How To Change Pickups on Your Ibanez RG - Full Tutorial

In this video you'll learn how to install new pickups on your loved RG to get the tone you always wanted from it. It doesn't require special tools or skills so it's a great project to get into the awesome world of guitar mods. Enjoy!
If you like my videos please consider becoming a Patron and help me keep producing more content and improving quality - you'll gain access to exclusive features too!
/ inspiringtracks
Useful products to take care of your guitar
Lemon oil for ebony/rosewood fretboards: amzn.to/2KURljz
Cleaner for all your guitar: amzn.to/3n2uHTX
Feeler Gauges: amzn.to/38k83ki
Measuring caliper/vernier: amzn.to/2Wt4CT2
Set of allen keys: amzn.to/38aYaFG
Guitar capo: amzn.to/38DIeMk
Clip on tuner (great for quick tuning during the setup): amzn.to/3ptD1h4
Plug in tuner (for precise intonation adjustment): amzn.to/3pumXvg
------------------------------------------
Links:
www.seymourdun...
3d Printed plastic wrenches: www.thingivers...
All backing tracks of the video - in order of appearance:
Powerful Alternative Stoner Rock - Guitar Backing Track (B Dorian)
• Powerful Alternative S...
Powerful Slow Dark Metal (drop C) - Guitar Backing Track
• Powerful slow Dark Met...
Emotional and Epic Guitar Backing Track (D)
• Emotional and Epic Gui...
Quarantine special - Epic Emotional Modern Guitar Backing Track (F)
• Quarantine special - E...
If you liked some of this tracks, please consider support my work by purchasing it in Band Camp - inspiringtrack... - It´s only 75 cents and you're helping me A LOT to produce more tracks like this, plus you can download it to your computer in hi-res formats including mp3, flac and wav. Thanks in advance!!!
------------------------------------------
Follow me on Instagram: / inspiringtracks
Follow me on Twitter: / inspiringtracks
Follow me on Facebook: / inspiringtracks
Greetings from Argentina!
Juan Pablo - Inspiring Tracks

[@InspiringTracks]

The second part of this video is now available! There you can learn how to replace all the circuit of your Ibanez using high quality parts, professional wiring and even some cool mods! check it out kzbin.info/www/bejne/gpawpYWugMyrbJY

[@lazyguitarAF]

Hello inspiring Tracks. I bought a used guitar with modded pickups. Both Neck pickups are rated at 4.0K and 4.5K through cable. However when I read the components with a multimeter, I tapped Ground and Hot at the bridge/neck and is really 4K and 4.5K. However when I tap Hot and Bridge Tap in Ibanez 3SWLSP5 switch, I saw 8K and 9K N/B. Is there a miswiring perhaps? Edit : Its a 4-5 wire humbucker. And I read the wirings through the switch since its a burden to desolder.

[@alternative444]

Funny... I came here to see how to install new pickups on my Ibanez RG 570EX to replace the exact pickups you installed as an upgrade. Thanks for the video!

[@tallthom]

Super clear explanation of how to replace the pickups. Thank you for spending the time to make this video. I learned a lot.

[@JohnWalczakII]

I only have 2 double stack coils that i swapped for Seymour Duncan Jupiter rails. It was so powerful i had to insulate underneath the pick ups, it was picking even inside the guitar up too well and sounded too hollow until i stuffed it. The Jupiter pick ups were only set to be wired for phase wiring as opposed to my parallel stock set up. The double stack upgrade fit right in where the double stack single coils were and rails still are considered the hum buck noise reduction design. I'm not missing anything now even with string bends. My model not having a tremolo arm has some very stable extremely low tone abilities. I've transformed my GIO into a mid grade guitar now. I suppose the neck is next... Kind of want to jump from maple, not sure if other woods are worth it, and i can't afford carbon fiber graphite so we will see where we end up in time. Again though. The guitar in this video i am impressed with and i didn't know you could have 2 double stacks with lone single coils in the middle. i was told more than 4 pick ups might not sound well but it seems like any mod is discouraged these days. Not everyone can just jump right to a $1k guitar.

[@davewilliams2405]

Excellent video as usual, very well put together and with great close up shots!

[@InspiringTracks]

Thanks, I really appreciate your feedback

[@HidrodemolicionEPT]

Man, your guitar tone Is amazing! Greetings from México city.

[@TheMeJustMe75]

The pickups you are putting in as an example are the ones I want to get rid of. I loved how they sounded over 20 years ago but now they just sound rough.

[@ansmfella]

Amazing work putting this together for us! An inestimable help. Thank you so much! 😎🎸

[@InspiringTracks]

Thanks! Glad you found it helpful!

[@D-8-Tone2]

It is a really inspiring track/video! Gr8! Thx

[@InspiringTracks]

Thanks! Glad you liked it!!!

[@ganjarseo]

Very detailed tutorial; it is really helpful. Thanks!

[@motarski]

Great Video. Thank you for sharing. There are people like me with two left hands unfortunately when it comes to soldering stuff so we have to pay for a technician :)

[@InspiringTracks]

Glad you liked it and there's nothing wrong with that, technicians also needs to eat lol

[@ionaka]

The Ibanez is the closest setup I have with the Squier/Fender. This video helped out a great deal! Do you have a preference for the north/south orientation of the neck and bridge pickups?

[@brandopiansay9557]

Good....tutorial easy to catch up...thanks.

[@samersaimeh]

Thank,s good work and absolute professional.

[@InspiringTracks]

Thanks, glad you liked it!

[@samersaimeh]

I have marshal (dsl40c)...how can I belittled humming to get full pure sound...thanks .

[@thepresence1349]

Awesome 👍👏👏

[@InspiringTracks]

Thanks!

[@DonPual]

Help i tried i have a black ibanez rg120 how do I the pick no sound I tapped it with a metal screwdriver no sound I solder it to the switch and volume pod new puckups

[@stevecolledge8355]

Brilliant

[@InspiringTracks]

Thanks!!

[@michaelp8856]

Take a picture of your cavity with everything hooked up before disassembling

[@alexanderpuente8552]

Are there specific type of humbuckers that are compatible with ibanez guitars? Or is it a universal size that fit in every guitar that uses humbuckers pickups?

[@mwworkman]

Great video. I know all of the bare wires are ground. But which white wire was soldered together with all of the bare wires to the pot?

[@michaellleverino]

middle - single pickup

[@pzdipuing]

Hello sir can i used emg pickup on my ibanez rg series guitar.Never change pickup before...

[@mindfever6285]

Thank you

[@InspiringTracks]

Glad you liked it!!

[@mindfever6285]

@@InspiringTracks did it significantly improve the sound quality?

[@InspiringTracks]

In my case yes, the stock pickups where too muddy for my taste. I know lots of people don't like the V8 and V7 pups but they are pretty decent in my opinion

[@floraframes]

Noob question. I just picked up a 1998 RG220 to restore. Still learning all part names and components but what kinds of pickups will fit this guitar and give it a good clean tone? If anyone could give some advice that’d be awesome, thanks

[@AntonioCavicchioni]

Very useful!

[@InspiringTracks]

Thanks!!!!

[@jacksguitarplanet]

Hi. This is very helpful. I have one question. Where does the black wire go that is soldiered to the tab on the left SIDE of the switch? Not one of the eight, but on the side. Is the a ground? I did notice that there are two black wires that exit a hole near the bridge. One goes to the claw. Is the other supposed to connect to the side of the switch? Right now I have it on the back of the volume pot with the other ground wires. Thanks

[@OneEcchiBoi999]

What kind of foam did you use?

[@Easystreet208]

So on my Ibanez RG350 i am going to a Bridge only Pick up ( dimarzio 100 Hot ) I am removing the Neck and middle pickup. Any recommendation on wiring for that? I would like to just have a volume knob and not use the switch and tone knob? Do I have to leave the switch Coil in for a ground? Then just wire up the humbucker 4 coil as a series connection?

[@manny75586]

I look forward to trying this and having to take another guitar to the luthier to fix my mistakes…no I will never learn. Haha

[@dandresaldi]

great video, I have a question, I'm changing the pickups of my Ibanez RG prestige that has VLX91 switch, I bought the Utopia pickups and the single coil middle pickup has 3 wires(red, black and bare) instead of the 2(black and white) that the True Velvet I'm taking out has. Can I assume the black should go to the same place the black from the true velvet was and then the red to where the white was? What should I do with the bare that the other pickup didn't have?

[@InspiringTracks]

To be 100% sure check the manufacturer website, they should have detailed schematics for all of their pickups. The bare should be shielding, you can solder it to the back of one of the pots to get a good ground connection

[@dandresaldi]

@@InspiringTracks thanks, first I connected everything like it was with the other pickups(I just left the bare going nowhere) and sounded great, then I soldered the bare to ground and nothing changed, I’m happy with the sound of the Utopia, specially that single coil sounds amazing on clean. This video was very helpful for my first DlY pickup change and now I want to do more, I will do a full makeover of an old Ibanez I have with the pickups I took of the prestige, I want to change potentiometers and install everything new , I already saw another of your videos where you do something similar 👍🏼

[@waneboklyngdoh7950]

How to adjust edge zero 2 tremelo and intonation

[@soundshack33]

The song sounds along like bad horsie

[@manoeljonas7918]

what you think about the V8 and V7 pickups?

[@cockers6682]

Total crap

[@aftermath844]

Evolution pickups???

[@samersaimeh]

You used the same volume 500k or 100k,or you must change another k ohm.

[@InspiringTracks]

I used the same pots. The standard value for humbuckers is 500k

[@samersaimeh]

Ihave some buzzing in my ibanese (little),,,itried to earthing it ,it done but still little.....thanks alot ..

[@bcltdinc.8919]

Not sure how changing pickups had anything to do with removing your saddle and neck You just needed to take the strings out

[@InspiringTracks]

It's explained in the video itself...you don't need to, but it made my work a lot easier

[@amrielkissner906]

The track should be called Naughty Pony

[@heikkipt]

:D

[@Lespaul13100]

Hi! Great work! Listen , I have a Dragonfire Crusader pickup (humbucker) that I put in the bridge of my Ibanez 321 MH, and I don't think I connected the wires correctly. I reversed the green hot and the black ground ( I think that is the correct color codes), it sounded ok, but, I didn't solder the red and white coil split wires to the 5 way switch. Now the other tones ( meaning the other 4) don't sound good at all. How do I correct that. Any help would be great! Thx!

[@mo8755]

The greater the blob , tge better the job 🤔

[@InspiringTracks]

Always

[@dr.wild5371]

I know this is about wiring new pickups, but why didn't you take time to clean all the crap and grime off the body, inside the body and the pickups themselves. You should have taken time the to shield the pickup cavities. Unless you like playing really dirty guitars. I would have taken the time to clean the complete guitar, neck , frets everything while I had it apart. Unless you were doing this job for someone else. Then that cost. Bring in a dirty guitar leave with a dirty guitar. Come in clean leave clean.

[@dariuszcislo6233]

To głupie, nie ma potrzeby demontażu gryfu i mostka. Poza tym autor filmu nie ma pojęcia jak należy pracować z lutownicą. Generalnie dużo niepotrzebnej pracy, można to zrobić szybciej i profesjonalnie bez konieczności demontażu całej gitary.

[@louis-jeanbraye9834]

:)