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#287126 - 16/08/11 05:51 AM Mid Boost modification !
Paranoidpete Paranoidpete Be Nice (I'm New!) Registered: 16/08/11 Posts: 5 Loc: Near Plymouth	I was wondering if it was possible to replace the 250K pot that operates the mid boost on the Clapton Strat to an on/off switch ? I only use the mid boost either full on or full off and don't need any settings inbetween. I have the details of a by-pass, but I'm not looking to do that. Best regards, Pete
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#287128 - 16/08/11 08:18 AM Re: Mid Boost modification ! [Re: Paranoidpete]
stickyfiddle stickyfiddle Spam Commander (Forum Council Member) Old Timer Registered: 22/04/04 Posts: 6168 Loc: London, UK	That's undoubtedly do-able. Are you essentially looking to replace the pot with a switch? or have it on a push/pull so you still had the functionality of the pot if you want it, but can switch it off most of the time? Either way you need to add in a bypass switch that will remove the mid-boost circuit from the signal path when you don't want it, just like a true-bypass drive pedal Edited by stickyfiddle (16/08/11 08:18 AM) _________________________ PSN: stickyfiddle
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#287130 - 16/08/11 12:26 PM Re: Mid Boost modification ! [Re: stickyfiddle]
Paranoidpete Paranoidpete Be Nice (I'm New!) Registered: 16/08/11 Posts: 5 Loc: Near Plymouth	Aye, aye Sticky, It's an interesting one this. If you turn the boost to the off position on the pot (in other words you are just getting the standard noisless pickups with nothing added except any passive TBX you might have added or subtracted)then you would think that the guitar is completely passive. It's not ! If you remove the battery that powers the mid-boost the guitar is as dead as a bit of driftwood. So, as you suggest, I would like to replace the pot with a switch, but I really can't figure out how to do it without affecting the operation of the whole electrics system. Ireally don't want to bypass as it's bound to affect the sound in some way. Any ideas will be very welcome, Best regards, Pete
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#287136 - 16/08/11 03:20 PM Re: Mid Boost modification ! [Re: Paranoidpete]
stickyfiddle stickyfiddle Spam Commander (Forum Council Member) Old Timer Registered: 22/04/04 Posts: 6168 Loc: London, UK	I'll try and dig out a circuit diagram and see how different it is from a regular strat. My instinct is that it is probably wired as if a master vol & master tone strat, then pushing the whole lot through the booster. Assuming that's right you can either bypass that with a switch as if it were an fx pedal. If not you could replace the pot in the circuit with a switch & fixed resistor of the appropriate value, so when the switch is in one position it is as if the pot is up full, and in the other position as if the pot were on 0. _________________________ PSN: stickyfiddle
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#287137 - 16/08/11 03:20 PM Re: Mid Boost modification ! [Re: stickyfiddle]
stickyfiddle stickyfiddle Spam Commander (Forum Council Member) Old Timer Registered: 22/04/04 Posts: 6168 Loc: London, UK	And welcome to the forum, btw! $\:\)$ _________________________ PSN: stickyfiddle
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#287155 - 17/08/11 03:39 AM Re: Mid Boost modification ! [Re: stickyfiddle]
Lurcher Lurcher Professional Forumite! Registered: 09/02/09 Posts: 942 Loc: Tipperary, Ireland	I think Sticky's on the right track but I'd say look for a push-push switch. In the heat of play, these are much easier to use and no risk of finding yourself in the middle of a set with a knob in your hand (pardon the expression). Brian _________________________ I pick up my guitar and play Just like yesterday Guitarist with The Silver Hoarde. Geriatric Metal for your weddings and wakes.
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#287159 - 17/08/11 04:41 AM Re: Mid Boost modification ! [Re: Lurcher]
stickyfiddle stickyfiddle Spam Commander (Forum Council Member) Old Timer Registered: 22/04/04 Posts: 6168 Loc: London, UK	I definitely agree with the push-push switch- WAY easier than push pulls! I've found the wiring; it's not quite as simple as I hoped. It seems the control pot is a kind of blend between the clean sound and the boosted sound, with the whole signal passing through a buffer before going back out to the volume pot and boost circuit. The best bet would be to replace the pot in the circuit with a switch and a pair of resistors. When I get some time later I can probably manage to rejig the diagram to show what I mean Edited by stickyfiddle (17/08/11 04:48 AM) _________________________ PSN: stickyfiddle
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#287168 - 17/08/11 10:15 AM Re: Mid Boost modification ! [Re: stickyfiddle]
Paranoidpete Paranoidpete Be Nice (I'm New!) Registered: 16/08/11 Posts: 5 Loc: Near Plymouth	Okay old chap, that would be much appreciated. Best regards, Pete
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#287170 - 17/08/11 10:51 AM Re: Mid Boost modification ! [Re: stickyfiddle]
DaveBass DaveBass Old Timer Registered: 30/10/02 Posts: 6462 Loc: The wilds of Surrey	Originally Posted By: stickyfiddle The best bet would be to replace the pot in the circuit with a switch and a pair of resistors. Pete only wants full-on or full-off, so a simple two-way switch would do, with a resistor equal to the pot's total track resistance. I'll see if I can draw that up for you... EDIT: Well, I have a drawing now, but Photobucket seems to have gone titsup (to use a technical expression) and isn't even responding to pings. I'll try again later. Another edit: Seems like it's my ISP, as tracert photobucket.com only goes two hops before it stalls. Other US sites are unavailable from here, too. Sigh. You sign up with a decent ISP (Pipex) but then they get bought by Tiscali, who in turn get bought by TalkTalk ... enough said. Dave
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#287171 - 17/08/11 10:56 AM Re: Mid Boost modification ! [Re: DaveBass]
stickyfiddle stickyfiddle Spam Commander (Forum Council Member) Old Timer Registered: 22/04/04 Posts: 6168 Loc: London, UK	Yeh, now I think about it you just need to send one of the outputs straight to the tip, and the other to the tip via the resistor (250K if internet research holds water...) DPDT should do it? _________________________ PSN: stickyfiddle
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