With the S1 Switch ON and the 5-Way Switch in the 5th position the description on the spec sheet reads:

Neck Pickup OUT OF
PHASE & PARALLEL
Middle, Bridge Pickup
IN SERIES
Tone 1 ONLY

This sounds VERY different to the 1st postition where all 3 pickups are in Series. Without getting into high-level electronics, can someone explain the differences between parallel, series, and out of phase as far as pickup selection goes?

Thanks!

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This is the Blues. Are you listening?

Good explanation of the difference between series and parallel on this site. The terms are quite literal, and pups can be substituted in place of each "R" (resistor) in the circuits shown, still the same whether a resistor or pup.
Series/Parallel

The middle pups in many guitars are "reverse-wound/reverse polarity" (RWRP), compared to the neck or middle pups. The middle pup is considered "out of phase" to the other two pups when the middle pup is RWRP, and this is for noise canceling in the pup selector switch positions that select the middle pup in combination with either the neck or bridge pup. The RWRP pup has it's wire literally wound the opposite direction from normal pups, and the magnets are upside down to give the reverse polarity, both conditions together give RWRP, or "out of phase".

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---> "The amp should be SWITCHED OFF AND UNPLUGGED before you do this!" <---

Por favor, disculpe mi español, no se llega a la práctica con mucha frecuencia.

Hi shimmilou and thanks for the feedback. I understand the difference between resistors (for example lights) being wired in series and in parallel but I don't see how this translates to pups beyond the obvious physical connections. In other words I can understand the wiring diagram as far as connect this to that goes, but I don't understand the significance in terms of what we hear.

Without meaning to over simplify things because no doubt there are many variables - i.e. tone settings, amp settings, amp - but would it be correct to say that pups wired in series are hotter than those wired in parallel? As for timbre, could we say that having a pup out of phase gives a sort of far-away, phase-shifter pedal effect?

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This is the Blues. Are you listening?

Hi Bluer Monkey: due to cancellation of certain frequencies coils connected in series tend to sound "fatter" and "richer" (like a humbucker) than coils connected in parallel, which have that "nasal" sound of a traditional Strat in position 2 or 4. In fact, a humbucker is literally just two coils connected in series.

Working through the permuations of my S1 equipped Strat always makes my head start to hurt, but if you follow it through you'll find the above indications are pretty much how the sounds work out. The S1 switch gives you opportunities to have two or more pickups together sounding Stratty or humbuckery.

Cheers - C

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Short of that, it is exactly as you've described; the difference is in what we hear. Two single-coil pups in parallel will sound warmer and not as bright as one single-coil pup by itself. In a "hum-bucker" pup, there are two "single-coil" pups that can be connected in series or parallel, or one coil can be used alone (split-coil), all for different sounds. That's the only reason for the various connections and polarities, to get a different sound. And using the RWRP is about noise-cancelling.

Basically, the difference between a parallel or series connected pair of coils would be that the parallel gives more current out and the series gives more voltage. But that doesn't really help to understand why the sound is different, and it doesn't matter at all......unless you want to "get into high-level electronics".

_________________
---> "The amp should be SWITCHED OFF AND UNPLUGGED before you do this!" <---

Por favor, disculpe mi español, no se llega a la práctica con mucha frecuencia.

Thanks for all the input, guys. I'm beginning to understand why so many among us have more than one Strat. It's because no single Strat can give us all the tonal possibilities. Alas not even my beloved ADStrat and her S1 Switch.

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This is the Blues. Are you listening?

even a single Am Dlx strat with all it's switching options may not give all the sounds a strat can possibly make, but it is the most versatile strat in my opinion.

If you can only have one strat it's worth saving the money until you can get the Am Dlx.