Adding a second tone pot in parallel

[john585]

So my idea is to add a second tone pot, wired in parallel, with its own capacitor if necessary, and make a mount for it behind the bridge- basically close to where the back of the right hand naturally is. The purpose is to have a tone pot closer to the playing position of the right hand to facilitate a wah effect.

(Let me dispel the idea of just using a wah pedal- personally, that is not very sporting, and I hate having to carry accessories around if I don't have to!)

I figure I can run three wires in the existing tunnel between the control and bridge cavities. I do not know if this might introduce buzz/interference and am not sure if my instinct of wiring this second pot in parallel would work or not. (The native tone pot is usually fully off.)

BTW, I've already experimented with some variations of using the existing electronics- swapping tone and volume pot positions, or flipping the whole control plate 180 degrees- for the sake of repositioning the tone pot closer to the hand. I was not completely happy with these two configurations.

So my question for anyone qualified is, do you think I can wire a second tone pot in parallel, and expect it to work??

[MN Punk]

Originally Posted by john585

So my idea is to add a second tone pot, wired in parallel, with its own capacitor if necessary, and make a mount for it behind the bridge- basically close to where the back of the right hand naturally is. The purpose is to have a tone pot closer to the playing position of the right hand to facilitate a wah effect.

(Let me dispel the idea of just using a wah pedal- personally, that is not very sporting, and I hate having to carry accessories around if I don't have to!)

I figure I can run three wires in the existing tunnel between the control and bridge cavities. I do not know if this might introduce buzz/interference and am not sure if my instinct of wiring this second pot in parallel would work or not. (The native tone pot is usually fully off.)

BTW, I've already experimented with some variations of using the existing electronics- swapping tone and volume pot positions, or flipping the whole control plate 180 degrees- for the sake of repositioning the tone pot closer to the hand. I was not completely happy with these two configurations.

So my question for anyone qualified is, do you think I can wire a second tone pot in parallel, and expect it to work??

Let me just chime in to say that I fully endorse this idea.

I used to be a firm anti-pedal bigot. "Nothing gets between me and my amp but 18.5 feet of wire!" I would proudly proclaim.

But then, playing in a trio, I found a CryBaby wah pedal expanded our sound options a bit. It was the nose of the camel.

Then I scored a deal on a tube-based gain pedal which sounded slightly better than the gain stage of my amp.

Now I've got a powered pedal board in a case where the lid folds out to be a stand for holding my guitars. Multiple pedals for various effects. My favorite pedal being the Boss tuner pedal, which serves the dual purpose of letting me tune quickly and silently on stage while our singer is chatting to the crowd, and also serves as a "cut" switch when I'm changing guitars.

So I'm now one of "those" guitarists. My carefully-plotted array of pedals cost me nearly as much as my amp, and more than some of the guitars I plug into it, and I flat-out insist on bringing it along to every damn gig.

Let my tale be one of cautionary warning to you. Do your custom tone mod. A wah pedal is a gateway drug. Once you start using it, you'll figure "as long as I need that, I might as well..." and you're lost just like me.

[cousinpaul]

I like the idea of repositioning the tone control. The placement sounds good. It would also free up the existing tone control to be used for something else like a blender or a passive mid control. I don't think it would cause any interference but it would require some routing and drilling which would probably devalue your guirar if you ever wanted to sell it.

[MN Punk]

Originally Posted by cousinpaul

I like the idea of repositioning the tone control. The placement sounds good. It would also free up the existing tone control to be used for something else like a blender or a passive mid control. I don't think it would cause any interference but it would require some routing and drilling which would probably devalue your guirar if you ever wanted to sell it.

Well, he needs to drill for a tone pot at a minimum anyway, so he's already lost the market of people who insist on museum-quality stock Fenders. Hell, might as well throw a Bigsby or a full B-Bender on it while he's at it. Or copper shielding in the cavities. Anything that makes the guitar better for him is all that matters once you break through the barrier of deciding to do mods that can't be completely undone.