electrics

[rocket]

I wonder if some of you electric builders can help me? I'm buiding a 17" hollow body archtop electric, i've downloaded a couple of wiring plans for two humbuckers, two volume, 1 master tone, one selector switch, both plans show a ground for the bridge or trem, how is this wire usually connected as there isn't any terminals provided on any bridges or trems i've seen, how arethey normally connected?
Cheers Rod.

[Dominic]

Hey Rod, people usually drill a small hole from the switch cavity to the bridge post hole before you put in the posts. Then make sure your ground wire touches the post and run it to your earth on the switches. If you are using a metal tail piece you could attach it to that through the end hole. As long as the strings are earthed it will keep down the hum.
Cheers
Dom

[needsmorecowbel]

I don't know how much you know about the whole soldering/ wiring of the pots but this may be helpful:
Remember to solder the ground wire to either the top of one of the pots (using a piece of 120-180 grit sandpaper to score a small portion of the top of the pot so that the solder has something to stick to) or alternatively you can solder the ground wire to the pot leg which you intent to ground. Soldering the ground wire from the bridge to the pot leg is usually neater in my personal opinion.

I'm curious is having a master tone the way to go? I.e. Do you restrict the possible sound variations? I was talking to a guitar technician today and he wasn't really phased either way basically his justification was people rarely have different tone levels when both pickups are "on".
What do you guys think?

I'm currently having this thought clanking around my head of either going with a SG setup (4 pots 2 Vol, 2 Tone and a switch)



Or Gibson Double Cut setup 3 pots (2 volume, 1 master tone) and a switch

[Nick]

Rod, usually the wire just pokes through the hole you've drilled and the end of the wire is splayed so that when the bridge is fixed to the body it sandwich's the wire between it and the body. That is enough to make a contact & ground the strings to stop hum rather than you becoming an earth. As Dominic mentioned, if you are using posts as in a Gibson Tune o matic style, then the wire can be sandwiched between the post anchor bush & body.

Stuart, as to your question. From my personal experience, once set to where I'm happy enough with the sound, I've never touched the tone control prefering to shape the sound from either the amp or an EQ or effects pedal. It is far more versatile at shaping the sound. So having multiple tone controls just seems an extra knob I don't need to be fiddling with while I'm busy trying to coax music from my fingers!

[DarwinStrings]

there isn't any terminals provided on any bridges or trems i've seen, how arethey normally connected?
Cheers Rod.

A trem is usually connected to the stationary part, that is the spring claw.

That is enough to make a contact & ground the strings to stop hum rather than you becoming an earth.

I thought the idea was that you do become the earth when you place your hand on the strings?

Jim

[jeffhigh]

If it's a full hollowbody with a floating bridge, the ground wire is normally taken to the endpin hole and mashed under the tailpiece bracket.

[Puff]

Jim -when I place my hands on the strings I am the UNIVERSE Just kidding - even I don't believe that. But yep.

[rocket]

Very simple, but also very helpful, thankyou very much, i'll pst some pics of this with the wiring completed before i gut it and close it up, it would be nice to leave it insitu but i'd rather finish the top without all those chunks of metal sticking out of it, getting the stuff back in later should prove to be rather testing i'd say!!!
Cheers ,,, Rod

[rocket]

Just finished wiring this, tested, didn't blow up or electrocute me so i'm happy to continue with the build now. A couple of pics for you, criticism or other helpful comments are welcome, this is my first full electric
Cheers,, Rod.

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[Nick]

Looking good so far Rod, very neat & tidy which always scores points for me

Jim, I could be thinking this wrong but was always under the apprehension (or could it have been a missapprehension?) that if your guitar is humming when plugged into the amp and then you place your hand on the strings & it stops, that that was a sign of a poorly grounded bridge (not taking into account all other earthing/sheilding factors of the guitar). Any repairs I've done & hum was a complaint of the guitar, I always checked the bridge was grounding via the wiring & earth contact of the Jack plug. If I was meant to be the ground then why bother running a wire to the bridge (not meant to be confrontational, just wondering if my thinking has been wrong for a number of years)?

[DarwinStrings]

Hmmm sure, same, no confrontation just sorting it out as your comment didn't match with what I thought is going on. If I was 100% sure then there is no need for me to question it. I will answer with a question again . I reason that If the bridge is not earthed well how could you cancel hum when you touch the strings. That is to say if the strings are not in the loop how could touching them affect the circuit and cause any effect.

Jim

Someone please turn up the Tele!

[jeffhigh]

And then again, if you use a soundhole pickup on an acoustic guitar, it never has the strings grounded anyway

[Nick]

I reason that If the bridge is not earthed well how could you cancel hum when you touch the strings. That is to say if the strings are not in the loop how could touching them affect the circuit and cause any effect.

Jim

Someone please turn up the Tele!

And then again, if you use a soundhole pickup on an acoustic guitar, it never has the strings grounded anyway

Hmmm got me thinking (Scurries away to do some more reasearch), thanks chaps.

[Puff]

Laying hands on strings will earth what is going through the bridge - best done with non-rubber soles and standing in a bucket of water.
The bridge/trem is IMU used as a collection point for earths (transducers. preamps et al) and that is- in turn - earthed through the output as a single concept.
You can be the earth but you have to be in the loop - so to speak

[Puff]

Isn't it funny how much we have just copied without reasoning why.

[Nick]

Isn't it funny how much we have just copied without reasoning why.

Not quite so much that Puff (& I'm all for shaking the ship up), admittedly I read it when I was getting into guitars & always took it as "that's what you do", but subsequent years of repairs has backed it up in a practical sense also (hum from flourescents has been reduced once I've cleaned the bridge's earth connection), that's why I'm a little puzzled & confused that it could be wrong after all these years, well not necessarily wrong but uneeded. I'm just trying to get my head around & fully understand why it is we've traditionally earthed bridges in order to work out why my earthing repairs have worked in the past, if they (the earth) aren't in fact,required.

As to Jeff's conundrum of why acoustics aren't earthed, the only theory I can come up with (& it is only that, not backed up by any evidence ) is that electric bridges by being metal 'couple' all the strings together allowing a 'signal' path between them so any signal 'picked up' by the string (which has become an antenna) such as 50 cycle hum from flouro's is summed because of the common connection at the bridge. Whereas acoustics each string is isolated from it's neighbour so as such any signal picked up by that one string isn't strong enough to be heard as a hum at the pickup.
Probably completely wrong (& I'm quite happy to hear a valid reason for why it is) but just an idea I had floating in my head.

[Puff]

Every wiring schematic for electromagnetic or piezo transducers I have come across/used has parts earthed. It (the earth) need not go through the bridge but perhaps with a conductive bridge/saddle (metal) that may be desirable. In my understanding the final "earth" is found through and beyond the output jack.
Were it essential that all metal parts "had" to be earthed would not the machine heads be in the argument too - or the nut?
Not rocking- just shopping for more knowledge/better understanding
Nick - if all else has been earthed to the bridge as a collection point then any bad contacts there, either incoming or outgoing, will detract from the overall earthing. Not rocking, not shaking, not stirring - just strummin the mental chords
Sorry I guess rocking and shaking is coming rather too naturally to you folk down there. Dare say our time will come

[kiwigeo]

Sorry I guess rocking and shaking is coming rather too naturally to you folk down there. Dare say our time will come

If youre anywhere near Auckland then earthquakes are the least of your worries......one of Aucklands biggest natural hazards is dormant volcanoes some of which last erupted only 200 years ago.

[Puff]

Yeh I remember that. Actually according to my diary it was Rangitoto 603 years ago - in white man's talk. Twasn't much though, luckily it happened around dawn when most of us were movin earth anyway- only stayed the lead news item on ZB for three hours. Then we got back to how we'ed been dicked in the Ranfurly
Auckland's biggest natural hazard is dormant mentality - but it's not alone in that.
Actually the only hazard from dormant volcanoes is running up and down them too many times without adequate fitness or flying into them for lack of vigilance.

[Ronald_Handmade]

Were it essential that all metal parts "had" to be earthed would not the machine heads be in the argument too - or the nut?

If the bridge is earthed, then the strings would be earthed via the bridge, then the nut and machine heads would be earthed via the bridge via the strings. Clear as mud?

Unless of course you were using nylon strings, but then we ARE talking about electrics...

[rocket]

Hi all, I just fitted the neck on this today, thought you might like a preview, laminated curly maple back and sides , carved cherry top.
Cheers,,, Rod

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[Nick]

Starting to look the part Rod, that neck looks like a nice bit of work.

[rocket]

I've got some stain on this baby but the weather has stopped me from puting the clear on, if i can get a couple of coats of clear on it i'll be able to set the neck and then finish the laquer, i don't like my chances though, sposed to keep raining till Sunday. Any idea what that headstock veneer is?
Cheers,,, Rod

[rocket]

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[Nick]

Any idea what that headstock veneer is?
Cheers,,, Rod

Wood?
Sorry Rod but I couldn't help myself, think I've overdosed on me smart arse pills today.
Should come up a nice with some clear over the top, I'm picking that will go cherry when under finish?