Position 2 thin and quiet compared to the rest?!

[_tom_]

Just installed my neck Trilogy into my Charvel. Position 2 on the switch (neck and middle) sounds really thin and quiet now - more like the middle and bridge combo usually does to me. Position 4 (middle and bridge) sounds much thicker and more like the tone I think of when I think position 2.. Any ideas what could be wrong? I put the wires back exactly where they were before - white onto the switch and black to ground.

edit - quick clip to demonstrate. First is the neck trilogy, then position 2 (which as you can tell, theres something wrong with!), then position 4.

http://www.mp3lizard.com/download.cfm?id=23543

Thanks for any help

[Twinfan]

Is it a phase/polarity thing?  Have you got a north magnet wound neck pickup and a south magnet wound middle pup?

I'll admit I don't really know what I'm talking about, but I seem to recall mixing the wrong polarity of single coils is bad.  Reverse wound and reverse polarity is good as it's hum cancelling (like a humbucker), but I think reverse polarity and same winding would cause the problems you're having?

[Twinfan]

Yep - I was right:

The Stratocaster middle pickup as a "humbucker:"

On newer Strats (shipped since the mid-'80s -- except maybe some "vintage" reissues), the middle pickup has reverse magnetic polarity from the neck and bridge coils which is why selecting the second or fourth position is much quieter -- in essence the two coils work the way a humbucker does. Note that you can not simply reverse the leads of the middle pickup on older Strats (with north-north-north pickups) because, while the noise signal will cancel, so will the string generated signal! It is also important to know this bit of trivia when you are replacing pickups because both north-south-north and south-north-south Strats have been shipped. If you replace only one or two pickups, and replace them with ones having the "wrong" polarity, your axe is suddenly going to sound crummy!

From here: http://www.guitarnuts.com/wiring/pickups.php

[_tom_]

edit again - Tim got back to me and said to try swapping the Trilogy wires around - works fine now :D

[Transcend]

hmm just wondering i have a similar problem with my other guitar it has an invader in the bridge and a jazz in the neck but when i put it to the middle position it is really quiet weak and thin sounding