Am Std pickup 98. Only one wire??

[dirty.frank]

Hi, my american standard tele, has this neck pickup.
see picture:


As you can see, there is only one wire in the pickup. Exactly, is a metal cover wire (don't know how to explain), and inside there is the white wire.
Is this normal in an American Standard tele pickup??

The thing is that I've just installed a 4-way switch, and I get some hum, that I think is not normal... I've used the metal cover wire as the ground wire that goes directly to the 4-way switch...
then I cut the small wire that I should cut, and I soldered a new wire to make the new ground from the neck pickup and the volume pot....

Do you think I did it ok??

Also, my input jack, has the ground conected to de volume pot instead of the tone pot... It's ok??
this is what I did:



Did I do something wrong??
(sorry about my poor english... ;) )

[Jack Wells]

The outside shield is the ground wire. Here's the Seymour Duncan wiring diagram. As noted on the diagram, you must disconnect the pickup cover from the ground wire (shield) and run a separate wire to ground.

http://www.seymourduncan.com/support...matic=tele_4ws

Also, my input jack, has the ground conected to de volume pot instead of the tone pot... It's ok??

Shouldn't matter which pot you output jack is connected to.

[dirty.frank]

I'm thinking maybe the problem is that the shield wire has no protection... i mean, it has not a plastic shield/cover and maybe touch in some place it shouldn't....

[sjtalon]

Originally Posted by Jack Wells

you must disconnect the pickup cover from the ground wire (shield) and run a separate wire to ground.

You MUST do this !


Cut that bare solid jumper wire out of both solder points. (like you did)

Then solder a wire to the lower left solder point and connect that to the switch. In the diagram that is the BLACK wire (from rhythm pickup).

The shield/braided wire solders to a back of a pot - GROUND


The big solder point there in the middle CAN NOT GO TO THE SWITCH.


It would be a good idea to electrical tape (or shrink tube) that braid about an inch on the pickup end and whatever of it is in the control cavity as well.

[dirty.frank]

Originally Posted by sjtalon

Then solder a wire to the lower left solder point and connect that to the switch. In the diagram that is the BLACK wire (from rhythm pickup).

The shield/braided wire solders to a back of a pot - GROUND

Are you sure???
I just did the oposite.....

I used the shield/braided wire to connect to the switch and then I soldered a new wire to the ground from the middle solder point in the pickup....

i have to say that all the switch positions are doing the correct combination of pickups, and sound great. only problem is the little hum.....

[sjtalon]

It looked to me that the braid wire was soldered in the middle point. Which is solder on the metal cover tab. That's why I said you needed to add a wire from the lower left as that is the coil wire, as that has to go to the switch.

>I've used the metal cover wire as the ground wire that goes directly to the 4-way switch<

That made me think you had the pickup cover connection to the switch as well.


If the braid is soldered to the left lower solder point and then I understand you have the braid to the switch then that is good.


Sorry to confuse the issue.

[sjtalon]

Found this picture.

Notice how the braided wire is in the middle solder point. That is the cover tab, so once the jumper is removed, that braid wire has to go to ground on this pickup.

Then the other solder point on the lower left should be the wire going to the switch, shown as black in the diagram. That point is the neutral (-) coil wire tied in the flatware bobbin eye and is the one for the switch. You said you have that to ground correct ??

>and I soldered a new wire to make the new ground from the neck pickup and the volume pot<

That's not right.


So what is YOUR braided wire soldered to on the back of the pickup ?

[dirty.frank]

Hi sjtalon,
I'v used the picture you post to explain exactly what I did.



I'm a llittle bit confisung when you say that the new wire has to go to the lower left soldering point... So, if this is right, you can see on the picture I did it wong.. is'n it??

[sjtalon]

So your green wire is soldered on the tab of the cover and goes to ground...good

now that braided wire, if it is soldered to the coil wire (on the other side or the solder point on the lower left), and is NOT TOUCHING the cover ( as it is a bare wire) then that is good as well.



Reference my picture below :

My RED arrow solder point is the - coil wire and should be an insulated wire lead as in most selector switch positions IT CAN NOT touch any ground, or metal. Going though that hole it is most likely touching the metal cover.



The blue arrow points out the cover tab and that could be the braid wire and naturally goes to the back of a pot. You already have a wire there anyway (your green in the picture)

You could solder the - coil lead on the other side of the pickup (lower left solder point under the RED arrow in your picture above) as that tab hole is probably too small to get another wire though.

So I'm just saying I would get rid of that braid wire and end up with THREE separate, insulated wires, solder-ed to the THREE separate points on the pickup.

[dirty.frank]

Ohh..
Ok, now I understand it ver clear... thanks!!

I think the best I can do is not using that braided wire becouse it's possible that touches some metal part I don't want...

last question to make sure I understand all you are saying....

In your picture, you are showing with the red arrow, the "- coil".
Is the lower left solder point at the other side of the pickup (the back side, not the metal cover) also the "- coil".
In other words... the "- coil" can be soldered at the two sides of the pickup??

thanks!!!

Originally Posted by sjtalon

So your green wire is soldered on the tab of the cover and goes to ground...good

now that braided wire, if it is soldered to the coil wire (on the other side or the solder point on the lower left), and is NOT TOUCHING the cover ( as it is a bare wire) then that is good as well.



Reference my picture below :

My RED arrow solder point is the - coil wire and should be an insulated wire lead as in most selector switch positions IT CAN NOT touch any ground, or metal. Going though that hole it is most likely touching the metal cover.



The blue arrow points out the cover tab and that could be the braid wire and naturally goes to the back of a pot. You already have a wire there anyway (your green in the picture)

You could solder the - coil lead on the other side of the pickup (lower left solder point under the RED arrow in your picture above) as that tab hole is probably too small to get another wire though.

So I'm just saying I would get rid of that braid wire and end up with THREE separate, insulated wires, solder-ed to the THREE separate points on the pickup.

[sjtalon]

Now you are getting it !


O.K. Lets say, you were to take that braid wire right off ( which it sounds like you are going to do..........and SHOULD DO !). This is what your pickup should look like as far as wire colors/connections. The black and white wires would be connected to the 4 way switch, just like the diagram respective to black and white.

I colored over the jumper as that would be removed, just like you did.

Three SEPARATE insulated wires-

YOUR Green to ground, on the back of a pot, grounds the COVER (Shield) tab.

Black- NEGATIVE (-) coil wire; to the switch.

White- POSITIVE (+) coil wire, the wire that was inside your braid; to the switch

[sjtalon]

A guitar pickup is made of a COIL of wire, and that COIL of wire, has a START of the wind, and a FINISH of the wind.

It HAS TO BE A CIRCUIT, meaning there is a + coil wire, and a - coil wire so the electricity generated can flow, or travel, from point A to point B you could say.

That's why a pickup has TWO SEPARATE LEADS, just like a light bulb fixture has TWO wires.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Si...tring_anim.gif

The meter shows the voltage generated in the coil when the magnetic field is changed by the string vibrating above the pickups magnetic poles.


I'll reply to your PM later tonight, gotta go eat supper !

[dirty.frank]

Thanks a lot!

[tfsails]

If you take an ohmmeter, you should not have any continuity between your shield wire (the braided wire surrounding the hot wire) and the new ground wire you soldered to the cover. If you do, you have a problem. That should be an open.

You may well have to remove that whole shield and solder another wire to the (-) connection of the pup and then solder that wire to the 4-way switch.

Once you get this right, it'll all be worth it. Two pups in series rock!

Don't forget that some humming in a single-coil pickup is normal and can be affected by such things as fluorescent lights and electronic dimmer switches. Make sure you're not getting that problem.

[dirty.frank]

I hope this weekend I will have the time to work on it!!!
I have two kids and they stole my time!!! hahahahahahah But I'm very happy with that... hehehe

[dirty.frank]

One question... With the american standard tele pickups should i have hum cancelling in positions 2 and 4?

[sjtalon]

no

[dirty.frank]

Originally Posted by sjtalon

no

What I have to check in pup's specs to know if it will do hum cancelling...

I think the instructions that comes with my 4-way switch says that CS Texas specials are ready for hum cancelling...

[sjtalon]

yes they are, the bridge pickup is a south top (polarization) and the neck is a north top.


Nocasters, Keystone T set, Toneriders are N C (hum cancel) as well.


One pickup is mfc. RW/RP to the other in the set.

[dirty.frank]

Ok, yestesday I did the work. I removed the braided wire from the pickup, and replaced with a "normal" wire, to use as a "-coil".
And now its fantastic... more quiet guitar?? ;-) big difference with hum....
I think the problem was that the braided wire was conected also to the pickup cover...

Thanks to everyone for all the advices....

now I have a hotter output in the 4th position that is what I was searching for...

Thanks!