tonefiend.com

Tag: rwrp

  • “Nashville” Tele Wiring . . . in a Strat?!

    “Nashville” Tele Wiring . . . in a Strat?!

    What do you get when you cross . . .

    I’ve been coveting one of those “Nashville-Style” Telecasters — you know, the hot-rodded, three-pickup versions popularized by Nashville session superhero Brent Mason, and now a regular Fender production model.

    Then it dawned on me: Since some of Mongrel Strats I’ve been playing with have strong Tele tendencies, why not flip the equation? Instead of a Tele that acts like a Strat, why not a Strat that thinks it’s a Tele?

    The Fender version replaces the usual Tele 3-way switch with a 5-way, as shown in this wiring diagram, though many players prefer to keep the 3-way switch and add the middle pickup via a blend knob, as in this other wiring diagram.

    I took the latter approach, and I am flipping out over all the new tones it unlocks. Check out this little video demo:

    (more…)

  • The Ultimate Mongrel Strat? (with Obsessive/Compulsive Tone Control!)

    The Ultimate Mongrel Strat? (with Obsessive/Compulsive Tone Control!)

    Not for everybody: The sickest mongrel strat yet.

    Okay, I lied.

    In the previous installment of our ongoing mongrel strat series, I experimented with a version of Gibson’s oddball Vari-Tone circuit. I said it was too fussy and complex, and that I wanted to experiment with a simplified version.

    So naturally, I built a “parts” Strat with a Vari-Tone twice as complicated as the original — a configuration I’ve dubbed the “Obsessive/Compulsive Tone Control.” I also deployed some of my favorite quirks and wiring tricks from previous strat experiments, plus a few new hardware discoveries. Result: a weird-ass guitar that only a geek could love a cool, one-of-a-kind instrument.

    Check out the demo. Post-mortem after.
    (more…)