Blender Pots for Strat. School me.

[12guitdown]

I just read Blues Jr.'s thread on this but want to take it a step further.

OK, so I understand the concept but, let's say I'm in the bridge 1st position and I add in a little neck using the blend knob, then I switch the 5-way to the neck. Will it be inverted? In other words, will it change to mostly the neck pup with a little bit of bridge added in? Or, stay the same?


Personally, on another note, I'd prefer a setup where I'd sacrifice the #2 or #4 pos. for a bridge/neck combo. To me, this would be the ultimate.
So the order would be as follows:
1 bridge
2 bridge and neck
3 middle
4 middle/neck
5 neck

Is there a switch that can do this. And, does someone have a schematic. I didn't see one for this on SD's website.

Thanks in advance.

 

[benjammin420]

the classic player 50 has this configuration:

Position 1. Bridge Pickup
Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup
Position 3. Middle Pickup
Position 4. Neck and Bridge Pickup
Position 5. Neck Pickup

i dont know if its the switch, or the way its wired, that does that though

 

[12guitdown]

Still looking for answers here.

 

[leftyaxeslinger]

Here's the way it works on my strat:

Master Vol
Master Tone
Last tone knob used to blend in bridge pickup. I've seen this done differently with blending in the neck, etc.

With mine it works if the neck or neck and bridge or middle only pickup positions are selected. The blend function is ignored in any position where the bridge pickup is a full functioning member. So in the middle position, if I dial in the bridge pu all the way, it sounds exactly the same as the bridge/middle selector position.

So basically with the blend pot at 0, and out of the loop it's a normal strat config with a master vol/master tone. In any other position the bridge pickup can be blended in, but it doesn't really do anything to the pickup positions where the bridge is already a part.

 

[12guitdown]

So basically with the blend pot at 0, and out of the loop it's a normal strat config with a master vol/master tone. In any other position the bridge pickup can be blended in, but it doesn't really do anything to the pickup positions where the bridge is already a part.

OK I think I get it. So for example, if I want all three pups, then I'd move it to the 4th position with the blend all the way up. If I want the neck and bridge, then put it in the 5th position, blend all the way up. In the 1st bridge position, using the blend is completely useless because the blend only deals with the bridge itself.
Right?

 

[leftyaxeslinger]

OK I think I get it. So for example, if I want all three pups, then I'd move it to the 4th position with the blend all the way up. If I want the neck and bridge, then put it in the 5th position, blend all the way up. In the 1st bridge position, using the blend is completely useless because the blend only deals with the bridge itself.
Right?

Correct, and reverse that if you have the neck designated as your blend pu. I've tried both ways and I prefer that the bridge be the blendable pu.

 

[Trebor Renkluaf]

I depends on how it is wired.
Some I've played were wired only to the neck pickup. So no matter what position you were in, you could blend in a little neck pickup.
Some I've played were wired only to the bridge pickup. So no matter what position you were in, you could blend in a little bridge pickup.
Some were wired to both. So if you're on the neck pickup, you blend in the bridge, if you're on the bridge, you blend in the neck.

 

[doublescale1]

In my Suhr Classic the blender only affects the neck and bridge pickup - the vol. is where it should be, the first tone knob under that is the master tone control and the second tone knob will blend either pickup when you select the neck or bridge - if you have the blend set at "8" for "just a little" you get just a little of the opposite neck or bridge pickup that is selected. Very elegant in thought and real cool sounding - gives you the middle position tone variations you can get with trad. Gibson 2-HB wiring, but w/ single coils. Would not want a Strat style guitar not set up that way once I've had the taste.

 

[12guitdown]

Thanks guys. Any other thoughts welcome.

 

[Husky]

I just read Blues Jr.'s thread on this but want to take it a step further.

OK, so I understand the concept but, let's say I'm in the bridge 1st position and I add in a little neck using the blend knob, then I switch the 5-way to the neck. Will it be inverted? In other words, will it change to mostly the neck pup with a little bit of bridge added in? Or, stay the same?


Personally, on another note, I'd prefer a setup where I'd sacrifice the #2 or #4 pos. for a bridge/neck combo. To me, this would be the ultimate.
So the order would be as follows:
1 bridge
2 bridge and neck
3 middle
4 middle/neck
5 neck

Is there a switch that can do this. And, does someone have a schematic. I didn't see one for this on SD's website.

Thanks in advance.

Normally a blender is a 250K pot with the wiper cut so on 10 it is disconnected. You connect the Bridge and neck together with it. So when you are on Bridge position you add neck, When on Neck you add Bridge, this holds true for the combo's. You can move one wire to add the neck or bridge pu to the output of the switch if you feel like you will only need to add one but this seems limiting with no advantage. The 5 settings on your 5way are a piece of cake, you need a 4 pole 5W mega switch we install in all our guitars, send me and email and I'll draw it up in schematic form for you :AOK

 

[Trebor Renkluaf]

In my Suhr Classic the blender only affects the neck and bridge pickup - the vol. is where it should be, the first tone knob under that is the master tone control and the second tone knob will blend either pickup when you select the neck or bridge - if you have the blend set at "8" for "just a little" you get just a little of the opposite neck or bridge pickup that is selected. Very elegant in thought and real cool sounding - gives you the middle position tone variations you can get with trad. Gibson 2-HB wiring, but w/ single coils. Would not want a Strat style guitar not set up that way once I've had the taste.

The problem I have with that set up is that my favorite strat sound is the neck pickup alone. If I have the blend control up and want to go to just the neck pickup alone it requires both a toggle and a knob rotation. I much prefer only having it wired to the neck pickup (and not the bridge). That way to get to the neck pickup alone only requires the toggle switch.

I may be in the minority here anyway as I find the best "blended" sound with single coils is both pickups full up. So for me a switch works better than the blend knob.

 

[12guitdown]

The problem I have with that set up is that my favorite strat sound is the neck pickup alone. If I have the blend control up and want to go to just the neck pickup alone it requires both a toggle and a knob rotation. I much prefer only having it wired to the neck pickup (and not the bridge). That way to get to the neck pickup alone only requires the toggle switch.

I may be in the minority here anyway as I find the best "blended" sound with single coils is both pickups full up. So for me a switch works better than the blend knob.

A ha. I thought there was more than one way of going about this. I too looked at the ACME scheme and that's what brought up my Q for this post in the first place. I think I'd prefer that only the bridge pup is blendable. Well, maybe the neck. I'll have to think that one over.

 

[Husky]

A ha. I thought there was more than one way of going about this. I too looked at the ACME scheme and that's what brought up my Q for this post in the first place. I think I'd prefer that only the bridge pup is blendable. Well, maybe the neck. I'll have to think that one over.

You could do a blend witha push pull (tricky but can be done) and have the pull switch to a different function IE: connect the bridge and neck or add neck to any other selection.

 

[alnico2]

Personally, on another note, I'd prefer a setup where I'd sacrifice the #2 or #4 pos. for a bridge/neck combo. To me, this would be the ultimate.
So the order would be as follows:
1 bridge
2 bridge and neck
3 middle
4 middle/neck
5 neck

Is there a switch that can do this. And, does someone have a schematic. I didn't see one for this on SD's website.

Thanks in advance.

If you swap the middle and bridge pickup leads on the switch you get:

1 middle
2 middle/bridge
3 bridge
4 bridge/neck
5 neck

As an added bonus the middle tone control now is on the bridge pickup and the middle pickup has no tone control. Cool variation.

 

[12guitdown]

^^That's cool. But why can't they just make a 6-way selector?