HB Supersw Circuit for 3 P/U w/ Odd Pole at Neck

An All-Humbucking (HB) 5-Way Superswitch Circuit for 3 Single-Coil Pickups with the Odd Pole at the Neck

© 2016 Don Baker

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In General

When using a 5-way superswitch with 3 single-coil pickups, using the patent-pending approach in the previous tutorial, “An All-Humbucking 5-Way Superswitch Circuit in an Electronic Guitar with 3 Single-Coil Pickups”, only the two pickups with the same poles up can form a contra-phase pair.  And to do that (in this approach – a Prov. Patent Application has been filed on a more general approach), one of those two pickups has to use two of the switch poles, so that it can be reversed against the other pickup of the same magnetic pole up.  Don’t confuse switch poles with magnetic poles, they are two different things.

Notice the different diagram symbols used in this tutorial.  Using both N for neck and for a north pole can be confusing.  So the poles in switching diagrams here are shown as black and white.  It doesn’t matter whether a white pole up is north or south, only that the black pole up is the opposite.  Note that here N, M and B stand only for the neck, middle and bridge pickups.  See that those pickups have the output marked with + and -, to show the polarity of the electric signal for the same motion of the string over the pickups, and which end of the pickup is connected to which pole terminal on the 5-way superswitch.  The wires shown crossing are not connected unless a dot appears at the crossing.  Note that the switching diagram goes from the bridge to the neck from left to right.

In the soldering diagrams, the wipers (switch poles) have been moved to the other ends of the switch throw terminals, so that the direction toward the bridge is the same in both diagrams, left to right.  The switch throw terminals correspond physically to superswitch terminals shown on the bottom of the switch in the images in the previous tutorial (An All-Humbucking 5-Way Superswitch Circuit in an Electronic Guitar with 3 Single-Coil Pickups).

Note the rearrangement of the switch pole terminals.  The top (outside wafer) switch pole terminals go only to + pickup signals.  The bottom (inside wafer) pole terminals go only to – pickups signals.  The remaining + pickup signal goes to the output and the remaining – pickups signal goes to ground.  This tends to simplify the switch soldering diagram, with a minimum number of wires crossing from top to bottom.

Note that the switch wiring and soldering diagrams must have the same number of terminals soldered, including the same numbers of terminals soldered to the output, and the same number of terminals soldered to the ground.  Use this for a double-check on your work.  And then triple-check everything, including what I’ve written.

Pay attention to the theory.  These diagrams are easy to confuse.  If you are unable to follow it and use it to double-check your work and mine, you will have little clue how to fix it if something goes wrong.

Version A

As noted, either of the middle or bridge pickups, having the same pole up, can be used with two of the switch poles to form a contra-phase pair.  This first version puts those two poles on the bridge pickup.  Note that the switch poles connected to B+ and B- show the wipers starting at the left-hand side of the right set of 5 throw pairs, while the actual solder terminals are on the left side of the bottom of the switch, labeled N+ and N- in the previous tutorial (where the middle pickup had the odd pole up).

This is the 5-way superswitch switching diagram for the case of three single-coil pickups where the pickup with the odd pole up is at the neck, and the pickup using two switch poles is at the bridge.

This is the 5-way superswitch soldering diagram for the same case.

Version B

This is the 5-way superswitch switching diagram for the case of three single-coil pickups where the pickup with the odd pole up is at the neck, and the pickup using two switch poles is at the middle.

This is the 5-way superswitch soldering diagram for the same case.

Final Notes

In this case, the middle and bridge contra-phase pair has been wired in series because of the expectation that a parallel connection, although brighter, will be much weaker and sound tinny.

Because of the possibly competing factors mentioned in the post on HB general principles, one cannot say whether the HB pair (N+B) is brighter or warmer then the HB pair (N+M), without actually wiring it up and either listening the result or measuring it with a spectrum analyzer.  I have not done so.  Nor can one say which of the pairs (N||B) and (N||M) is warmer or brighter without testing.  Note that the result of (N+M) will be the same tonally whether the odd pole is at the neck or middle.  However, one can expect that with the odd pole at the neck, (M+(-B)) has the same tonal output as ((-M)+B), and that either may be brighter than ((-N)+B) or (N+(-B)) with the odd pole in the middle.  Whether or not they are brighter than (N||(-B)) might be debatable without testing, but it seems likely.

In the case of the odd pole a the bridge, the contra-phase pair must be the middle and neck pickups.  According to the general principles of HB pairs, pairs closer to the neck will be warmer.  Therefore, one can expect less tonal difference between the HB pairs of that case, due to conflicts of the general principles.  But like all else, this is subject to testing and verification.

Nevertheless, the standard 5-way switch provides only 2 parallel HB connections, (N||M) and (M||B).  Certainly, the (N+M), (M+B) and (N+B) connections will be warmer, merely for being serial.  And also the contra-phase HB pairs of neck and bridge (middle odd) and middle and bridge (neck odd) will be brighter than a  single bridge pickup alone, merely for being contra-phase.

You have now been given enough tools to design, build, test and decide for yourself which is best and suits you.  Whether or not you will demand any more from guitar companies is your decision.