Replacing pots in a 2008 LP Standard Faded, should I ditch the metal plate?

[steved0x]

In my 2008 LP Standard Faded is a metal plate that the pots are mounted to. I am going to get new pots from RS GuitarWorks and replace the stock ones, and while I am in there, should I keep the metal plate or ditch it? If I ditch it I still need the long shaft pots right?

Possible pros:
==========
No soldering ground wires to the backs of the pots
Possible partial RF shielding effect?
Other pros I don't know about?

Possible cons:
==========
Does having a big metal plate in the guitar affect the tone in a bad way? In a good way?
Other cons that I don't know about?

I notice when Larry from CVGuitars.com does the PG mod to the LP Fadeds he ditches the plate but I am guessing that is because PG did not have a big plate in his burst back in the day :)

I don't really care about being vintage correct, just wondering what the pros and cons are of having that metal plate.

What have other folks done with the plate when you replaced your pots?

Thanks!

Steve

[Blue Strat]

I'd probably leave it. I don't know the particulars of that layout, but you would have to change the grounding scheme without the plate. Not rocket science, but since there are really no obvious downsides to keeping the plate...

[walterw]

...other than the complete PITA of pulling and re-installing it several times while trying to get all 4 pots to sit at just the right height through the top. after many years of fighting the things, i now just ditch 'em, run ground wires between the pots, and get on with my day.

the only sketchy part is connecting the switch output (black wire) to the bit of braided cable going to the output jack. rather than soldering wire-end to wire-end (technically ok, i just don't like it if i can avoid it) i pop the little terminal thingy off of the plate (30 seconds with a drill) and solder it to the back of a pot. then i can attach the switch to the jack the same way gibson does, via the terminal strip.

[RussB]

You will indeed still need long shaft pots.

What is the advantage of an RS kit over the factory equipment?

[steved0x]

You will indeed still need long shaft pots.

What is the advantage of an RS kit over the factory equipment?

Supposedly the RSGuitarParts items are superior to the stock grade electronics that come with most guitars. Right now I think Gibson is using 300K Linear pots for Volume and 500K Linear for tone, the RS pots are 500K Audio for tone, and a 500K "super" audio for volume, here is a quote from their website:


For years, guitar manufacturers have chosen to cut corners on the electronics they have used, even in their top-of-the-line guitars. This kit is designed to utilize the best electronic components possible in your guitar. This kit is the culmination of thousands of hours of research and development into different guitar electronics and how each of them affects the overall tone of the guitar.

...

500K RS Long-Shaft Superpots- We designed these pots in conjunction with CTS. Used for the volume controls in the kit, these pots have a custom taper that gives you a noticeable difference between each number on your volume control. You can finally roll your volume down to 2 or 1 and not loose any clarity, even in the neck position!! Mil-spec construction and a smoother resistor path make this the best pot to ever be used in the guitar.

...

The new RS Guitarworks "Super-Pot" has been in the works for several long months. These pots are manufactured by CTS specifically for RS Guitarworks. We designed the potentiometers to our specs, which exceed those of the CTS pots that are and have been the industry standard for over 40 years with Gibson®, Fender® etc. The RS Guitarworks "Super-Pot" is made with tolerances that are twice as tight as the normal CTS 500k pots used in even the most expensive Les Pauls® etc. We also had the cheap aluminum shaft replaced with brass for more durability. We chose CTS’s old-school heavy carbon resistance path instead of the inferior silk-screening currently used by many other makers. And perhaps most important, we custom designed the taper specifically for the volume position of electric guitar. Our custom taper gives smooth even response throughout the range of motion. You will not experience any steep drop-offs or uneven taper. Together these features represent what is without doubt the ultimate potentiometer for electric guitar applications. These RS Super-Pots are available in both short and long shaft to cover most any guitar application where a 500k pot is suitable.


here is a link to their super pots:

http://www.rsguitarworks.net/rsstore/product_info.php?cPath=45_65&products_id=386

Folks that have had these pots in a guitar, can you tell a difference (big or small) between this and a regular CTS 500K Audio taper volume pot?

Thanks

Steve

[RussB]

My LP was made in 1990, and did indeed come with the 300k pots. I "upgraded" to 500k CTS audio pots some time back...which have been replaced again with CTS 25k pots to go with the EMG's I currently have in there.

Are the new LP's still coming with 300k pots?

[steved0x]

Mine is a 2008 and it has the 300K so I guess they are still doing it.

How did you like the difference when you went from 300K Linear to 500K Audio?

Steve

[levelfrets]

I hate the fact that Gibson uses 300k linear for the volume. Replace it with any decent quality 500k audio and the guitar will sound more open and musical.

[RussB]

Mine is a 2008 and it has the 300K so I guess they are still doing it.

How did you like the difference when you went from 300K Linear to 500K Audio?

Steve

I prefer the 500kA pots. The tone is brighter, stronger, more "present". The audio taper makes the sweep more managable (not so abrupt)

Here's my LP wired up for the EMG's

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v432/RussBert/LPEMGCavity005.jpg

[levelfrets]

[quote=RussB;4542292]The audio taper makes the sweep more managable (not so abrupt)

I agree completely. I don't understand anyone who says linear pots should be used for volume. They must not have compared.

[esoteric pete]

i have RS kits in 5 of my guitars and it made a nice difference in all of them. i usually do it when i upgrade pickups, but i have done it with out and my guitar did sound more opened up (if that makes sense..) now, when i turn my les paul's neck PU down to 5, it sounds just like it did when it was on 10, just quieter. no loos of tone or fullness.

plus, they use nice caps, ive always liked that...i have the older hovlands, the newer jensens, and the luxe BB's in my R8, all great and musical guitar caps.

also, they are great to deal with, everthing always looks neat and tidy with their pre-wired kits, and its a breeze to install/work on.

[steved0x]

I see shielding in the pic above, how much of a difference does that make? I was under the impression it was important for single coil guitars but not so much for humbuckers? If I am wiring everything with the braided wire does that give me some shielding?

Steve

[RussB]

The shielding was a labor of love, and did little to nothing for humbuckers...but it helped when I had a pair of hum-sized P-90's in there.

The braided wire is sufficiently shielded.