Seymour Duncan Wiring Diagram

IanShaw

Hello 

Please find the attached URL/PDF. It has a wiring diagram for the following configuration:

2 HUMBUCKERS
1 VOLUME push/pull Coil Split (neck)
1 TONE push/pull Coil Split (bridge)
3 WAY TOGGLE 

I'm unable to determine wich coil is split in this diagram for each pickup. Is it the inner coil or the outer coil for the neck pickup? and same for the bridge. I tried to follow the signal flow and I suspected that the split is putting the coils in parallel, but I'm not sure.

https://docs.google.com/gview?embedded=true&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.seymourduncan.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2016%2F05%2F2H_3G_1VppSPLn_1TppSPLb.pdf

ICBM

I can't open that link, but the standard Duncan wiring with the black wire as hot and green as ground, with the red/white coil split junction being connected to ground by the switch, leaves the 'slug' coils active.

If you want to leave the 'screw' coils active, reverse the connections of both pickups so the black is ground and the green is hot.

IanShaw

ICBM said:

I can't open that link, but the standard Duncan wiring with the black wire as hot and green as ground, with the red/white coil split junction being connected to ground by the switch, leaves the 'slug' coils active.

If you want to leave the 'screw' coils active, reverse the connections of both pickups so the black is ground and the green is hot.

The wiring diagram conforms with your description, so these are the inner coils that become active. 

The idea of reversing the connection to get the other coils active is worth a try. Thanks!

Funkfingers

How the split coils will sound together depends a good deal upon the distance between them.

IanShaw

Funkfingers said:

How the split coils will sound together depends a good deal upon the distance between them.

Can you elaborate on this? I mean what's the general impression about splitting the outer (adjustable) coils versus the inner (slug) coils?  

ICBM

IanShaw said:

Can you elaborate on this? I mean what's the general impression about splitting the outer (adjustable) coils versus the inner (slug) coils?  

Essentially, the outer coils together sound more like a Telecaster in the middle position, and the inner coils together sound more like a Strat in the 2 or 4 positions - not exact in either case, but some of that flavour. The inner coils become more Strat-like if the pickups are spaced as they are in a 24-fret guitar rather than a 22-fret one, with the pickups slightly closer together.

The complication is that to get a Strat neck or bridge single-pickup sound you really need the outer coils again, so unless you have some means of selecting which coil the splits are to - like some of the early Patrick Eggle guitars had - you can't get both.

You can also choose the other coil if you connect the coil-split junction to the pickup hot rather than to ground, which is easier to make switchable than reversing the pickups.

Funkfingers

ICBM said:
unless you have some means of selecting which coil the splits are to - like some of the early Patrick Eggle guitars had - you can't get both.

By coincidence, I am considering doing exactly this to my project Eggle Berlin Wall with Fishman Fluence Classic humbuckers. The schematic diagram for their Devin Townsend signature pickups includes a DP3T inside/HB/outside mode switch. It ought to be possible to adapt this idea to work with passive pickups. Head scratching time.

If your guitar had a lever selector switch, it would be possible to "borrow" the EBMM Axis Super Sport circuit to get the split coils pairs in positions 2 and 4.

ICBM

Funkfingers said:

By coincidence, I am considering doing exactly this to my project Eggle Berlin Wall with Fishman Fluence Classic humbuckers. The schematic diagram for their Devin Townsend signature pickups includes a DP3T inside/HB/outside mode switch. It ought to be possible to adapt this idea to work with passive pickups. Head scratching time.

Very easy - you just need a DPDT centre-off switch. Coil splits to the middle terminals, ground to both at one end, and pickup hots to the respective ones at the other end. Eggle did it with a rotary switch, but I replaced it with a mini-toggle on a friend's guitar.

Funkfingers

That is what the Fluence pickups do. No active circuitry involved. The only downside is that both humbuckers get split simultaneously. 

IanShaw

ICBM said:

Essentially, the outer coils together sound more like a Telecaster in the middle position, and the inner coils together sound more like a Strat in the 2 or 4 positions - not exact in either case, but some of that flavour. The inner coils become more Strat-like if the pickups are spaced as they are in a 24-fret guitar rather than a 22-fret one, with the pickups slightly closer together.

The complication is that to get a Strat neck or bridge single-pickup sound you really need the outer coils again, so unless you have some means of selecting which coil the splits are to - like some of the early Patrick Eggle guitars had - you can't get both.

You can also choose the other coil if you connect the coil-split junction to the pickup hot rather than to ground, which is easier to make switchable than reversing the pickups.

Great information. The Ibanez AZ has the feature to choose between outer and inner coils. Anyway I couldn't find a wiring diagram that shows how to do it.

ICBM

If your guitar has a lever switch rather than a toggle, I’m pretty sure that one of the Schaller Megaswitch 5-way models allows you to get the outer neck coil in position 2, both inner coils in position 3, and the outer bridge coil in position 4.

Fender’s Big Apple two-humbucker Strat had an even better system where 2 was the outer neck coil, 3 was both humbuckers, and 4 was both inner coils - both of the most Strat-like sounds plus the three normal humbucker ones, without any need for push-pulls.

Or you can use a full 4P5T Superswitch and have any combinations you prefer.

prowla

I was a bit surprised when I wired up a HSS Strat that the coil used in single coil mode is the inner/slug/North one, which is the one without height adjustment screws.

Thus standard series is red&white connected together, black is hot, green is gnd.

I've used a Freeway switch in mine.

http://https//www.freewayswitch.com/products/

It gives the 5 standard single coil selections on one axis and humbucker, neck+bridge SC, all 3 SC, and two neck + mid variations on the other axis.

 

Funkfingers

ICBM said:

Schaller Megaswitch

ICUR numbering the selector switch positions from Neck to Bridge. 

The Fender BA circuit depends on a magnet flip and conductor sequence change for noise-cancellation. 

I cannot recall whether the EBMM Axis Super Sport circuit involves reverse magnetic polarity in one humbucker.

ICBM

prowla said:

I was a bit surprised when I wired up a HSS Strat that the coil used in single coil mode is the inner/slug/North one, which is the one without height adjustment screws.

That's because the modern convention is to ground the coil split, which is better for noise rejection and more reliable. The original method was to switch the hot to the coil split, which then gives the screw coil - but with the slug coil 'floating', which tends to pick up noise - and less reliable because the signal has to pass through a switch contact in either position. You can fix both problems by shorting the coil split to the hot instead.

Funkfingers said:

ICUR numbering the selector switch positions from Neck to Bridge. 

That appears to be the convention, although originally I used to think it should be the other way round.

Funkfingers said:

The Fender BA circuit depends on a magnet flip and conductor sequence change for noise-cancellation.

Yes. It also leaves the 'upper' coils un-bypassed in the both-inner-coils position, which is not ideal - so they can use only a 2-pole 5-way switch. (Which is not the same as a standard 5-way...)

Funkfingers said:

I cannot recall whether the EBMM Axis Super Sport circuit involves reverse magnetic polarity in one humbucker.

It does - like the PRS rotary-switch settings, all combinations are hum-cancelling.