How to Wire CTS Push Pull Pots

[@stevevaughn2040]

I am a happy fella cuz of this. I worked for Marlan and Rosemary Bourns. Inventors of the Trimpot. They were good people. Bourns, my division did semiconductors, was, and is, serious about quality.

[@SixStringSupplies]

Bourns are great 👍

[@georgescarlett2320]

Quite simple, mate, when YOU explain it, clear as "MUD" elsewhere! Thanx

[@AlexSosaBolivia]

One of the few tutorials I've seen that shows the orientation of the DPDT switch, with the shaft pointing DOWN. The typical DPDT diagram just shows the 6 poles; apparently it's supposed to be common knowledge which way the switch itself is orientated when referencing against a diagram LOL. Thanks for this.

[@dstrats]

Thanks so much for this vid. I’m a guitar tech dealing with the CTS for the 1st time. A great help! All the best.

[@dstrats]

@Hudson Aaron Seems pretty risky to me. Opening a box that could be just what you fear is happening already. If you can’t trust the girl, don’t hack into her app. Sit down and talk, discuss the trust issues. Maybe let the relationship go. It’s not worth the anxiety and stress of untrusting your partner bro. Thanks for the information of the app though. All the best.

[@david-no]

@@dstrats what

[@soundofbeers]

The c1 and c2 refers to 'common 1' and 'common 2' as the middle two pins are called 'commons'. These pins are always engaged be it in the push or pull position, hence that name.

[@12south31]

In my shop I charge $175 to gut an Epiphone or similar guitar and replace everything, pot, caps, wires, jack and switch with CTS and Switchcraft components. Price includes installation and parts and includes a basic set up. My customers seem happy with the price but I wanted to see how it compares to other places. Any comments?

[@SixStringSupplies]

I think that’s a very fair price. We charge $110/£85 depending on the exchange rate just for the harness. We import from the US so components might be a bit pricier than for you guys. But that’s just for the harness. We don’t install them or setup guitars so I think your price is very good. Just my 2 cents. Thanks for watching

[@12south31]

@@SixStringSupplies Thank you very much for the reply. My competition is 2 major chain guitar stores and I try to offer a more fair alternative for pricing and wait time to my customers but I am In business to make money. Just want to be fair. Thanks again.

[@DethMetalGuitars]

Hello, I can't find an answer to this anywhere on the internet. I want to use the CTS push pull as a pickup selector switch. Down being bridge, up being neck. I have a SH6 Duncan with 4 wires and a generic single coil. How should I wire it to accomplish this? I tried using diagrams to deduce how this could work, and got a result where just the bridge worked in both positions and the volume control didn't work, just always on with no control. (edit: grounded outside lug, now the volume works). Help? Still can't figure out how to wire the entire humbucker to down, and up to another pickup. I am just wiring in the humbucker to one spot, and when i pull up, the tone changes but it's still on, no other pickups are connected. I will post an update if I figure it out on my own. Cheers.

[@markdennis6464]

Did you find out how to do this???

[@johngleneicki2331]

I'm wanting to do the same thing - crazy that no one shows how to do this. If I figure it out, I'll pass along how I did it.

[@DethMetalGuitars]

Yeah I never did get that configuration working how I wanted it to. I just moved on to another configuration.

[@billmorris5471]

Very easy to follow, and makes a lot of sense, so thank you for that. However you did not mention one thing in particular which has thrown me for a loop (but you did show the diagram briefly in the video), which is the 9 Way Strat Wiring diagram on your website. The diagram shows the Tone Pots lying on their sides rather than vertically, but there is nothing to indicate which side is right or left, which end is the top or the bottom, and the pins are not numbered, so I have no idea which pins are to be wired. Can this be addressed or corrected on the wiring diaram?

[@gooseabuse]

Hello, your website is very informative but unless I'm wrong there is one possible wiring that is missing. A bypass of both the tone and volume pots. I have a 2017 LP Standard that bypasses all pots and switches when you pull up one of the pots and is just the bridge pickup wide open. I'd like to add this feature to another guitar but with the neck pick up instead. Any help you can offer is greatly appreciated.

[@DaNy_P86]

Hi! if I want to connect two split Humbuckers as master tone, C1 C2 I connect the pickups, the grounding should be 1 and 3... where do I connect the grounding pin? (the bottom left pin or the central one? which becomes the ground?) and the signal that goes to the 5-way selector of a strat? (not so if I explained myself well) ...??

[@profesorxmc]

Hello! Nice video! I am installing to my guitar the mojotone knob for the coilsplit but I am confused about the capacitor. Does it need one or that model does not require a capacitor? I am not able to see anything on any diagram Thanks in advance

[@michaelcraig9449]

Is this push pull pot the same as a 250/500 k one? I want to see a video on a 250/500 k stacked pot and what it is and what it does exactly.

[@neilcharkow5598]

Many wiring diagrams show C1 or C2 to the wires to be grounded (red/white, for example) and 3 or 1 to ground. I find grounding C1 or C3 is easier because they're closer to the metal pot body. Does it matter?

[@jimmygrant3151]

Do you have a video where you are actually soldering on the cuircut board pot?

[@BeauHannamGuitars]

You are a legend!

[@AdnanKoclar]

Thank you, it helps me for combination.

[@torg3481]

On the CTS pot, how do you solder the ground lug, since it can't bend to hit the metal? Would you just use another wire for that purpose?

[@pjevans854]

Did you ever figure this out? I’m curious myself. The bourns I can easily send a ground wire to the side, but the cts is so wide!

[@Farold_Haltermeyer]

I was told the casing can't be ground as it's now aluminium and to ground to the side lugs... Is that right?

[@SixStringSupplies]

No that is not right - you can ground anywhere on the metal casing. Some of these pots used to be zinc coated, which gives a really shiny finish (it was meant to be for anti-corrosion. However, it never took solder well, so it got replaced with tin plating. If you have the zinc finish, you can scrub it away with sand paper where you want to put your solder joint. Thanks for watching.

[@Farold_Haltermeyer]

@@SixStringSupplies gotcha... And thanks for the vids

[@SixStringSupplies]

@@Farold_Haltermeyer you can still ground to the side lugs though 👍

[@Farold_Haltermeyer]

@@SixStringSupplies just given myself a proper headache trying to 50s wire an LP with coil tapped Gibson P90s onto the CTS's...but would've been an even bigger headache without your vids (and quick components shipping) so thanks again

[@frankochoa1811]

I have an early 90's Jackson Rhoads. Stock, it came with 2 humbuckers, one 3 way toggle switch and one volume knob. Is it possible to swap the one volume pot with a push/pull and have the pull for tone and push for volume? Will it work? If so, how?

[@samuelmorin5721]

For the traditional ones the diagrams have you connect 1 and 3 to ground, so what do I do with 1 on the CTS?? The diagrams for the CTS don’t ground 1, just 3

[@altpath]

Love your videos and I bought the same CTS pots you use in your kits because of your videos. I have a question. How can I troubleshoot mine? I wired up my guitar using a Seymour Duncan wiring diagram and the guitar works except the coils don't split. I grounded 1 and 3 and C1 and C2 got the two coil wires from each humbucker respectively. Pulling the pot up does nothing and they are both clearly in series. I just used one pot as a volume and a 3 way switch. That's it.

[@mikefitz3063]

I had the same problem because I never grounded a pole to the pot but now I’m having volume issues

[@altpath]

@@mikefitz3063 going to play around with that pot again tomorrow and see if I can figure out the problem. If it doesn't work I'll just have to use the other one that I had planned for my other guitar.

[@neilcharkow5598]

Did you ever sort this out? I, too, grounded C2 because it was closer to the casing and connected the two coil wires to 3. I haven't strung up my guitar yet so I'm not sure if it will work correctly. It would seem like it shouldn't matter because they're two sides of a on/off switch. The resistance changed a bit on my meter. Thanks for any update you can offer.

[@viy_m]

Is there a way two have 1 push pull pot for 2 humbuckers with independent volume for each? I mean when pushed controls volume of neck hum when pulled controls volume of bridge hum.

[@briw4647]

I've used cts push pull a bourns too. I must say I prefer the bourns too. The cats is easy to solder though like you say. But the bourns feels better.

[@PhoenixUnlimited]

Have you tried the alpha push pull? They feel solid and well made.

[@Rokku16]

I just got a cts 500k for a push pull volume control, the coil splitting works great but volume tappers off real fast, I barely move the volume pot and I am at 0 volume. Any suggestions?

[@robpal67]

with this series/parallel wiring configuration and Dimarzio Super Distortion color code and with the switch in the up position, there is no output.

[@D-8-Tone2]

That would have been nice to see one fully wired up.

[@HavendaleBlvd80]

Are copper shaft pots, better than brass and aluminum?

[@cyaneo7]

Which from the 3 Lugs on the left Graphic is L1 (2:13)?

[@mikefitz3063]

I am struggling to wire up my 59 SD hybrid. I’m following the diagram but I can’t get the volume to turn all the way down...it’s not a cts pot...

[@SixStringSupplies]

Have you ground the outside lug? If not, volume won’t go down

[@mikefitz3063]

Thanks for the reply! Yes I believe it’s a lone solder on the outside lug....maybe I didn’t solder good enough there. I’m gonna wire it up again and try a continuity test...geez I’m so far beyond an e minor chord....

[@Ottonic6]

But you have those in upside down. I do understand, but the confusion isn't how to read the pots... If you look at a wiring diagram (Seymour Duncan) It's hard to tell the orientation that they use.

[@lorencing]

Nice explanation. I am currently choosing between the cts and bourns to use in my nice, old, cheap Ibanez GAX70 instead of the original volume pots. The bourns are quite smaller and would take less space in the cavity, but the cts are full 24mm ... so is there any difference in tone/durability between them? Thx

[@SixStringSupplies]

They're both very high quality. The CTS are probably easier to solder but they're much bulkier - so the Bourns are better for tighter/smaller spaces.

[@INeverWanted2010]

Is it possible to coil tap two humbuckers with one CTS pot? I'm having a lot of trouble with this.

[@jerveman]

Thank you.

[@TheAardvark211]

So when the diagram shows top left, does it mean hole/pin #1 or hole/pin #4?

[@Ottonic6]

Did you ever find out. I assume the ones closest to the pot in the diagram are 1 and 3 just as on the actual pot

[@by.daekeryyy]

Does CTS push pulls B500k exists?

[@stratman9449]

ok...got it...cheers and thx....learned something else....

[@miltonex]

Thank you thank you thank you!!!!

[@onewiththings]

how do you work with the wires? I can get a schematic.

[@garydamsky4620]

Paul Caruso!

[@jaguarsunburst1570]

🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@adrianmorris9743]

:)

[@jo_boo]

Cts to big and bulky I like the Bourns click is nice and smooth, CTS overrated