Tele Pots, Tapers, Wiring, & Pickup Height

[@darwinsaye]

Was hoping you'd address the issue of balanced pickup volume vs setting the heights for the most "quacky" middle position tone. I heard from others and then found out for myself that you have to have the neck pickup lower/quieter than the bridge in order to get that funky quack in the middle position. When I got my Tele, it was set this way, and I raised the neck until the volume of the two pickups was balanced, but then I didn't like the middle tone as much so I lowered the neck back down where it was. Best thing i ever did was the 50s (Les Paul style) wiring mod. I used to be a volume and tone all the way up all the time kind of player. Now I'm constantly riding them both, getting a ton of great tones.

[@PsionicAudio]

"Quack" settings vary a lot depending on the sound of each pickup. Just turn things until you smile.

[@jessehiatt9225]

Built my own tele copy and I uses 52 re issue neck pickup, DiMarzio True Velvet bridge pickup, Fender American Standard switch and jack, NOS Fender 1 MEG volume and tone pots, 50's wiring with vintage correct spec wax push back cloth wire, and vintage spec capacitors. It has a very unique sound to my ears. A good blend of vintage and modern sound.

[@chipsterb4946]

1 Meg “NOS”? Did Fender ever put 1 Meg pots in a Tele?

[@jessehiatt9225]

@@chipsterb4946 if I remember correctly they were in broadcasters for a very brief period and then they would show up in some one offs or limited runs. But never for very long.

[@PsionicAudio]

Yeah, from '69 through the '70s. Not to my taste.

[@jessehiatt9225]

@@PsionicAudio actually with a 52 spec neck pickup and 50s wiring, it actually tames the ice pick in the ear treble that the 1 meg pots are known for

[@endoalley680]

Wow. A telecaster with the plastic top hat selector intact. Amazing.

[@SharpEdgeStandardOfficial]

Great video! 23:15 question about that volume pot mod. I have a tele with “broadcaster” wiring whereas there’s no tone pot just volume and blender to blend the neck into the bridge pup. Full or 10 is just bridge pup and full off is both together. My problem is that it gets dark and muffled when I turn volume down. Was wondering is your mod here would still work on broadcaster type wiring? Also I checked under my plate and the lug 2 wiper lug of the volume pot is already taken by a white wire that does to the output jack and vol lug 1 has the yellow that comes from the blender pot. To do this mod do I just reverse the volume lug 1 and lug 2 then??

[@Strumbum01]

Great demonstration!

[@islanderwinder]

I've been saying it for years ,The bridge pickup can be closer to the strings than the neck pickup . the string vibrates less at the bridge position ...

[@SkyscraperGuitars]

always great info.

[@jessehiatt9225]

Like the vid. Great as always!!!

[@MrYatesj1]

Just found your channel and I am loving the content. Thanks for sharing your wisdom.

[@jz0h4d]

Some measurements on pickup height would be nice.

[@PsionicAudio]

Honestly they would be meaningless. What works for one pickup in one guitar may be terrible for another.

[@PieIX]

Do I understand correctly then that if I find my bridge pup to be too trebly on the g/b/e I have to raise the pup on that side making them closer to the strings? Does that make sense?

[@bstearn1653]

Very informative. Thanks!

[@waynegram8907]

50's wiring is like a built in variable treble bleed circuit because the tone pot is connected to the volume pot wiper, so its output loading? The 50's wiring you don't need to add in a treble bleeder RC network is what you're saying I think

[@gregnewberry4813]

Have you ever tried setting the pickup balance by using a VU meter? Plug into a board, or a DAW and watch either RMS or Peak, and set the Treble and Bass side so they match (Neck) then the same on the Bridge? Great video!!

[@PsionicAudio]

No, my ears are faster. ;)

[@PetraKann]

Jimmy Page uses a Tele for the guitar solo on Stairway To Heaven. Simple guitar big sound

[@MAP448]

What about the kind of tone pot Danny Gatton attempts to recommend without telling you what it is exactly? Can u help finding out what that is?

[@PsionicAudio]

I'm not sure what you're asking.

[@MAP448]

@@PsionicAudio what type of tone pot did Danny Gatton use?

[@PsionicAudio]

Depends on which guitar he was using, but most likely a big standard CTS 250K A (10%). And most likely loosened the torque like I show here. He also liked heavy knurling on his knobs. And he was Danny Gatton. That helps a lot

[@BenPrevo]

I meg linear I think -- almost like a switch ...

[@Billywagner22]

I like Emerson pots. RS are great too. It's getting harder and harder to find them in stock.

[@TheRoiderien]

I would never loosen the contact force in a pot. I have always had success by lowering the viscosity of the grease/oil used in the shaft/bushing. Often, manufacturers will use grease, because they want the pot to have a tight feel. If you spray contact cleaner, De-oxit, or the like into that bushing, and then put in a tiny drop of light machine oil, like 3-in-1, the pot will usually lighten right up.

[@PsionicAudio]

Like I said, be gentle on the contact prongs. I'm not mangling them, just slightly lessening the contact force. They still make good contact with the conductive trace.

[@PsionicAudio]

I misspelled adjustment. Grr. It was a typo, but grr.

[@gregparker1012]

I've often thought I'd like to put a tele tone circuit in an old wah pedal shell. I love the way they wah but I can't do it on the guitar.

[@halhawkins7641]

Common Sense....Lyle applies it to all his wizardry!

[@tomk1tl39]

On my '80s American Tele, I have a 'detent' mid way (50%) thru in the 'tone pot'.......never seen this before.

[@PsionicAudio]

Google TBX circuit

[@tomk1tl39]

@@PsionicAudio Tks for the tip...I never took the plate off this Tele yet....might just take a peek at the wiring setup !

[@michaelruiz3167]

The Super Pots are now available at Stewmac as individuals, just sayin'.

[@PsionicAudio]

Those are Dunlop Super Pots, not the RS ones.

[@efsglass]

👍👍

[@justinpaquette224]

Have you tried the vintage inspired pots? They make them in 280k and 550k and the taper is somewhere between 15-30% I can't remember, I wanna say 20%... but I'm not sure. They are a little stiffer than cts, but I actually prefer that

[@PsionicAudio]

No, but I became aware of them a few weeks back. I'll try them at some point.

[@justinpaquette224]

@@PsionicAudio They also tend to be out of stock from time to time, so I always grab a couple extras every time I order them

[@justinpaquette224]

I really like that they will never read bellow 250 or 500

[@voxpathfinder15r]

@@justinpaquette224 My Nephew had 300k volume pots on his ‘04 SG that both measured low, one was 260k! Modern wiring with glorified 250k pots with 460R&T humbuckers. Talk about mud city!! I replaced one of the tone pots with a 500k CTS push/pull pot. I wired it to go between vintage 50s and modern wiring. Then I got those Gibson 500k vintage taper pots and replaced the volume pots. Along with mojotone vitamin T capacitors wired in reverse. Became a tone monster! At the amplifier speaker, volume increased 9 dB. And tons of highs back in, made the modern wiring way more useful when turning back the volume. And the vintage wiring gave you single coil pickups tones when turning down the tone and volume knobs.

[@justinpaquette224]

@@voxpathfinder15r I can't stand a muddy guitar. That's why I use those vintage inspired 550k or 280k pots for volumes, and also use cts no-load tone pots on all my guitars, and I wire in a passive bass cut to most of my guitars

[@nickbenjamin6527]

I guess you could call linear '50%'?

[@PsionicAudio]

If you want to be correct, sure. ;)

[@nickbenjamin6527]

@@PsionicAudio just not 50% 'taper' ;-) ...does help visualise that 30% is closer to linear than 10% though

[@Satchmoeddie]

We seriously NEED to address the "Fender WIDE RANGE HUMBUCKING PICKUP" designed by Seth Lover to help Fender CBS avoid paying licensing fees to Gibson for 10 or 11 years. In 1981 the Gibson humbucker patent ran out. Seth Lover used copper nickel ferrite magnetic pole pieces with about 20% more windings than in a Gibson bar magnet humbucker. Then there is the 5 position selector super switch or the 4 position switch and myriad switching mods with single coils and humbuckers. I won't even get into the "non-Fender" modern pickups or any custom wound tapped pickups, even though I really do love tapping these Tele pickups at a vintage wind and then laying in some more windings for a hotter less trebly sounding pickup. Gretsch pickups are fun in a Telecaster. More fun than Gibson pickups for my tastes.

[@PsionicAudio]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/rV7Kn52mZtV0gs0

[@DROPTUNED]

that tele with the sticker marks belongs to Bonamassa this days...

[@PsionicAudio]

Not yet!

[@sempercompellis]

one of the only faults Leo made IMHO was to put audio pots in the volume of his guitars- i much prefer linear..

[@jakeella]

Tune up before you shoot the video? : )

[@PsionicAudio]

I do hundreds of videos. They are almost all in tune.

[@Fireman9143]

It sounded like you said linear when you meant audio, and vice versa. Do you have a video that shows the electrical changes of what's happening with each type of pot?

[@PsionicAudio]

I did not. ;) I included a link in the description to A2 Guitars' video that shows that stuff on meters etc.

[@RedArrow73]

4:10 - I think I lost 10 dB in my right ear.