Capacitor with no tone control.

[photoweborama]

There is no tone control on my OLP EVH, but with that Floyd and no tone, it sounds way too "metallic".

What I would like to know is on a regular guitar, like an LP, what do you think the value of the cap is when you have the tone turned all the way up to 10?

I'm thinking of just hardwiring a small value cap in there to smooth our the tone a bit.

[Tonedog]

I think what you'd want to do is take a .022uF (micro-Farad) capacitor in series with a 500k ohm resistor to ground. You can attach one leg of the cap to the lug on your volume pot where the output wire is attached, then attach the other leg of the cap to the first leg of the resistor, solder the second leg of the resistor to ground (the back of the volume pot. I'd use electric tape or shrink tubing to insulate the leads of the compontents, and cut the leads as short as is practical.

[photoweborama]

I take it the 500K resistor would then simulate the resistance of a pot in the full on position?

This should be an easy mod, and simple to test. I'll have to pickup a resistor and give it a try.

Anyone else want to chime in and tell me what you think of this?

[Tonedog]

Yep, that's it.

[photoweborama]

Hum.. 250K Volume.. That could work... I have a few of them lying around...

I always thought that even with the tone on 10, there was still a small amount of bleed through?

[curtisstetka]

Could you have an actual tone pot and just keep it in the control cavity? Is there enough room? That's the dumbassest thing to do.

Heck, you might even mount it in there and drill a small hole through the cavity cover so that you could poke a screwdriver in to adjust it if needed.

[Tonedog]

The tone knob on "10" doesn't have the cap in the circuit. tonedog has it with the resistor. Or put a 250k volume pot in.

It's still in th circuit, it's just attenuated a lot with a 500k resistor. If you like the sound of a guitar with the tone on 10, and it's a humbucker guitar, I'd wire it like I mentioned. What he has now is like an esquire in the "no tone control" position, it sounds different in the "tone control" position. This will sound different too... It should round off the high end just slightly, which is what I believe he is looking for.

for more "rounding" of the sound (high frequency roll off) use a smaller value of resistor like Fezz suggested. I'd start w/ 500K though if it's a humbucker guitar w/ a 500k volume pot.

[photoweborama]

I'll have to pop the cover, but I'm pretty sure it's a 500K.

[curtisstetka]

How about replacing the volume pot with a push/pull pot. The switch can add in the "tone" resistor or remove it. Added flexibility with just a single pot/switch.

Or Phtotwebanana could just invest in an EQ pedal... :wah

[photoweborama]

Ah... I see. The dots are connected...

[Tonedog]

Actually the tone pot is only coupled to the rest of the circuit (and AC coupled at that) because the cap is there. A 500k volume pot AC coupled with a tone circuit that has a 500k pot is not equivilant to the parallel combination of two 500k pots. At very high frequencies it would be, but over the vast majority of the audio range the pot is isolated from the circuit because the cap is there.

I have not tried it, but I believe that a 250k volume pot would muddy the tone sugnificantly, where adding a "mock" tone circuit would not.

This is fun stuff to think about and discuss.

Greg

[photoweborama]

I'm going to walk up to the electronic store at lunch today and pickup a few resistors. it's an easy mod to try.

I have a whole slew of 250 mini pots in my box too. I'd put a full size pot in there, but they almost butted the case up against the wall, and I'm not in the mood to cut it out.

I'll try the resistor first.

Fender puts their tone circuits on the input leg of the volume control, would it be better to tap the resistor on the input or the output of the volume pot?

[Tonedog]

The 50's style gibson wiring taps the tone circuit off the middle lug of the volume pot (the output lug rather than the hot side) I prefer this method because it loads the pickup less, which is more apparent as you roll the volume down.... the tone stays clear for longer. I believe around here that changing a fender tone circuit to the 50's Gibson style circuit is often referred to as the "Fezz Mod" any way you discribe it, many of us feel it is a superior way to wire the tone circuit.

You can try it both ways and see what works best for you. In taming an overly bright guitar, the other method might work better for you.

[Tonedog]

Maybe so, but you've definately done your part to advertize a great mod!!

Ever since I experienced the difference between the 50's Les Paul circuit and the modern one, I've been putting that type of implimentation in all the guitars I wire up unless instructed to do otherwise.

[photoweborama]

I just realized that since I'm tapping the output side of the pot t ground, I could just do this mod at the output jack.

[photoweborama]

I put in a 500K. I'll test later, but I think it is doing it's job. I did not put it at the jack. put it at the volume pot..

[Tonedog]

I put in a 500K. I'll test later, but I think it is doing it's job. I did not put it at the jack. put it at the volume pot..

Did you use a cap also, or just a resistor? And yes, you could put it at the output jack or volume pot. I thought it would be very easy to do it at the volume pot but depending on how much space you have, the output jack might be a better place.

[photoweborama]

I tried it without the cap, and with the cap.
It has the cap in there now. I'm still playing with it. The next test is to play it, then cut the circuit out and try it again.

[photoweborama]

Well, even with the mods, it's still pretty metallic sounding. I really think there is nothing that can be done. I think it has more to do with the double locking Floyd... Metal to metal contact just sounds metallic...

[photoweborama]

Well, I put a 250K volume pot in. I was not going to do it, but in my quest to make it even better by experimenting with caps, I completely fried the cheap 500K pot. All I had with a long shaft was a 250K..

I'll see how it goes...

[ES350]

Put a small value cap (75-250 pf) in series from the hot to ground...you short some high end. Cheap, easy fix...works on those real bright 70's Teles...

[ziess]

Pray tell, what exactly is this Fezz mod and why is it good?

Tommy.

[photoweborama]

I'm not sure which Fezz mod... There are a lot of them..
So far the 250K pot sounds pretty good...