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Tele Deluxe Wiring

Discussion in 'Tele-Technical' started by newmindsets, Sep 5, 2020.

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  1. Sep 5, 2020 #1
    newmindsets

    newmindsets NEW MEMBER!

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    Hello all,

    I recently acquired a reissue 72 Tele Deluxe. I had the pickups rebuilt to vintage spec by Brandonwound pickups, so they have 4 wires.

    I have 2 CTS push pull pots which I've been trying to set up as Series/Parallel with Series(Fatter sound) being on when the pot is pushed in, and Parallel being on when the pot is pulled up. I want them both on the tone pots farther back, rather than the volume pots.

    As far as I can tell the Brandonwound pickups use the same color code as Seymour Duncan.


    I initially used the diagram provided by Stewmac on the product page for the CTS pots, however when testing it out it sounded like the series and parallel positions on the push pull were reversed. I then looked at a Seymour Duncan diagram which had everything the same except where the white wire was connected. After switching it to that wiring it appeared top still have the same problem.

    Then there is this video:
    He wires it differently then both previous diagrams.

    Is there multiple ways to wire the same thing?

    Can anybody point me to a diagram that 100% will do what I'm trying to achieve?
     

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  2. Sep 6, 2020 #2
    TimTam

    TimTam Tele-Holic

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    Stewmac's CTS push-pull diagrams have been known to have some of the up and down operations opposite to what many people would regard as the most sensible. The SD diagrams only show Alpha-type push pulls, not CTS (AFAIK). There may well be people who like 2 HB coils in series in the up position, or out of phase in the down position ... Stewmac may know them but I've never met any.

    I've heard of people soldering multiple CTS push-pulls across several guitars in a session according the Stewmac instructions, and then finding they all worked opposite to what was assumed to be the only sensible functionality.

    So with push-pulls you first have to be sure how you want them to work (which you do). Then if a diagram source doesn't tell you what up and down positions actually do in their wiring design, you need to understand exactly how the switch works and then decipher what it is doing in each diagrammed position (additionally aided by a multimeter) .... in order to tell if it accords with your notion of what is sensible and what is not.

    If the Six-strings video has the same push/pull pots as you, and produces the up/down functionality you want, and you're 100% sure that the Brandonwound colour code is the same as SD (which Six-strings is using), that's the one I would go with. From around 16:15 in the video it clearly shows which setting is stock series (down) and which is parallel (up).

    They also have a proper explanation of CTS push-pulls here ...
    https://www.sixstringsupplies.co.uk/cts-push-pull-pot-wiring
     
  3. Sep 6, 2020 #3
    newmindsets

    newmindsets NEW MEMBER!

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    Thank you for your reply!

    I put in 10 hours yesterday with a migraine and a nap in between sessions to finally get it wired the way I wanted it. I bought a soldering iron and solder that day, and had never used one prior so there was a bit of a learning curve.

    Just like you mentioned, the video I linked was the configuration that worked for me.

    It really is quite frustrating to have so many resources for wiring but nothing to really unify them as to not have any misinterpretation. The majority of diagrams that I came across did not indeed specify whether series was down or up - but like you, I assumed that series down was the "normal" way to do it. The Stewmac alpha lug representation doesn't specify whether you're looking at it upside down (like when you're wiring it) or upside right (with knob pole sticking up), and neither do some other diagrams, which can lead to more confusion as to what lug/eyelet you're actually soldering to.

    It basically came down to the Stewmac diagram, but with the white and red wires on 2 and 4 (CTS) and green and black on 3 and C2, respectively. The Stewmac diagram indeed has the right setup, but for parallel down and series up. I just had to swap those wires and I was good to go.
     
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