qns on pots

[Alchemist]

I have zero idea on pots so i hope you guys can help me out with following qns. thnks

1. If i am using actives pickups now and wanna change to passives , do i have to buy passive pots for the passive pickups?

2.How does the value of the pot(250k/500K) affect the overall tone?

i'm thinking of switching my EMGs for a pair of SD pearly gates(neck) and JB(bridge) for tonal options.EMGs are great for extreme metal :twisted: but i'm looking to go from nice cleans to southern rock to death metal as i can onli afford to have one guitar.i DO KNOW tt 1 guitar doesnt give you everything ( which is why i plan to get others when i start working).So i'm guess wondering which of the 2 values are more suitable for my needs.anihows i still lean more to the metal side.

3.What are some of the recommended pots in the local market?

If there are other things you wanna add and any additional info tt you require, feel free to do so. thnks

 

[ShredCow]

1. I dunno how to explain but actives use pot values like 25k, 50k... passives, 250k, 500k.

2. The lower the value, the more resistance in the circuit path = more treble cut off.

A 250k vol on full will sound darker than a 500k on full. 1 meg will be bright, almost as if there's no pot there.

This is why fender has a no-load tone pot... its 250k, and when you click it off (i.e. no load) and out of the circuit, there's a noticeable brightness increase.

3. I'd say, no gotohs... they are fragile stuff, cheap but fragile.

Go for CTS if you enjoy that kind of taper... or Dimarzios, if you prefer an even taper all the way down.

If you want, go for RS Guitarwork's super pot. I got them, similar to CTS but with a very smooth taper and much better construction.

 

[bockscar]

sorry, just wondering.

pots are potentiometers/variable resistors right?

if yes,

is it okay to use any normal variable resistor?

 

[Alchemist]

thnks, shred.
I think i'll go for the 500k ones.

Where can i get the dimarzio pots and how much do they cost for 2 humbuckers?

I don realli like the super smooth kind of taper, like them with some resistance. :wink:

 

[ShredCow]

By smooth, I mean... the ... taper, not the torque (physical smoothness).

Dimarzios? You get them from Swee Lee...

We don't quantify pots with pups dude, you can use 1 pot (e.g. vol control) for 3 pups for all you want.

 

[Alchemist]

oh ok lol.What does a taper do den??

haha so i should get a set vol/vol/tone pots? (My sz320 is tt way, no desire to change it.)

 

[ShredCow]

Taper = how the vol/tone tapers off when you roll down/up on the pot...

The Dimarzios have very even taper all the way. Its nice.

But for those who like to use their vol pot to control their gain especially with say, tube amps... then they would prefer CTS pots. They have even taper up till about 8, then 8 - 10 is a jump in volume. CTS is a standard lah.. but they've been cutting costs so... there are some differences in quality nowadays.

If you know what you want, then buy the better "specialised" pots... else... just grab the Dimarzios. They are 2x the price of Gotohs but you pay for quality.



Oh.
I forgot.
Ibanez guitar? SZ?

1) Your pot holes might not fit the Dimariozs. The Dims are USA-made while the SZ is MIK/MII and spec-ed to Ibanez (Japanese) cut. The metric system used is different. You might have problems with CTS too, since they are USA spec-ed. Again, its a MIGHT.

2) Do you need long shaft pots? Not a worry, bring the old pots along when you buy, make sure the new ones are just as long, or longer, than the old ones.

 

[Alchemist]

Thnks for the heads up on the tapers
yah, i like it even.. so i'll go for the dimarzio IF I CAN

OH NOSES!! I think i'll ask a guitar tech(kaycee??) about pots hole size abt my SZ before getting it

 

[ShredCow]

yeap, go to a tech pls.

 

[ZiiopBoii]

+1 to the RS pots
This mine 50's Gibson wiring and with Paper in Oil Caps

 

[Whitestrat]

This is why fender has a no-load tone pot... its 250k, and when you click it off (i.e. no load) and out of the circuit, there's a noticeable brightness increase.

Dude! can tell meh? I seriously cannot hear the difference lei. I can feel only a subtle click, and there's no tonal difference after that when turning the knob slightly. Only turning it more will I hear a significant difference. But it sounds the same on my other strats which have standard 250k pots... :?: :?: :?:

 

[ShredCow]

Eh.... can leh.

On clean or driven, both can heard leh.

Just before the pot is click-ed out to when its click-ed out... there's a difference.

Then again, this was on a H-H, .22 (or whichever is the standard on for humbuckers) tone cap, mahogany bodied guitar.... At that time I was running... Tonezones? Dual Tonezones? Something hot lah.

I still recall, sitting in the SAF Music & Drama Company's recording studio, going direct via an old Sansamp GT2... the no-load made an audible difference thru the monitors. Soundman also heard it when I was asking him if the sound was too bright or something...

Actually, I'm not sure I get your post... going from 9 to clicking out, you mean you still can turn the pot somemore? If memory serves me right, there is very little travel after you click...

 

[Whitestrat]

Actually, I'm not sure I get your post... going from 9 to clicking out, you mean you still can turn the pot somemore? If memory serves me right, there is very little travel after you click...

Ok, I meant that after clicking out from 10 to 9, you can still turn from 9 to 1 mah... My point was that I can't hear an audible diffrence from 8.5 to 10. And these are on rosewood necked alder body American Deluxe strats...

 

[ShredCow]

Hmmmm.... I did not experience that.

Try turning up your treble at home, then playing with the no-load? Anything?

 

[Whitestrat]

nope... nothing. I tried everything to try to experience the no load thing. Nothing much lei. To the point, I saw no point, so I sold the guitar... whahahaha... :lol:

 

[Phanto]

Hi guys... need to revive this thread due to a question...

I got a 2001 Gibson SG Standard. Everything is stock. Basically,for both the neck and bridge pickup positions, when turning the tone knob from 1-7.5 it just sounds very flat and muddy, then suddenly from 8-10, it sounds nice and trebly, just right. Its like a sudden jump at 7.5.
I find that any tone setting from 1-7.5 is unusable....

Is there something I can do to make the sweep more gradual, and have a larger treble range. instead of dead-flat-squishy-muddy-CLEARER-NICE-WOW-WTF!.

 

[lightice]

Based on your description that tone pot is an audio taper.

If you want a linear range, get a linear taper pot of the same value.

 

[fgl]

Pop in a fender tbx pot into the mix for added variation ....