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Re-wiring my bass with no pots, just an on off switch :D


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Hey there

Right, i've got my Epiphone Embassy Special IV bass which was my first bass
horrible bass and I never did use it for much apart from throwing out of windows, practising swinging round my neck, not being able to learn bass on...

So, for the first time since I bought my BC Rich bass (which i sold), I picked the Epiphone up out of it's case and remembered... I TORE THE PICK UPS AND ELECTRICS OUT OF IT... Time for a re-wire

I've got some new pick ups coming for it but I've decided I don't want a volume or tone pot in it, instead, i just want an On/Off switch instead.
I bought a switch for it and installed it to the body, it's just a standard DPDT (double pole double throw) switch

I just want to wire it so that the switch is in between the hot wire of the pick ups and the jack input but I'm not sure which connectors on the switch I need to wire it into.
If anyone can help me, this would be great. Just as a quick note, on the back of the switch there's 2 rows of 3 connection points
Cheers

StevieD

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any 2 connections that are next to each other on the same row will work (the middle one and either of the other 2). Failing that, you're not going to damage anything if you get it wrong, so just use trial and error. (it's not active, so the worst case if you short circuit is you'll get no sound.)

Edited for spellin

Edited by SteveO
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Disconnecting the pick-up from the amplifier will leave a long unterminated lead connected to the amplifier which will act like an aerial collecting noise and interference.

An improved method would be to connect the switch across the output jack of the bass so that in silent mode (switch on) both conductors on the instrument cable are connected together so grounding the input to the amplifier resulting in silence.

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[quote name='SteveO' post='957953' date='Sep 16 2010, 07:27 AM']any 2 connections that are next to each other on the same row will work (the middle one and either of the other 2). Failing that, you're not going to damage anything if you get it wrong, so just use trial and error. (it's not active, so the worst case if you short circuit is you'll get no sound.)

Edited for spellin[/quote]

Well yes. But no at the same time. You want the other end of the switch to be hooked up to ground so you don't get a load of buzzing when you "kill" the sound. It's just like wiring up a pot: Input in the middle, output on one side and ground on the other.

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[quote name='EdwardHimself' post='958118' date='Sep 16 2010, 10:42 AM']Well yes. But no at the same time. You want the other end of the switch to be hooked up to ground so you don't get a load of buzzing when you "kill" the sound. It's just like wiring up a pot: Input in the middle, output on one side and ground on the other.[/quote]

Not quite. Jack to the middle, pick-up to one side, ground to the other.

Your way you leave the cable open-circuit and ground the pickup.

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Thanks guys, alot of mixed replies here... Don't know which method to go with. Might end up just doing a trial and error on it. End of the day, if it doesn't work, the bass is going to end up in the "Recycling Unwanted Sh*t" section for you all to take your pick on :)

I'm thinking smokebombs behind the pickups and LEDs up the neck too hehe... More to come later :rolleyes:

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