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previous: Giacomo I read something about series and p... -- 8/12/1999 12:53 PM

Re: guitar wiring basic question

8/15/1999 8:33 PM
Mark Hammer	Re: guitar wiring basic question When you wire up speakers, you can either have wires going to each speaker in parallel, or you can run a wire to one speaker, and from there to another speaker, then to ground. Having them in series or parallel changes things. Although the speakers must be in phase with each other, there is no reason why the red terminal MUST be the input, and the black terminal MUST go to ground. These are just two connector terminals on the speaker. It works the same way for pickups. They can be wired in parallel, or end-to-end like speakers (series). Since it is easier to do, and since it also reduces some problems such as treble-loss and radio interference, almost all guitars come wired with the pickups in parallel. Since any pickup that has a metal cover (Gibson-style humbuckers, Telecaster neck pickups, etc.) usually connects the cover to ground, you will find these pickups have a single wire with a shielding around them. Even when there is no metal cover, some humbuckers come with a single-conductor shielded wire. To change which end of the pickup is ground is a difficult procedure. Because of this, it is difficult to wire these kinds of pickups in series. For many other types of pickups, however, there is no single wire which MUST be ground/shield. Fender-style pickups usually have a black and white wire soldered to them, but either one can be treated as the ground wire. If you wired up two pickups like this so that: - BLACK from pickup #1 went to ground, - WHITE from pickup #1 went to BLACK on pickup #2 - WHITE from pickup #2 went to the pickup switch and volume control then you would have series, in-phase, pickups. You could do the same thing by reversing the two colours. Two things to consider, however: 1) The two pickups should be MAGNETICALLY in phase (if you try to touch the tops of the two pickups together, they push each other away) 2) You will have a louder signal, but you will lose treble, and may have more radio interference and buzzing. Please note that series switching requires a more complex switch, or else two switches.

8/15/1999 8:33 PM

Mark Hammer

Re: guitar wiring basic question

When you wire up speakers, you can either have wires going to each speaker in parallel, or you can run a wire to one speaker, and from there to another speaker, then to ground. Having them in series or parallel changes things. Although the speakers must be in phase with each other, there is no reason why the red terminal MUST be the input, and the black terminal MUST go to ground. These are just two connector terminals on the speaker.

It works the same way for pickups. They can be wired in parallel, or end-to-end like speakers (series). Since it is easier to do, and since it also reduces some problems such as treble-loss and radio interference, almost all guitars come wired with the pickups in parallel. Since any pickup that has a metal cover (Gibson-style humbuckers, Telecaster neck pickups, etc.) usually connects the cover to ground, you will find these pickups have a single wire with a shielding around them. Even when there is no metal cover, some humbuckers come with a single-conductor shielded wire. To change which end of the pickup is ground is a difficult procedure. Because of this, it is difficult to wire these kinds of pickups in series.

For many other types of pickups, however, there is no single wire which MUST be ground/shield. Fender-style pickups usually have a black and white wire soldered to them, but either one can be treated as the ground wire. If you wired up two pickups like this so that:

- BLACK from pickup #1 went to ground,

- WHITE from pickup #1 went to BLACK on pickup #2

- WHITE from pickup #2 went to the pickup switch and volume control

then you would have series, in-phase, pickups. You could do the same thing by reversing the two colours.

Two things to consider, however:

1) The two pickups should be MAGNETICALLY in phase (if you try to touch the tops of the two pickups together, they push each other away)

2) You will have a louder signal, but you will lose treble, and may have more radio interference and buzzing.

Please note that series switching requires a more complex switch, or else two switches.

Replies:

Giacomo Many thanks for your explaination.<... -- 8/17/1999 7:02 PM
Steve A. Mark: &n... -- 8/18/1999 4:04 AM