a great question. I hope someone can jump in and share their experience. I can't think of a good way of balancing that out. The problem I see here is, that what ever you do for that position of the switch (the series humbucker wiring) will effect other "normal" positions too since it's not an actual humbucker but the two singles wired in series. I hope that makes sense to you. Cheers //Kris
Thank you for this information! It is really helpful. Question: What about if you’re coil splitting humbuckers? Is it the same principle where you add a 560k resistor to the ground? Thanks again!
I'm planning on doing a strat mod turning it from SSS to HSH, but with a hot rail in middle position DiMarzio recommends 500k volume and tone pots for the fullsize humbucker, but for the hot rail the recommend 500k for the volume and 250k for the tone pot How do I make sure the hot rail will see 250k on the tone pot only?
Honestly, I wouldn't worry about that too much. Try it with 500k pots in every position. First of all tone pot values have a little less impact on the sound than volume pots and the hot rail is a humbucker so it should do fine with 500k. Cheers //Kris
Hi Kris, great video .... as always! I will try the mod for a Tele, Humbucker at neck , Single Coil at bridge. But what is not clear to me why the added Resistor ist not influencing the Humbucker when the switch is in middle position. Can you please explain this or provide a small circuit diagram? Quick and dirty hand paint is enough.
Hi, the humbucker probably sees the resistor in the middle position since the whole circuit is "active". So it has to have a slight effect on it. It's just not audible so I don't mind it. That's the reason why I tested it in the video. It feels and sounds natural so all is good. :) Cheers //Kris
@@ThomannsGuitarsBasses Hi Kris, thanks for the fast reply. I also have the impression that it sounds good. I just wanted to understand the circuit with my weak electronical basics ;-) I think I will order some resistors and will try the mod, it's not such a big "soldering deal" :-) Cheers Stefan
Is it not true that by adding 470k resistor to a 500k pot you increase the whole resistance to 970k? I don't understand how adding 470k resistor make the pickup "see" 250k. Can you add a schematic how it is exactly connected and how it works? What pot was in that second hss guitar and what resistor should be used ?
Great video as always. But I have a question on my Strat hotrod vintage 62 from 2007, I have replaced the bridge single coil by a Dimarzio Choper, but I have kept the original pot (250k) and works fine like that, at least from my taste :) and correct me if I'm wrong but on the Yngwie Malmsteen signature strat he is using humbuckers (DiMarzio HS-3 or Seymour Duncan Fury depending the year) but with 250K pots and seems not to cause him headache lol
And what a guitar, right? I ordered this guitar for this video recording and kept it in the studio ever since. :) And that's where it will stay for a while, I love it. Cheers //Kris
why don't solder the resistor on the wires of the pickup itself instead of trying to fit it on the selector? It can be easy to fit inside the Guitar. Hugs from Brazil!!
Thanks for your videos man. I’m binge watching it since yesterday 😅. Really really helpful. Anyway I have a question, if you put the resistor to the single coil. Will it also drop the output?
nope, not at all. The only change is the amount of treble that comes through in that position of the switch. Which is exactly what we want for the single-coil. :) //Kris
@@ThomannsGuitarsBasses I do wonder why though. Because with this mod, we're essentially we're sending part of the tone straight to ground, right? Just wondering because I did this mod and it feels like (although I didn't measure) my single coils are maybe 10% softer. Probably going to adjust the pickup heights abit later
Only in the middle position of the switch. That's not really an issue though, as you can hear in the test the middle position is still fine on the t-style guitar. The P90 also wants to see 500k, same as a humbucker yet the middle position sounded great. //Kris
Actually, it is easy to get a value of 500K (500,000) ohms. All that is needed is to use two 1M (1,000,000) ohm resistors in parallel. Being in parallel is just how it sounds. Connect one end of the a resistor to one end of the other resistor and the opposite end of the first resistor to the other end of the second. This makes the value of them half of the original value of each, so 1M ohm becomes 500K ohms when both are in parallel. You can get near to the value by putting two resistors in series. When in series the values simply add together. You can get very close to 500K ohms by putting a 470K ohm resistor in series with a 27K ohm resistor for a total value of 497K ohms. To put them in series just connect one end of each resistor together and then solder them in as you would just one resistor.
I have just returned a PAF because it ruined the middle-bridge sound on my strat, so I replaced it with a Seymour Duncan SSL-5 and it causes the same issue! I want quack in positions 2 and 4. Ideas?
You can use the auto split wiring scheme so that in position 2 you get one coil of the bridge instead of the whole bridge. Another possibility is that your single coil pickups could be out of phase with the bridge humbuckers you were using. If that's the case you can try switching the ground and hot wires on both single coils and see if that does the trick
@@123Ir0nman if I rotated the SSL-5 in the bridge by 180 degrees, could that fix it? The base plate of the SSL5 is rectangular so it’s possible to install it 180 degrees wrong.
@Lysander Lives Here rotating it won't change the phase since the wires would still be winding in the same direction and magnets would still be the same polarity. You would need to swap the start and end wires around. So instead of black as hot and green to ground, you swap them around, black to ground, green to hot. If that doesnt do it then the magnet would be need to be flipped but I dont recommend doing that yourself because you could break the pickup. (The colors are in reference to the Seymour Duncan color code since your using a SD humbucker)
@@123Ir0nman Thank you for the explanation. I had a 50% chance of getting it right! On the SSL-5 I have two wires, one white and one black and I copied the black-ground (back of pot) and white to switch, as with the existing Raw Vintage single coils that are in the guitar, as that seemed the obvious choice. It would be nice if makers standardised their colour coding for old farts like me, who haven’t needed to think much about magnets since school and who still don’t read the instructions. I’m getting a really thin and toneless sound instead of a quack from bridge-middle at the moment and the same thing happened with the Raw Vintage PAF I returned. Good job I kept the soldering iron handy. I’ll be back.
@Lysander Lives Here ah good that it's 2 wire. Just make sure the bare ground wire still gets hooked up to ground because that grounds out the base plate and pickup cover if there is one.
And you don't have to worry about the tone pot? This is great. So you just put resistors in parallel with the pickup hot lead? That sounds so easy you wonder why they don't do that.
Do you mean the resistors? Thomann doesn't sell them (at least not yet). You'll find resistors in electronic components shops everywhere, they are really affordable. Just look for the values mentioned in this video. Cheers //Kris
Hi, technically P90s are single coils but they sound very different and traditionally they want to "see" a 500k volume pot. That's how Gibson introduced them in their guitars in the 50s. If you want a P90 to sound very warm you can of course use it with 250k pots but most players won't enjoy that too much. Cheers //Kris
Shame that Thomann sell caps, pots and switches but not resistors.... they could just chuck them in with caps as they are just a couple of cents each. C'mon Thomann, love your store but give us some resistors :)
Hi Kris, thank you for another great video! Question: i have a HSS strat the electronics of which is already modded a bit. I added a switch that in one position splits the bridge H pickup (to achieve something similar to SSS) while in the other position it switches the bridge to H and connects the mid and neck pickups in series (to achieve something similar to HH). I have 1 master volume and 1 master tone. Where would you put these extra resistors in a setup like this? Many thanks in advance.
They don't do this by standard because not all HSS guitars have this issue. For example this blue Harley sounds just fine without the resistor. This is more of an issue if you swap original pickups or when your taste simply doesn't match the makers' idea of tone. //Kris
One thing to keep in mind also is that most pots aren’t exactly 250k or 500k. They have a tolerance of 10-20%! It’s not a bad idea to test your pot with a meter and choose a 470 or 520 accordingly.
this is exactly what I needed, I've been scouring so many online forums on how to mod an HSS strat and all of them have different wirings and methods which made me incredibly confused. Thanks for clearing things up!!!! I can finalize my plans for my first modded guitar now (a very cheap HSS superstrat)
5:30 very fortunate that used specifically this guitar, as I intented to buy it and thought about if I'd have to adjust the wiring because of the hss pickup combination. Now I know exactly where to do that on this specific guitar :)) thanks
I've been usually setting my neck and middle pups a bit closer to the strings vs the bridge pup to try and compensate for the volume drop. But this works way better and I already have the resistors!
The blending of two pickups just puts them in parallel so when both pickups are on, the extra resistor is tehre loading down both pickups. In a passive circuit that combines the pickups in parallel, you just cant have the resistor on one, because the switch connects the hot wires (that's were you connect the resistor) together. However, if it sounds good to you, it is good. Probably biggest issue could be that HSS configuration with 470kohm resistors on both single coils. In position 2 of the switch (two single coils combined) the combined resistance to ground would be about 160kohm. Even that might sound just fine. It depends on what you like.
That's no good. I guess that's why other videos try to put the resistors in a push-pull pot.
Great tip, thank you
Edit: Just added a resistor to my HSH parts-caster and it's like night and day.
I purposefully got a hot pickup for the middle to compete with the humbuckers but it was really harsh to the point where I had to lower it.
Added a 500K resistor and BAM, could raise it up and it sings. In the 2 and 4 positions I also have the buckers partially split and those positions also have more of the strat quack now.
Finally! I've been waiting for something like this! I've done so much internet scouring to find good info. I've just been using 300k pots on an hss strat I moded. I'll have to try this out!
I'd probably err on the side of brighter resister since pots themselves have tolerances that tend to be lower than their listed value
Thanks Rob! Yeah I also haven't found a similar video that addresses the HSS situation. That fact that you should use one resistor for each single-coil. Cheers //Kris
@Thomann's Guitars & Basses on the topic of new video ideas, I'd love to see a video on dummy coil solutions for sss, hss, and tele setups! Maybe look at wiring a dummy coil in either series or parellel, which affects the amount of high end, or looking at having one or 2 dummy coils. Also, look at making your own coil out of a cheap chinese pickup.
That's another area where I haven't found a good solution anywhere.
@@123Ir0nman Up!!! It would be really great!! Hope them help us through another video...
@@123Ir0nman Now, I think the PC term for dummy coil is "blamelessly inert" coil. 😜
@@ThomannsGuitarsBasses I recently purchased the hss classic vibe 70s Squier from thomann, do you have any idea whats going on under there and if it need this type of mod you showing us? thanks so much for the eye opener video!!!!
I'll try this out
I ve bought a RG 370AHMZ with Push Pull Pot for Single Coil Sound at Position 1 + 5 ( suhr aldrich Bridge and ibanez V1 Neck Humbucker) This 470 Resistor is built in👍 seems it was a good tech
This might be just what I need for the Schecter PT!
ahhh, back at last. I was missing the GTT. Thanks for this info Kris.
Hi, I purchased a PRSS2 Vella semihollow guitar, and the pick ups are rather chummy a little more than I would like I have been researching the best pick ups for the guitar are trying to, however, finding combinations is not as easy as I had anticipated I am thinking about just contacting Fralin And seeing if he can custom wand me a set of his blues boy, tea, style neck, and a bridge pick up with a PAF sort of tone it’s his own original, and they give off a fantastic jazz tone as well and that’s kind of the reason I purchased the guitar I was hoping to do more with it from a jazz perspective, but I still need to use it because I only have three guitars, and I am not the richest musician. I am a student, going to Berkeley and truly playing my fingers to the bone all day and in a bar all night it seems never ending lol thanks again for the demo and the information. If you have any suggestions for pick up combinations, that would give me those blues and jazzy tones, or a pick up maker that you like I would love to hear any feedback. Thanks again for the great demo. Like I said, I appreciate the information. 4:58 5:06
I have a tele I'm putting a p90 in the neck of, and a Seymour Duncan Quarter Pound in the bridge. It apparently sounds best with 500k pots, but I'm so ready for this mod...my tele actually already has it with its current humbucker
Can I also do this for coil splitting? My guitar has 500k Volume and tone knob.
i love my hss harley benton strat. its my dream guitar.
Idk I dont get an ice picky sound on my single coils after swapping over to an hss style strat, I took my middle and neck single coil out of my 1993 Mexican strat and added a humbucker from my old arbor that I saved after putting dark moon pickups in that guitar. My strat sounds like a beast, even when soloing
Hi there! I see your tutorials, but I would like to see a diagram of that HSS , 1 vol and 1 tone wiring, Thanks!
Same here!
Great video! My concern has been about the tone pot. Actually it is a third resistance in the wiring. Nobody seems to talk about it, all the concern goes only to the volume pot. So my question is, how does the pot value influence on the overall resistance therefore the sound? Thanks
Great! Thank you for this clear explanation.
I think it's a bit tricky in case of coil splitting of a humbucker...
Partial splitting the humbucker instead of full splitting would help. I'm pretty sure he has a video of that in this series as well
Not really
First video tackling the famous HSS tone problem
From Thomann, maybe. This is commonly known stuff if you ever just googled it.
And HS problème too... 😂
@@thecappy Ya lost me. Is it commonly known, or do I have to google it?
@@thecappyThis is the easiest solution I've found. Some people say use 300k for everything. Others have complicated switching.
Just use a 500/250k stacked pot from fender
Could it be done backwards? Could I add a 250k ohm in series to the humbucker for it to see the pot + 250k ohm and then function as a 500k???
@Thomann's Guitars & Basses How about a cheap guitar like a Squier Bullet Mustang that comes from the factory with 250K pots and two humbuckers, and let's say I put a single coil in the neck to make it an HS pickup layout? Following your logic, in this case the single coil would be "balanced", but what about the humbucker in the bridge then? For that matter, I think the two factory humbuckers sound fine with the 250K pots. Cheers!
Hey, I wouldn't overthink this whole subject. If a humbucker sounds great with a 250k pot and works great with a neck single-coil, just stick to it. TBH this Harley Fusion-III (the HSS guitar) sounds great without the resistor mod so I leave it as it is. This mod is only relevant if you feel like the pickups need to be balanced better. Cheers //Kris
I have a SSH guitar, almost exactly as in the video. I always wondered what it does when the switch is in position 4. Is it middle pick up and humbucker, or does it split coil on the humbucker? If the last is the case, would be be possible to rewire it and make it always split coil? Thanks
What about the cap? Do you just have to pick one and deal with it being less than ideal for the H or S?
What if your HSS guitar only has a volume control? I have a Fernandes LA 85-KK (L'Arc~en Ciel) Ken signature and that's how it's wired, with a coil tap.
Hi Kris, I have a question (and a story) for the next Q&A:
We, the metalheads are known for not (or maybe sometimes) using the tone pot. I was recently watched a video (coffee with Ola), with his guest (Chris Broderick) and he said that on his guitar he activates the tone pot with a push/pull pot (when he pull it, the tone pot is activated and when it's not it's just not working, so it's like a tone kill... or something), so, please respond to me/us and if you want/can to explain this circuit (with a wiring diagram). Thanks... a lot. God bless you!
What about an adjustable resistance to fit with the pots values? Would it be feasible?
How about HSS with coil split? Same? Resistor on Neck and Middle? Also, I am super confused on polarity. I have Neck South, Middle North, Bridge North/South. Is that correct? Or should my humbucker be South/North. Also the electrical polarity...Neck and Middle are Lollar and the bridge is SD. I am not sure if they are correctly configured.
I have a H-S fender tele. Neck is WAY louder and warmer, bridge is weak and dull. Any ideas?
Hi, i got one question, in a HSS strat with 1 vol and 1 tone ,what cap sould i use, .022 or .047 ? tnk u !
Beware the two resistor HSS solution if you like middle+neck "quack".
Adding two 470k resistors to a 500k pot in an HSS guitar will give you ~250k in the middle position and neck position, but will further drop the impedance down to ~160k in the middle+neck position. That has the potential to affect the strat "quack" in the middle+neck position by reducing it from the more traditional 250k impedance as you would see in an SSS pickup config.
Yes, it needs to be tested and the value might have to be different to get the result you want. In this case with my green T-style the middle position is perfect, even though both pickups are active. I was expecting it to sound a little too dark but it wasn't the case. So it's best trying out different value resistors to find the best solution. Cheers //Kris
I believe in a normal strat SSS configuration, you would have the same resistance. As far as I concern, it would be the same. 🤔
@@marcusvaladao9839 It doesn't matter if the pickups are HSS or SSS. If you add the impedance of the pots and resistors in parallel in the middle+neck position with SSS, it will still reduce the total impedance as described. It would even be the same if you had HHH pickups. The impedance to ground comes from the pots and resistors, not the type of pickups.
You can get avoid this by using a Fender Strat/Tele 5-way Super Switch. This allows you to wire resistor(s) to the switch position rather than the pickup itself, meaning you can avoid having two resistors connected while in positions 2 and 4.
Thanks for the video, I am hoping to try this on a Squier '51 soon. For the t-style guitar, would the tone pot also be 500k in this scenario or would it be 250k?
the formula he used is for parallel resitances, if you want exactly 500k, you can add resistors in series of each other in order to make up 500k
Question: would this mod tame the dual MFD pickups in my G&L ASAT Special ?
Now I understand why my HSS sounds like hot garbage, thanks for the insight.
Great insight on pots and resistors! I never figured that could make so much difference. Now would that apply the other way around? I have a strat style that I use for hard rock and while I'd like main riffing on the bridge beefy and humbucky I'd like to switch to the neck pickup for soloing and get that clean attack that fenders have (think Blackmore or even Malmsteen, but just for neck soloing) so it could be considered a 2 guitars in 1 concept in some way. I take it that the output volume stays more or less the same and that the main difference is tonal. Should I try and use a 500K pot and cap off the neck pickup with a resistor to make it warmer or would that kill the "strat neck pickup" experience? I don't want to make the difference between pickups all that evident but I sure want a single coil neck pickup sound for some soloing at any given time. Thanks!
But the volume pot still remains 500k, right?
If you do it only to your tone pot, it’s like having 500k volume and 250k tone with the bridge.
This is a great video, thank You Kris!!
You should do a setup reveal for someone like Per Nilsson or Tosin Abasi, something with an 8 string.
I have a 470k resistor, but it's smaller in size. Would it still work?
Hi, there are bunch of 470 or 550k ohm resistors like 1/4W, 1/2W or 2W. May I ask which watt option did you use?
Yeah, I wonder the same thing
1/4 W is all you need. Higher power dissipation is not needed for this job and the higher power resistors will be bigger and more costly.
@@ianparr1533 thanks a lot
I just wonder, if an HSSS Config on a Strat style guitar would work and makes sense at all!? So, for example a Seymour Duncan JB Jr. + 3 Fender noiseless single coils... asking for a friend 🤭
I have a question for „the other way around“:) I habe a tele that I installed a 4-way switch to and I was asking myself if there was a way to balance the pseudo-humbucker out?
Wow, that's a great question. I hope someone can jump in and share their experience. I can't think of a good way of balancing that out. The problem I see here is, that what ever you do for that position of the switch (the series humbucker wiring) will effect other "normal" positions too since it's not an actual humbucker but the two singles wired in series. I hope that makes sense to you. Cheers //Kris
Thank you for this information! It is really helpful. Question: What about if you’re coil splitting humbuckers? Is it the same principle where you add a 560k resistor to the ground? Thanks again!
I'm planning on doing a strat mod turning it from SSS to HSH, but with a hot rail in middle position
DiMarzio recommends 500k volume and tone pots for the fullsize humbucker, but for the hot rail the recommend 500k for the volume and 250k for the tone pot
How do I make sure the hot rail will see 250k on the tone pot only?
Honestly, I wouldn't worry about that too much. Try it with 500k pots in every position. First of all tone pot values have a little less impact on the sound than volume pots and the hot rail is a humbucker so it should do fine with 500k. Cheers //Kris
Can I do this with a 3-way toggle switch?
Can you do a video with 10 Free ways switches + resistant?
huge help, thank you!
Hi Kris, great video .... as always!
I will try the mod for a Tele, Humbucker at neck , Single Coil at bridge.
But what is not clear to me why the added Resistor ist not influencing the Humbucker when the switch is in middle position.
Can you please explain this or provide a small circuit diagram? Quick and dirty hand paint is enough.
Hi, the humbucker probably sees the resistor in the middle position since the whole circuit is "active". So it has to have a slight effect on it. It's just not audible so I don't mind it. That's the reason why I tested it in the video. It feels and sounds natural so all is good. :) Cheers //Kris
@@ThomannsGuitarsBasses Hi Kris, thanks for the fast reply. I also have the impression that it sounds good. I just wanted to understand the circuit with my weak electronical basics ;-) I think I will order some resistors and will try the mod, it's not such a big "soldering deal" :-) Cheers Stefan
Is there a mod if you have a split coil?
Is it not true that by adding 470k resistor to a 500k pot you increase the whole resistance to 970k? I don't understand how adding 470k resistor make the pickup "see" 250k. Can you add a schematic how it is exactly connected and how it works? What pot was in that second hss guitar and what resistor should be used ?
in series you add the two resistors , in parallel you have to use the equation in the video
Great video as always. But I have a question on my Strat hotrod vintage 62 from 2007, I have replaced the bridge single coil by a Dimarzio Choper, but I have kept the original pot (250k) and works fine like that, at least from my taste :) and correct me if I'm wrong but on the Yngwie Malmsteen signature strat he is using humbuckers (DiMarzio HS-3 or Seymour Duncan Fury depending the year) but with 250K pots and seems not to cause him headache lol
hey, nice videos btw. How about on Ibanez AZ, with the Dynamix 9, will it effect the tone when the alter switch is on?
Very subtle difference at best.
What? I heard a substantial difference in the treble drop with the mod
i have the harley benton hss strat in candy red.
And what a guitar, right? I ordered this guitar for this video recording and kept it in the studio ever since. :) And that's where it will stay for a while, I love it. Cheers //Kris
i adore mine. i would like another one but saving up to buy one. harley benton guitars are awesome
why don't solder the resistor on the wires of the pickup itself instead of trying to fit it on the selector? It can be easy to fit inside the Guitar. Hugs from Brazil!!
Thanks for your videos man. I’m binge watching it since yesterday 😅. Really really helpful. Anyway I have a question, if you put the resistor to the single coil. Will it also drop the output?
nope, not at all. The only change is the amount of treble that comes through in that position of the switch. Which is exactly what we want for the single-coil. :) //Kris
@@ThomannsGuitarsBasses I do wonder why though. Because with this mod, we're essentially we're sending part of the tone straight to ground, right?
Just wondering because I did this mod and it feels like (although I didn't measure) my single coils are maybe 10% softer. Probably going to adjust the pickup heights abit later
In an hs configuration with a 3-way selector, would this mod also affect the humbucker since they are connected to each other?
Only in the middle position of the switch. That's not really an issue though, as you can hear in the test the middle position is still fine on the t-style guitar. The P90 also wants to see 500k, same as a humbucker yet the middle position sounded great. //Kris
Why not dial down the tone knob?
What happened with the Dullahan colors??
Actually, it is easy to get a value of 500K (500,000) ohms. All that is needed is to use two 1M (1,000,000) ohm resistors in parallel. Being in parallel is just how it sounds. Connect one end of the a resistor to one end of the other resistor and the opposite end of the first resistor to the other end of the second. This makes the value of them half of the original value of each, so 1M ohm becomes 500K ohms when both are in parallel. You can get near to the value by putting two resistors in series. When in series the values simply add together. You can get very close to 500K ohms by putting a 470K ohm resistor in series with a 27K ohm resistor for a total value of 497K ohms. To put them in series just connect one end of each resistor together and then solder them in as you would just one resistor.
So it’s in parallel to the volume pot?
Exactly. Cheers //Kris
I have just returned a PAF because it ruined the middle-bridge sound on my strat, so I replaced it with a Seymour Duncan SSL-5 and it causes the same issue! I want quack in positions 2 and 4. Ideas?
You can use the auto split wiring scheme so that in position 2 you get one coil of the bridge instead of the whole bridge. Another possibility is that your single coil pickups could be out of phase with the bridge humbuckers you were using. If that's the case you can try switching the ground and hot wires on both single coils and see if that does the trick
@@123Ir0nman if I rotated the SSL-5 in the bridge by 180 degrees, could that fix it? The base plate of the SSL5 is rectangular so it’s possible to install it 180 degrees wrong.
@Lysander Lives Here rotating it won't change the phase since the wires would still be winding in the same direction and magnets would still be the same polarity. You would need to swap the start and end wires around. So instead of black as hot and green to ground, you swap them around, black to ground, green to hot. If that doesnt do it then the magnet would be need to be flipped but I dont recommend doing that yourself because you could break the pickup. (The colors are in reference to the Seymour Duncan color code since your using a SD humbucker)
@@123Ir0nman Thank you for the explanation. I had a 50% chance of getting it right!
On the SSL-5 I have two wires, one white and one black and I copied the black-ground (back of pot) and white to switch, as with the existing Raw Vintage single coils that are in the guitar, as that seemed the obvious choice.
It would be nice if makers standardised their colour coding for old farts like me, who haven’t needed to think much about magnets since school and who still don’t read the instructions. I’m getting a really thin and toneless sound instead of a quack from bridge-middle at the moment and the same thing happened with the Raw Vintage PAF I returned. Good job I kept the soldering iron handy. I’ll be back.
@Lysander Lives Here ah good that it's 2 wire. Just make sure the bare ground wire still gets hooked up to ground because that grounds out the base plate and pickup cover if there is one.
Great tips 🙏 But that’s why we need more guitars… so we don’t need to do soldering 😂 right 😂
And you don't have to worry about the tone pot?
This is great. So you just put resistors in parallel with the pickup hot lead?
That sounds so easy you wonder why they don't do that.
Nah, Chris, we all know Tele bridge p/up needs a 1 Meg volume pot!
So it's a 1M pot and a 1M resistor for the neck P90.
😂
Def better after the mod
Dont see them on website
Do you mean the resistors? Thomann doesn't sell them (at least not yet). You'll find resistors in electronic components shops everywhere, they are really affordable. Just look for the values mentioned in this video. Cheers //Kris
Am I missing something?? Isn’t a P90 a single coil pickup? Don’t P90’s use 250k pots already??
Hi, technically P90s are single coils but they sound very different and traditionally they want to "see" a 500k volume pot. That's how Gibson introduced them in their guitars in the 50s.
If you want a P90 to sound very warm you can of course use it with 250k pots but most players won't enjoy that too much. Cheers //Kris
Shame that Thomann sell caps, pots and switches but not resistors.... they could just chuck them in with caps as they are just a couple of cents each. C'mon Thomann, love your store but give us some resistors :)
The tone difference from 250k to 500k is minimal. Simply adjust pickup height to level their volume and it's fine
Hi Kris, thank you for another great video! Question: i have a HSS strat the electronics of which is already modded a bit. I added a switch that in one position splits the bridge H pickup (to achieve something similar to SSS) while in the other position it switches the bridge to H and connects the mid and neck pickups in series (to achieve something similar to HH). I have 1 master volume and 1 master tone. Where would you put these extra resistors in a setup like this? Many thanks in advance.
cool paintjob on that guitar
If the pickup is too bright.....
....................i just roll down the tone knob.................
You know, I didn’t totally dislike the 500k pot on the Tele bridge pickup though. 🤔
Becoming a dieing art in the southern US, not many brick and mortar fronts to find an instrument much less get a part......
p90 is single coil pup
Ah, so the resistor is in parallel to the pot, gotcha 👌
Isn’t this more of a fix than a mod? Why wouldn’t guitar makers apply this as standard.
They don't do this by standard because not all HSS guitars have this issue. For example this blue Harley sounds just fine without the resistor. This is more of an issue if you swap original pickups or when your taste simply doesn't match the makers' idea of tone. //Kris
OMG the wiring of that "Telecaster" is embarassing.
my name is Jack???