Guitar pot values.

[newfish]

Morning All,

I have a quick question about the value of the pots in my Telecaster.

Currently, they're stock 250k.

I understand that from 1950 / 60-something, Fender used 1Meg pots for the Volume and Tone controls in Telecasters.

I also understand that with the stock 250s, there is a small amount of leakage to ground at all times (maybe, yes?).

I always had in mind that the stock Gibson value was 500K, whereas Fenders was 250K - each giving a slightly different impedance at '10', and therefore a different cut-off frequency.

Pickups are a pair of GFS Alnico 50's - so no outrageously high-output humbuckers to contend with.

Has anyone else changed theire guitar wiring for 500K / 1 Meg pots?   If so, what did you find please?

[Johan]

there is no "leak to ground" just using a different value pot, it just loads the pickup a little differently...lower value may eat a tiny bit of the highes frequencys, but that might not be a bad thing. bigger value increase the risk of noise being picked up by the cable and electronics.
Gibson switched to 300k linear pots for volume july 1, 1973...only "historic" custom shop models like 57 and 59 les paul use 500k for volume

j

EDIT: ..if you're using Gibson's 57Classic pickup, I'd recomend changing to a 500k volume in you LP. they sound a little dull and tired going throu 300k..to my ears...

[zombiwoof]

Don't change to 500k/1meg pots unless you find your pickups too dark, the higher value pots will increase the treble response.  This is why humbuckers usually use 500k pots, because they are generally darker sounding than single coils.  Also, in regard to Gibson using 300k linear pots in their current production guitars, a lot of people now change those out to 500k audio taper pots, as the 300k pots make the pickups sound darker and the linear taper is very bad if you use distortion a lot.  Some players like the linear taper, but usually they are "clean" players (jazz guys and such).

Al

[Paul Marossy]

Morning All,

I have a quick question about the value of the pots in my Telecaster.

Currently, they're stock 250k.

I understand that from 1950 / 60-something, Fender used 1Meg pots for the Volume and Tone controls in Telecasters.

For many years now, usually 250K pots are paired up with single coil pickups and 500K pots are paired up with humbuckers. Some people like to use 1M pots with humbuckers, too. A Telecaster with 250K pots is pretty bright sounding already, I can't imagine why someone would want to make the pots bigger and thus make the guitar even brighter. I would think that it would sound very harsh like that.  

[Ben N]

If you have 250k pots and want to try to get a different response from your tone control, switching the one pot to 500k wont change your overall loading much, probably not noticeably, so that is one way to experiment without getting all ice-picky. Also, check out the Jaguar wiring.

[newfish]

Thanks for your responses folks.

Judging by the amounts of treble already available, I'll stick to the 250s for now - I didn't realise the difference would be so significant - I was expecting just a little bit more clarity (neck pickup especially).

I guess it comes back down to the f=1/(2*Pi*RC), right?

Next up will be a parallel / series pickup mod I think - I've heard good things about the amount of 'boost' available.

Cheers!

[Ben N]

I just put a 4-way switch into my son's Tele clone (with Bill Lawrence L280T pups), which adds the series position. I like it, a nice extra option. It is a tad louder than the other positions, but not enough to constitute a real boost (except over the anemic neck pickup). The tone is really what is interesting, because it is almost like having a humbucker on a Tele--a lot like my Fat Tele, in fact, but not as "neck-ey", not surprisingly, more like a middle position kind of sound. Quite usable.

[ashcat_lt]

Thanks for your responses folks.

Judging by the amounts of treble already available, I'll stick to the 250s for now - I didn't realise the difference would be so significant - I was expecting just a little bit more clarity (neck pickup especially).

I guess it comes back down to the f=1/(2*Pi*RC), right?

Next up will be a parallel / series pickup mod I think - I've heard good things about the amount of 'boost' available.

Cheers!

Well, there's an L (inductance) in there, too.  And remember that the R is the value of the input (amp or pedal) impedance in parallel with the pots in the guitar.  The C is mostly the capacitance of the cable. 

If you're going to a series combination of the two pickups, you'll be creating the equivalent of a wide-spaced humbucker, doubling the inductance and darkening the whole thing.  You might find that bigger value pots will help guard against mud in this position.  If it's then too bright in the other positions, rolling back either of the controls just a tad will darken things back up.

[pazuzu]

Thanks for your responses folks.

Judging by the amounts of treble already available, I'll stick to the 250s for now - I didn't realise the difference would be so significant - I was expecting just a little bit more clarity (neck pickup especially).

I guess it comes back down to the f=1/(2*Pi*RC), right?

Next up will be a parallel / series pickup mod I think - I've heard good things about the amount of 'boost' available.

Cheers!

i really like coil tapping on the neck pickup. cut's the bass and it's REALLY easy to wire up.

er...or is this thread about single coils? i was too lazy to read the whole thing.:/