Whats your belief? A or B

[Cree]

Followed the suggestions at Stewmac's as to what Pots to use where? They suggest Audio taper on Volume and Linear on the tone. So I wired my new stuff up and it just does not sound right, a real abrupt volume and almost no tone change at all ( .047 cap and it is good, checked with good digit meter and wired right)   So I checked all my wiring connections double checked and all is good. Did some searching and found some say to wire your Strat with the pots the other way. So, which is best A or B for Volume? A or B for tone?

[pompeiisneaks]

I think it's a personal opinion, mixed with the specific amp.  Some people prefer A for vol and B for tone, others the other way around and some even swear by A only.  As far as wiring goes, you can wire them one of three ways ususally.

1. forwards
2. backwards
3. wrong :P there are many ways to get it wrong. 

If the pot sounds like up is up and down is down, you've got it right.  Things like tone should shed some treble as you roll them to the left but increase in brightness going to the right.

Edit: forgot to add, you can wire it as a 'resistor' if you just connect between 1 and 3.  but basically you should be able to tell quickliy if the pots are working or not, or if they're backwards. 

Pots can be wired either as a variable resistor if you wire through 1 or 3 and to the wiper, or as a voltage divider if the input comes to wiper and output goes to both 1 and 3.

~Phil

[jjasilli]

See:  http://guitarnuts2.proboards.com/thread/7185/taper-pots-roll  :  "we don't normally use linear pots as tone controls. . . "


and other threads on that site

[jeff]

 When you say no tone change at all do you mean no difference between 10 and 0, or not much change as you turn it then super dark when you get to 0? If it's the first then definitely double check wiring, something's wrong.


 I just rewired my guitar with 500K Audio tone pots. What I've noticed is not much change in tone til I get to about 4. I think Linear would be even worse. What I'm starting to believe is the problem is not the taper but the resistance value. Consider this: a tone pot is wired as a variable resistor. When a 500K pot is set to 7 then the resistance goes from 500K to 250K. I hear absolutely no difference in tone from 10 to 7. Since the tone pot is a variable resistor, and I don't hear any difference between a 500K on 10 thru 7, if I replace the 500K with a 250K then the 250K at 10 will sound exactly like the 500K at 7 and I'll have a smoother roll off  from 10 to 0. Instead of having to roll back past 7 and keep going to hear a change it be starting at 7. I really think the problem is value, not taper. I don't know, just a thought.

[davidwpack]

This is what I've been wondering lately: is a 500k push/pull pot 250k when in split-coil mode? Or is the single coil still looking at 500k? I asked a couple of players and they had no idea.

[pompeiisneaks]

This is what I've been wondering lately: is a 500k push/pull pot 250k when in split-coil mode? Or is the single coil still looking at 500k? I asked a couple of players and they had no idea.

A push pull pot's switch operation has nothing to do with the pot functions.  The push pull part is just a switch that enables or disables one half of the two coils in the pickup.  The potentiometer is still just a volume function and the only part of the circuit that changes is the on off switch that switches between one or two coils of the pickup.  That simple :)

~Phil

[davidwpack]

Oh, ok. It would be really cool if it did work that way though.

[Cree]

 When you say no tone change at all do you mean no difference between 10 and 0, or not much change as you turn it then super dark when you get to 0? If it's the first then definitely double check wiring, something's wrong.

Here is what it does, at 0 the tone is dark as you turn up to just past 4 it's bright. from 4 to 10 no change that I can tell or hear . I have ordered new audio pots to replace the linear pots. Just haven't had the - tear it all back down geddy up to do it right yet, . Just gonna live with it for a bit.