https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/ Guitar Noise Discussion Board en-US Fri, 05 Jun 2026 10:59:01 +0000 wpForo 60 https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-287541 Fri, 04 Apr 2008 05:35:57 +0000 Guitar Repair and Maintenance TRGuitar https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-287541 https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-287446 Thu, 03 Apr 2008 16:35:58 +0000 Guitar Repair and Maintenance Ricochet https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-287446 https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-287432 Thu, 03 Apr 2008 13:28:52 +0000
I tried it bypassing everything, and there was a definite improvement, so it looks like possibly being the volume pot. As a temporary measure, I've bypassed both pots and sent it directly to the switch, which seems to work ok - no control over the pickup, but at least I can turn it on and off, which is fine for now.

It's a pretty horrible pickup, the Epi bridge, so I might put something nicer in and perhaps coil tap it with a push/pull pot. Maybe an IronGear Steam Hammer - something with a good amount of lead poke.

Rather comically, I just bought an old Jap reissue 72 Tele Custom, and it has a very similar problem! Neck pickup great, bridge almost non-existent. So that'll be coming apart too... It has an odd thing going on whereby, in the middle position, both volume knobs take the entire volume down to zero, rather than working for their respective pickups. Oh, well, at least I'll know a bit more about wiring by the end of it... :lol:]]> Guitar Repair and Maintenance jimsplatt https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-287432 https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286775 Sat, 29 Mar 2008 00:29:22 +0000
I think your problem might be a bad connection with the pickup selector. Try looking at that.

http://store.guitarfetish.com/guelco.html

Plus upgrading your caps to sprauge orange ones, higher quality wire, etc should give you a little better sound quality.

Shouldn't cost a fortune either.]]> Guitar Repair and Maintenance duffmaster https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286775 https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286598 Thu, 27 Mar 2008 23:35:14 +0000 Guitar Repair and Maintenance Ricochet https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286598 https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286543 Thu, 27 Mar 2008 16:17:40 +0000 Guitar Repair and Maintenance slejhamer https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286543 https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286537 Thu, 27 Mar 2008 15:20:12 +0000
I had all the electrics apart yesterday (all pots out, switch, socket etc. - a real mess of dental floss, as you can imagine)and looked over everything, resoldered some connections, replaced the socket etc. The 13 ohm reading on the new pickup is coming from the socket, and so is at the last link in the chain. 13 ohms should mean a pretty hot output, shouldn't it? I just fitted a 10 ohm humbucker to the bridge of my Strat, and it is far pokier. This is why it seems so odd that the output should be low.

It dropped quite suddenly, I think, on the old pickup. One day it was fine, the next I noticed it was really weak. The neck pickup is still fine - exactly as it has always been.

I guess changing the pots might be the next step, but I can't see why it would be reading 13 ohms at the socket if either was bad? I tried moving wires around while I had them out to see if there was any crackling or loss of signal, but nothing. I'm completely stumped...]]> Guitar Repair and Maintenance jimsplatt https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286537 https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286476 Thu, 27 Mar 2008 02:46:07 +0000 Guitar Repair and Maintenance greybeard https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286476 https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286452 Wed, 26 Mar 2008 23:44:26 +0000
It's tricky, but not impossible, to change out pots in these semihollows. The trick is to tie a piece of dental floss or something securely to the old pot before you let it drop into the cavity and fish it out through the F-hole. Then you can use that thread to pull the new pot into position. Calls for patience.

Bridge pickups are naturally quieter than neck ones because the range of string motion is smaller near the bridge. I understand something went bad suddenly on this one that affected both pickups, of course.]]> Guitar Repair and Maintenance Ricochet https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286452 https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286438 Wed, 26 Mar 2008 21:47:11 +0000
:?]]> Guitar Repair and Maintenance jimsplatt https://guitarnoise.forum/guitar-repair-and-maintenance/humbucker-gone-thin-and-quiet/#post-286438