This is a conversation that lots of people with strong opinions will have… plenty to contribute. Fortunately for me, this is my blog, where my opinion is the only one that matters! Potentiometers (pots) – CTS are the industry standard for a reason, and they have been making pots forever (all the variations that you’d want […]
Happy Mother’s Day! Well, today I was planning on talking about this sweet Esquire reissue that I’m working on, but now I’m thinking not. I called my mom this morning and realized that I’m super grateful to have her. This year has been especially tumultuous for me, and without her support I might not have […]
Well hello again! This week I’m just going through a pretty simple wiring job and thought it would be fun to break it down piece by piece. To me, all of this stuff is modular. It’s like a whole bunch of smaller pieces that can be put together if you follow some really simple principles. […]
Welcome back! This week I’ve got a fun little mod that’s pretty simple to install as well as a quick ‘how to’ on pickup swaps. So first things first, let’s see what this puppy has under the hood. Alright! Well if this just looks like colorful spaghetti to you, don’t worry, that’s all I see […]
This week I’m gonna talk about my trustiest of trusty tools, the multimeter, and the feature that I use the most: continuity! If you have a meter, it’s the option that looks like this: When you are testing continuity, any time you touch the two leads to two metal parts that are connected, your meter […]
I’m trying something different this time. Instead of just spewing facts, I’m gonna get a little personal this week. Sorry if you came looking for knowledge. I’ve been working on guitars for like… forever. I don’t know why, but today as I was working on this ’90s Gibson Chet Atkins reissue, I was just thinking […]
This beautiful Gretsch didn’t know what was coming. When we first met, her dad was saying that she sounded a little darker than he would have liked, like a blanket was thrown over the tone or something. I agreed, knowing that humbuckers sometimes have that quality to them. Fortunately I know a handful of ways […]
OK! Here we go! Pickups are just magnets with a whole bunch of really thin, usually copper wire wrapped around them. You can call them “transducers” if you like, or “inductors,” or even “variable reluctance sensors” if you’re a nerd. The point is that the wire is insulated, unbroken, and has a beginning and an […]
“Man, you really are such a nerd aren’t you?” Yes. Yes I am. And I actually enjoy talking about what kind of wire you use in your guitar. I do. So this picture above is of coaxial wire (co=on the same, axial=line). It has two conductors (pieces of metal) in one wire, which is perfect for […]
Alright, back again! For this week’s project, there’s enough material to cover for an entire book, but fortunately for you, I’m just going to talk about ‘phase.’ I have the perfect candidate here in a custom Warmoth Strat. Marvel at this glorious flame-maple-top-over-chambered-alder-with-birdseye-maple-neck-and-rosewood-fingerboard. I know, it’s a lot to take in, and don’t even get […]
Most Commented Posts