It is currently Mon Mar 16, 2020 2:14 pm

All times are UTC - 7 hours



Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 6 posts ] 
Author Message
Post subject: Showmaster HH Goldtop Pickups Out of Phase
Posted: Wed Nov 09, 2011 1:18 am
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Tue Nov 08, 2011 11:57 pm
Posts: 3
Hi

Hope somebody can help with this. I recently purchased a goldtop Showmaster. They are not everyones cup of tea but it was perfect for what I was after. It has 2 humbuckers and a five way switch that has (should have) the following selections:
1. Bridge humbucker (full)
2. Bridge & Neck (inside coils)
3. Bridge & neck humbuckers (full)
4. Neck (parallel)
5. Neck humbucker (full)

What I am getting is positions 2 & 3 in an out of phase sound i.e. Thin and low volume / peter green sound. I had a look at the wiring and it looks as though it hasn't been touched at all after leaving the factory. What I did notice, which might explain the out of phase sound, is that the green wire on the neck pickup is going to the selector switch and the green on the bridge is going to the pot. Surely both pickups (both stock fender) should have the same colour coding as each other? I'm taking it that green is hot on fenders and red is ground. So I'm asking if I just change the live and ground around for one pickup this should sort the out of phase sound out? In the past when I had this problem it really was that simple. Hope this is the same? Also, if tgeceiring hadn't been touched why would fender wire it up like this, interesting that it is it's quite unusable with the other pickup sounds? I searched screw blogs and somebody else found this had happened to their showmaster too.

Many thanks

craig


Top
Profile
Fender Play Winter Sale 2020
Post subject: Re: Showmaster HH Goldtop Pickups Out of Phase
Posted: Wed Nov 09, 2011 5:57 am
Offline
Rock Star
Rock Star
User avatar

Joined: Tue Jul 24, 2007 7:33 am
Posts: 8461
Location: Mars, the angry red planet.
cragga wrote:
Hi

Hope somebody can help with this. I recently purchased a goldtop Showmaster. They are not everyones cup of tea but it was perfect for what I was after. It has 2 humbuckers and a five way switch that has (should have) the following selections:
1. Bridge humbucker (full)
2. Bridge & Neck (inside coils)
3. Bridge & neck humbuckers (full)
4. Neck (parallel)
5. Neck humbucker (full)

What I am getting is positions 2 & 3 in an out of phase sound i.e. Thin and low volume / peter green sound. I had a look at the wiring and it looks as though it hasn't been touched at all after leaving the factory. What I did notice, which might explain the out of phase sound, is that the green wire on the neck pickup is going to the selector switch and the green on the bridge is going to the pot. Surely both pickups (both stock fender) should have the same colour coding as each other? I'm taking it that green is hot on fenders and red is ground. So I'm asking if I just change the live and ground around for one pickup this should sort the out of phase sound out? In the past when I had this problem it really was that simple. Hope this is the same? Also, if the wiring hadn't been touched why would fender wire it up like this, interesting that it is it's quite unusable with the other pickup sounds? I searched screw blogs and somebody else found this had happened to their showmaster too.

Many thanks

craig


Welcome, Craig.

You are correct in your color coding assumption. Wiring accordingly should solve your problem.

As to how this happened, with these kinds of (sub)assembly runs, each and every unit is not tested. Rather, a percentage of samplings are taken based on the totality of the individual run. As we all know too well, humanity is imperfect and therefore shall always make mistakes; this is a perfect example. FWIW, I'm sure there are some who would welcome this accidental out of phase wiring. Notwithstanding, your objection is certainly valid.

_________________
You dig?


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Showmaster HH Goldtop Pickups Out of Phase
Posted: Wed Nov 09, 2011 7:41 am
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Tue Nov 08, 2011 11:57 pm
Posts: 3
Hi

Thanks for your reply. It's no prob that it'd been wired wrong I can sort it. Just want to make sure that if I change one of the pickup's live and ground around that it would solve it. I'm right in thinking it can be any pickup as long as both colored wires on each pickup are connected to the right point. In other words even if red was live on the out of phase pickup I could just match the other pickups red wire to be live also? Therefore the live and ground wires would both be swapped around I.e. Red live, green ground?

Phew... Hope you follow?


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Showmaster HH Goldtop Pickups Out of Phase
Posted: Wed Nov 09, 2011 7:58 am
Offline
Rock Star
Rock Star
User avatar

Joined: Tue Jul 24, 2007 7:33 am
Posts: 8461
Location: Mars, the angry red planet.
cragga wrote:
Hi

Thanks for your reply. It's no prob that it'd been wired wrong I can sort it. Just want to make sure that if I change one of the pickup's live and ground around that it would solve it. I'm right in thinking it can be any pickup as long as both colored wires on each pickup are connected to the right point. In other words even if red was live on the out of phase pickup I could just match the other pickups red wire to be live also? Therefore the live and ground wires would both be swapped around I.e. Red live, green ground?

Phew... Hope you follow?


You're welcome and I do follow your train of thought. In a direct answer to your question, yes. My only hesitation is the inner/outer coil thing. Meaning, obviously, if you reverse the polarity of the beginning and end wires of a HB (in this case, the red and green wires), you are reversing the order of which coil comes first in the series of the two. Now, premising the inner coils are working correctly in position #2 with the way the guitar is currently wired, upon reversing the red and green wires, you may wind up with position #2 being an outer coil neck/inner coil bridge combo or the affected pickup being outright shorted, depending on if the pickup itself was constructed properly. Give it a shot reversing the two wires and let's take it from there.

_________________
You dig?


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Showmaster HH Goldtop Pickups Out of Phase
Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2011 4:46 am
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Tue Nov 08, 2011 11:57 pm
Posts: 3
Martian wrote:
Quote:

You're welcome and I do follow your train of thought. In a direct answer to your question, yes. My only hesitation is the inner/outer coil thing. Meaning, obviously, if you reverse the polarity of the beginning and end wires of a HB (in this case, the red and green wires), you are reversing the order of which coil comes first in the series of the two. Now, premising the inner coils are working correctly in position #2 with the way the guitar is currently wired, upon reversing the red and green wires, you may wind up with position #2 being an outer coil neck/inner coil bridge combo or the affected pickup being outright shorted, depending on if the pickup itself was constructed properly. Give it a shot reversing the two wires and let's take it from there.


Hi

I only managed to find time to swap the wires over yesterday. Anyway I do like it now, nothings out of phase. However in position 2 I am getting inner coil neck with outer coil bridge. Which is similar to what you said might happen. I like it but I was wondering what I would need to do to just get outer coil bridge alone at position 2? I'm presuming it would just be to remove one wire from a selector lug. I thought this may be more useful to me.

Also what exactly are the white and black wires, is one for inner coil and one for outer? In fender's case which colour is for which?


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Showmaster HH Goldtop Pickups Out of Phase
Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 9:27 am
Offline
Rock Star
Rock Star
User avatar

Joined: Tue Jul 24, 2007 7:33 am
Posts: 8461
Location: Mars, the angry red planet.
cragga wrote:
Hi

I only managed to find time to swap the wires over yesterday. Anyway I do like it now, nothings out of phase. However in position 2 I am getting inner coil neck with outer coil bridge. Which is similar to what you said might happen. I like it but I was wondering what I would need to do to just get outer coil bridge alone at position 2? I'm presuming it would just be to remove one wire from a selector lug. I thought this may be more useful to me.

Also what exactly are the white and black wires, is one for inner coil and one for outer? In fender's case which colour is for which?


Craig,

I've been incredibly busy lately and so, please excuse me if I don't get back to you as fast as I normally would.

The easiest thing to do without concerning yourself with rewiring and the possibility of phasing problems is to simply flip the subject pickup around on the pickguard where the coils of this pickup would physically be reversed. If this for whatever reason is not an option, you'd have to use the black and white wires of the pickup as your negative and positive (again, depending on the phase) and the red and green wires would be teamed together to the pickup selector switch terminal.

Here is a link to various pickup manufacturers' HB pickup wire color codes; scroll down to almost the very bottom of the page. A Fender HB's color code is among them. Hopefully, the old adage of, "A picture is worth a thousand words" will help you more than me just babbling on:

http://www.planetz.com/?cat=3&paged=3

_________________
You dig?


Top
Profile
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 6 posts ] 

All times are UTC - 7 hours

Fender Play Winter Sale 2020

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 1 guest


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum

Search for:
Jump to: