HSH Wiring Question (splitting coils)

[Chris]

Hello,

I'm rewiring a HSH guitar with a set of nailbombs and a strat single coil in the middle and I'm struggling to find a wiring diagram for what I want.  What I'm looking to do is to have the 'standard' strat wiring on the five position selector with auto coil split in positions 2 and 4, so this diagram will be what I am working off:

http://www.bareknucklepickups.co.uk/main/downloads/schematics/general/hsh_hss/hsh__1_vol__1_tone__5_way_with_auto_coilsplit.pdf

However, I have a push-pull tone pot and I'd like that to split the coils of the humbuckers when it is raised, so that I get a split coil bridge in position 1 and a split coil neck in position 5 (I don't really care what the push-pull switch does in the three intermediate positions).  Is it as simple as connecting additional wires to the legs of the 5-way switch that have the green and white wires attached, and then connecting the other end of these wires to the push-pull switch in the usual way (as described at http://www.guitar-repairs.co.uk/guitar_wiring_modifications_2.htm)?  If not can anybody help with how this can be done?

Any help would be appreciated because I've looked at so many wiring diagrams this morning that my head hurts!  lol

[darkbluemurder]

Is it as simple as connecting additional wires to the legs of the 5-way switch that have the green and white wires attached, and then connecting the other end of these wires to the push-pull switch in the usual way (as described at http://www.guitar-repairs.co.uk/guitar_wiring_modifications_2.htm)? 

Yes.

Good luck.
Stephan

[Chris]

Thanks Stephan.

I've now run into problem number two!  :(  My pickup selector switch does not look like the ones I see in the schematics with the four lugs on each side, instead it looks like this:




...with three contacts per side arranged in a circle, and one contact in the centre. Try as I might I cannot find any info on this type of switch on the web. Anybody come across them before? Any advice on how to wire up this switch as opposed to the normal ones in the schematics?

Thanks in advance  :)
Chris

[WezV]

you wont be able to use that one for automatic coil taps like the BKP diagram

the normal style of switch is actually 2 electronically separate switches that work in tandem.  With normal strat wiring you connect both sides of the switch, with this HSH scheme they need to stay separate.

Your switch uses a shared common contact in the centre so there is no way to separate the two halves of the switch. quite limiting actually, not sure i can see a way around it

for normal strat wiring the centre contact would go out to your volume pot.  you would connect you 3 pickups along one side, and your tone pot(s) along the other


tbh. i would just replace the switch with the more useful kind.  but you could also just wire it with standard strat wiring and rely on the push pull for all your coil split needs

[darkbluemurder]

Unfortunately WezV is correct - your intended switching scheme won't work with the switch you got.

Fortunately switches are inexpensive to replace. Keep the old switch so you can restore the guitar to original condition if needed.

Cheers Stephan

[Chris]

Thanks guys, that explains why it didn't really work when I thought I'd figured it out and tried it last night  :lol:  I guess I'll order a new switch as I found that the volume pot was scratchy when I did wire it up last night, so I need to order a new one of those anyway.

I guess this is the type of switch that I need as the terminal configuration looks right:
http://www.allparts.uk.com/online-shop/guitar-bass-parts/electronics/switches/5-way-switch-w-screws-for-strat-oak-grigsby-p-4045.html

The other type of five way strat switch on there is this one, which looks different again:
http://www.allparts.uk.com/online-shop/guitar-bass-parts/electronics/switches/4-pole-double-wafer-5-way-superswitch-for-guitar-w-screws-p-4038.html

Is it the one in the first link that I want?  I just want to be sure I don't end up with the wrong one again!  :lol:

Thanks again,
Chris

[darkbluemurder]

Chris,

The one in the first link is correct. The other one would work also but is more complicated to wire and takes up more space in the guitar.

Cheers Stephan

[Chris]

Thanks Stephan!