I like the Powerhouse Strat a lot! I like the tone and the boost that I get. It's just a little noisy. I may try and put some Noiseless pickups in it.

That may not solve your problem. If niki picks this up he may be able to guide you further. He's quite knowledgeable with respect to these internal preamps and mating them to the right pickups.

Another approach might be to install the EMG DG-20 Gilmour unit in that guitar. It would be perfect in that you all ready have a rout for the battery. Likely less expensive for the whole rig than three new pups. Has a 12db midboost and TBX type tone pot. Moto pickguard, cream colored pup covers and controls. Search the EMG website for more info. Guitar Player did a review on it several years ago and had nothing but plaudits.

You will find my commentaries on it about a year ago if you search the Forum. Had one in a '97 American Standard Natural finish w/a rosewood board. Was gorgeous! Traded up to a Clapton.....What can I tell you Guitars are voiced differently. But the neck has always been an issue for me and the Clapton is the best for me by far.

Keep us posted on your fun.
Doc

I recall some discussion by forum user Morrisey concerning his powerhouse strat. One of the points in that thread was his experiment to remove the 2 resistors on the mid boost pot. He suspected that the circuit board is the same and the resistors capped the maximum boost level.

If you look at this powerhouse diagram it shows something on the outer 2 lugs. I assume its the resistors that are capping the boost.
http://www.fender.com/support/diagrams/pdf_temp1/stratocaster/0139500_9502A/SD0139500_9502APg2.pdf

I'd unsolder them and see what happens. If it doesnt work you can always put them back on again.

If your after a noise solving solution you may want to try wiring a dummy coil into the guitar. I'd ask Martian or OrvilleOwner about that.

_________________
No no and no

I "googled" this guitar and found a series of reviews. One of them deals with dummy coils in the circuit. It was late at night and I didn't take the time to read carefully but perhaps this should be looked into further.

_________________
"Another day in paradise!"

I did take that resistor out about a year ago after reading about it on here. It makes it the total boost of the Clapton strat, but can still be a little noisy, I am assuming it has to do with the pups.

Yeah its entirely down to the level of boost. Noiseless or maybe a dummycoil would be the way to go.
If your going to throw cash at it i'd look at scn's or lace. I cant recommend vintage noiseless at all. I put my mid boost in to get round the hollow/brash vintage noiseless sound. Hot noiseless could be a worthwhile experiment if you want a 'rip your head off' machine.

_________________
No no and no

But doesn't the Clapton guitar come with Vintage Noiseless pups?

Yes it does but Adamym is asking about modding a guitar that has stock single coils. I like many others have a strong dislike of vintage noiseless on their own. The mid boost circuit goes a long way to mask their brash tone. I believe theres better tone available from better pickups, of which theres a vast selection. Why mask a bad tone when you can have a good tone as your foundation with a boost augementing it.

_________________
No no and no

Well of course you're right in saying why mask a bad tone when you could have better. Being new to all this stuff though it's hard for me to understand or "hear" the nuances of all these pups. Or maybe the "nuances" aren't really nuances at all? Plus if they make a guitar that allegedly reproduces Clapton's tone. Wouldn't you go with the pups that they give you? Or am I guilty of drinking the kool-aid and believing what I read from the Marketing folks??

Couple all this with the fact that these little magnetic wonders aren't cheap! If I go to replace them I want to do it right from the start.
That's probably asking too much...

Thank you for your insight.
-T

Tyrone.

I know exactly where your coming from about the pickup's price. I really didnt like them at all. The mid-boost never figured into my plans until i played a clapton strat after putting VN's in my strat and thought, "thats a far better sound than my guitar". I'm still not 100% happy with the guitar's sound. No i dont sound like clapton when i play it . When the boost is on zero a bit of the pickups nature creeps back into the sound. We need to remember that when you consider all of EC's entourage constantly monitoring every nuance of his sound. The guitar and amp play a very small part in that big picture.
Myself if i was to go down that route again i'd start with pickups that i was 100% happy with. I'd spend a bit more time trying guitars with other noiseless pickups. If your anything like me thats a hard enough proposition and requires extensive travel time.

_________________
No no and no

[quote="nikininja"]Tyrone.

We went down this road before with someone who had put a set of Kinman's in his guitar which seemed to work out very well for him once he had a bad unit replaced.

Then, as I suggested before, there's also the option of one of EMG's prewired rigs.

_________________
"Another day in paradise!"

I am in the UK and fitted the complete Clapton setup to my '91 MiM standard 18 months ago.
I had a pro luthier rout the body as per the CS Clapton and wired it myself.
All in all it cost @ £150 ($225?). It does sound a little too clean, but compared to standard kit it is a revelation. The only tip I would give is to get everything really well shielded, it was bad until I gave it 3-4 coats of sheilding paint and re-did the grounds.
If you like the feel of your guitar, and don't mind trading "vintage" tone for the extra versatility, do it dude!

The back of the Clapton pickguard is well shielded. If I recall correctly, nikininja did his conversion without any additional body routing.

_________________
"Another day in paradise!"

I didnt use any shielding. The guitars as near silent as any humbuckered guitar. Vintage noiseless do have that in their favour, their quiet.

_________________
No no and no

Good point about EC's entourage...
Thanks for your feedback. I do appreciate it. I'll have to find some strats with different noiseless pups and listen. Not easy around here as GC dominates the area.

After reading thru many pups posts in this and other forums, there's good and bad about each of them. Makes it all the more confusing.

-T