3 Humbucker Firebird wiring...

[iluvchiclets]

Hi all,

I need some expert advice before I start heating up the soldering iron...

I have had this diagram for years, and I have kept it on file for the instance I need to correct a poorly wired Firebird or Les Paul Black Beauty:

Now does that look correct? There are a few sites on the inter-web that say this particular classic schematic is "wrong", and that persons who have used it have a poor functioning guitar after being finished.

It looks a little different than the one I have in my Guitar Player Repair Guide, but honestly I can't fully understand either of them. It's a bit confusing reading those diagrams.

I just want to confirm which one to use, and then I will just follow the diagram religiously so that it works OK when I am finished.

Any expert eyes who are able to scan this diagram? It would be appreciated!

[iluvchiclets]

Okay - here's the other diagram I have in my Guitar Player Repair Guide.

Do you think I should follow this one rather than the one above?

[uriah1]

Humbuckers in a bird.?
Mini?

[iluvchiclets]

Hi,

Yes, three mini humbuckers as in Firebird VII. Sorry I didn't clarify that.

Or maybe I should have called the thread Black Beauty Wiring!

At any rate, it's the wiring where you have three volumes and one master tone. Right now the guitar has the pickup selection:

Bridge, then-

All pickups, then-

Neck and Middle.

It's a Chinese Firebird knock-off. I took a look under the control plate and nearly passed out. What a mess! I am eager to add some order to this wiring!

Any thoughts on which diagram I should follow? Is it true the first one is incorrect?

Thanks for looking!

[joshwertheimer]

Maybe it's because I just woke up, but except for the tone control, both of which are functionally the same, I can't see a difference. Neither is the original wiring though, right? This is a common mod to allow individual control of pickups.

[iluvchiclets]

Thanks joshwertheimer,

I have tried to understand both these pictures, but I'm not very good at reading them after a while. I was hopeful they both said the same thing, I'm glad you were able to confirm with some certainty.

The whole reason I doubted the first pic is because of what I read on this thread while researching the project:

http://webcache.googleusercontent.co...t-1331611.html

Please, if anyone can confirm one scheme is better than the other, it would be greatly appreciated! Otherwise, I think I will just go with the Guitar Player Repair Guide pic, as it's a bit more concise.

Thanks again!

[joshwertheimer]

That guys says it's wrong because he's looking for the original stock wiring, which someone posted here: http://www.gibson.com/Files/schematics/lpafwiring.gif
The one you posted is a common mod, and gives you more pickup combinations.

[iluvchiclets]

Okay - I understand,

I was reading the post incorrectly - he wanted a very specific type of pickup switching.

I can't for the life of me figure out why people want configurations like his request? Having the 3 volumes allows for complete control over every pickup variation, as well as having the classic 2 pickup sound.

I appreciate you highlighting this for me. Now comes the hard part...doing the actual work!