Strat 7 way wiring mod

Hootsmon

Assuming your Strat has a bridge tone control ( like the 2018 player Strat) do you loose that bridge tone control if you wire up a 7 way mod job?

Funkfingers

Nope. I use a push-pull pot instead of the neck PU tone control. It is the neck PU that I make switchable.

Hootsmon

Oh , i see.........with the push/push pot and 7 way mod you have to lose a tone control but the choice of which tone control pot is up to you,yeah?

I was a wonderin' about this mod but if the all 3 pick ups on is a bit naff it's a hellava palaver for one extra sound, no?

Funkfingers

Nope. 

The seven sound mod uses an SPDT (or one pole of a DPDT) switch to combine the neck pickup with whatever is selected via the five-way lever switch.

Using a push-pull pot allows the guitar to retain both tone control pots.

Neither the neck + bridge nor the all three single coils option is all that distinctive or exciting. They are occasionally worth having, if only to avoid needing to carry a second guitar.

TBH, a Blend pot mod might prove more exciting.

ICBM

Funkfingers said:

Neither the neck + bridge nor the all three single coils option is all that distinctive or exciting.

This. Despite generally using the neck+bridge sound more than anything else on Telecasters and two-humbucker guitars, every time I’ve had it as an option on a Strat I’ve felt it’s nondescript, and so is the all-three sound.

Hint: learn to love the middle pickup by itself, which too many Strat players ignore.

bbill335

Woah there. I LOVE the strat mid pickup and yet, it don't got soul -or surf, for that matter- like the bridge+neck combo. 

All 3 pickups is the appendix organ of strat sounds. Doesn't hurt to have it but it's ultimately useless. 

guitarcookie1

The neck + bridge is ok for a contrast to the bridge only setting, but the all three at once is just pointless imho. 

Revolting1

Am I the only one who likes the three way?

sweepy

That’s why the S1 switching system was fitted, some say they are fragile but I’ve never had one fail on me

bbill335

Revolting1 said:

Am I the only one who likes the three way?

I'd take a 3 way plus a neck&bridge setting (i guess that's 4-way?)

ICBM

Revolting1 said:

Am I the only one who likes the three way?

I’m not a big fan of the 2 and 4 positions, but I use them just enough that I prefer a 5-way. Ideally I would probably replace the bridge+middle with bridge+neck (with a hotter bridge pickup), but that isn’t possible without either a superswitch or putting the pickups in the wrong order.

thegummy

Was installing a pickup in my Strat tonight and included a blender knob mod. When I was tapping the pole pieces just to make sure everything had been soldered correctly, I noticed that even with the blender pot at 10, a tiny amount of the bridge signal came through the neck setting and vice versa.

I didn't try stringing it up to see if there was enough leakage to affect the actual sound when playing but the fact it seemed a no-brainer to just completely remove the blender option, to be on the safe side, should give an idea of how useful I've really found the neck+ bridge combination over the past couple of years. I can't imagine there will come a time when I'm using neck+ middle and thinking the song's suffering and wishing I had a blender.

maltingsaudio

Anyone using this yet? https://www.freewayswitch.com/

timmypix

maltingsaudio said:

Anyone using this yet? https://www.freewayswitch.com/

My brother-in-law has one in one of his Strats - basically functions like an S1 switch but less fragile (the S1 in my old US Deluxe Strat was temperamental at best) and easier to keep track of positions. He's got it set up to do some fun phasey combinations with a Creamery HSS set consisting of a mini-WRHB and two sonic 60s. 

Personally, I find having that many options gives me option paralysis, but I have to say the out of phase series sound on the Sonic 60s gets a really fun octave effect.

I've got a push-pull on my Strat to add the neck pickup in as a 7-way mod. As others have said, bridge and neck is pretty cool but far from essential, and all three pickups is pretty bland. Not sure I'd do it again.

normula1

I've a Strat with an S1 switche that swaps the neck+middle for neck+bridge and middle for all three. TBH, I don't think the neck+bridge sounds much like the Tele equivalent even with a baseplate on the bridge pickup. I quite like all three with a bit of chorus though.

crunchman

Unlike some others here, I quite like neck and bridge together.  I don't use all three together though.

A push/pull, or push/push, tone knob is the best way to do the switching.  I've got a push/push on mine - it's easier for switching.  When I bought that, I could only find a push/push in 300kOhms so if I want the stock neck pickup sound I need to leave the neck tone at about 8 or 9.

lukedlb

ICBM said:

Funkfingers said:

Neither the neck + bridge nor the all three single coils option is all that distinctive or exciting.

This. Despite generally using the neck+bridge sound more than anything else on Telecasters and two-humbucker guitars, every time I’ve had it as an option on a Strat I’ve felt it’s nondescript, and so is the all-three sound.

Hint: learn to love the middle pickup by itself, which too many Strat players ignore.

So true. I played almost exclusively on the neck. Then the last five years loving the 2&4. Slowly, I introduced the middle pickup. The more I study Hendrix, the more I understand the middle pickup. The more I study srv, the more I use every pickup, especially 2&4. Nowadays I use mostly the 2 and middle pickup, with the bridge for fuzz. I’m using the neck less and less. 
I have two push/pull pots to get tele sounds on 3 settings and humbucker on 3 settings. The 1 & 5 of those are remarkably close to the respective tele and Les Paul sounds I like. However, they’re party fun tones for me. I much prefer the five strat options over them any day. 
If you aren’t using all five strat options already, I would hesitate from adding more. Your pu choice has to be complemented by your playing and picking style and pedal choice.