Broken Pickup Selector? Try this first! Repair Tips and More - Fix Les Paul Switch Problems
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- Опубліковано 22 лип 2024
- Scratchy or broken pickup selectors drive us crazy but often have a pretty easy fix. Watch and learn the basics of repairing this nearly universal guitar part. This is used by most modern guitar manufactures like Epiphone, Gibson, Schecter, Dean, ESP, and many more.
Man, you saved my day. I was just about to rip my hair off before i found your video. Now my guitar works like a charm. Not all heroes wear capes!
So Cool! Exactly why I made this video! Any other repair videos you need?
@@RamonaMusicCenter Not at the moment haha. But once one of my guitars starts having issues i’ll defininetly reach out!
Just stumbled in here today having the "no sound" issue...I'd decided the issue must be the switch...
I've got hope that's all that's wrong...it's not a Switchcraft either...but I DO have a Fender Mini Tweed amp I keep my wiring job plugged into! Thanks!
@@RamonaMusicCenter thnx for this video,same issues I have about my Les Paul too,if I switch on neck and middle position it sounds but if I engaged to bridge pickup no sounds at all..
Great video. Just wish you would have showed some of what you did when you took it apart.
I agree. Any idea what was done?
@@jmatches01pull apart the plate,clean the contact point and bend them back in,like what he said in the video
This was amazing. I thought my guitars neck pickup had broke and the warranty was out.
I was thinking about selling it for a very low price as broken.
Tried this on my epiphone les paul guitar and it worked perfectly!
Great explanation, straight to the point, no words wasted!
Thanks again!
Incredible to hear! Happy to help :)
I was working with a busted 5 way switch on a squier that had been in storage for years. This video had all the info I needed to clean and test it out. Thanks!
Thanks! Been tolerating this for a while but now I'm going to be working on a friends guitar and they need a guitar to play in the meantime so since they will be borrowing my LP I figured I would fix the issue so they wouldn't have to deal with it. I did what you said and it isn't cutting out anymore.
This video saved me some money and headache on my LP. My rhythm side was sketchy. Just gave it a little squeeze and back in business. Thanks so much!!
Amazing to hear! Simple fixes FTW!
I can't thank you enough dude, I was about to return my LP copy due to bad toggle, by seeing this I fixed my issue. Best endeavors to you dude
Close call! Glad to help!
Recently got a new guitar and was wondering why it sounded a bit off - this helped solve the problem! 🙏🏻
Good video! I bought a new Squier Contemporary Jazzmaster that has the same kind of switch and it wasn't working. I couldn't bring the guitar to the store I bought it for reparation because of COVID-19 and this video was all it needed. Now my Jazzmaster is back to the way it was always meant to be, thank you very much for uploading this!
Wonderful to hear!!!!! Let me know if you need any other repair videos!
Dude thank you!!! I thought I was gonna have to have it replaced but now it works great! You are the mvp
Happy to help :)
Just bought a really nice MIJ Jackson 7 string DR7T FR the other day and the neck pickup stopped putting out sound. Have been trying really hard to figure out what’s wrong and it turned out to be this! Thanks for the video! My guitar works again
Thank you very much! Fixed it within a few minutes thanks to your video! 😍
Glad it helped!
Thank you very much. This was exactly the video I needed. Thank you and many greetings from Germany!
Glad it was helpful!
Bro you are the MAN! Thank you so much! Subscribed immediately!🤘
My guitar's toggle-switch contacts looked to be separated in both positions, so instead of bending, I took a narrow strip of 600 grit sandpaper, opened each contact, placed the paper between the open contacts, closed the points on the paper, then slid the paper out, scraping away anything that may have been funking up the works. All good now. Thanks for getting me headed in the right direction.
Great idea!!
Great vId!, just got this brand new guitar, opt of the box to much hum like bad grinding
Found that when touch the screws in the 3w toggle switch makes a lot of noise, even every thing in the wiring looks all right and checked with multimeter
Thanks in advance!
This got my new (used) SG working today! Thank you!
Great to hear!
This fixed my problem as well! Thank you so much! Subscribed!
Glad it helped!
Super easy fix! Thanks man!
You bet!
Thank you! I have the exact problème on my LP épi. Can’t wait to get home and look at this.
Same thing is happening to mine! Gonna try this tomorrow!
Worked like a charm Thanks
Thanks man, had a busted pickup and also the switch was loose and causing all kinds of buzz on top of this.
Super helpful! Gonna try this tonight and see if I can fix mine!
Glad it helped!
Same here!
Thanks so much for posting this. Very helpful! 👍🎶
Glad it was helpful!
You saved me a trip to a guitar store, one careful bending operation with pliers and my switch works perfectly again.
Fixed it for me, many thanks!
Glad it helped!
I just bought a Firefly SG style guitar and had this exact same problem out the box. The bridge pickup would not not function properly.
So as you did I had to flick back and forth until the sound engaged. It really sucked everytime I wanted to change the sound it felt as if it had muted so I had to stop playing to fix it every time I needed the bridge.
Switch had been broken for *years.* Just bent that little guy back into place and fixed it. Thanks!
Great to hear!
Great tip! Thanks so much for the info :)
You bet!
Thank you! This was my problem and I fixed it
Glad it helped!
Man i love you with all my heart you saved me
haha glad to help!
Thanks for this, thought I'd have to pay a guy (or gal or whatever) to fix it for me. You didn't show the actual rebuilding of the switch but you described it well enough that I think I can fix it. Its an epiphone special ii so not really worth the cost to take it to the shop, but I love the tone when it works, which is pretty much not at all right now.
Saweet! Good luck!
Cool! Thanks for the video!
Happy to help!
Thanks man it worked for me !!!!
Glad it helped!!!!
very useful!
Thanks. Fixed my Jazzmaster.
Love this!!!
see the one that came on my LP was a switcraft and its been doing this, already bought a cheap one off amazon but id rather rebend the contacts if that will keep the parts original!
thanks for help me!!!
My Ibanez artist guitar is buzzing on the neck pick up but the problem I have is that it's a closed back guitar so no way to get to the pickup selector... any ideas or advise for this?
I thank you very very much, friend for that video.
Thanks to it i was able to repair my switching problem 👍😎😄😁😎👍🎸🎸!!!!
Ps. You Rock!
Heck yes! Glad it helped
Hi i was wondering if you can help me , i purchase a new harness assembled harness kit for my les paul.I also purchased 1 490 and 498 pick ups, unfortunately the 498 has 5 wires and the 490 has 1 wire wrapped with a neutral and i dont know where they should be soldered.can you help me.Thanks
thanks alot
I have same problem, n do light squeeze like minute 2.08.but I can't hear the buzz/sound, the wiring cable still intact n look s good, what should I do? Thanks
My Les Paul switch won’t go to the bridge pickup position and I was wondering if you could tell me anyway to fix that problem or should I just buy a new switch?
Thank you, man :)
Glad it helped!
Thank you so much man 🤧
Happy to help!!
Very useful video! U just saved me some money lol
Glad I could help!
Thanks! But the problem with my toggle switch is that it is 3 WAY BOX STYLE toggle switch for japanese Les Paul and the bridge pickup fails to make any sound since today, just slight low volume sound. I know that the problem is common - fatigue of the prongs, and in order to fix it as you showed we need to tighten the springs but i guess with enclosed Box Style switch the only way to fix it is total REPLACEMENT due to impossibility to reach the springs to tighten them up. Am i right?
That is the easiest fix for sure and the cheapest. I have rebuilt the box style but you have to bend the box tabs back and rebuild the contacts and some of them have ball bearings that fall out etc. Do not recommend lol
@@RamonaMusicCenter Thanks a lot! Now gonna buy the same new switch and ask someone to replace it for me! Thanks again for this explanation!
Never thougt about this.. Rewierd my guitar twice now and same issue... The guitar is 10 years old first owner
thx you love from Nepal
Does this work with an SG? mine what does is that when I choose the bridge pickup, it still sounds as if I used the middle pickup.
yes Sg guitars typically have this switch! Pull it out and see if it is moving properly.
Ohh so my tele deluxe just needed cleaning my my I'm crazy it happened and don't know what to do.
good info. mine works, it's the ball inside that keeps switching from bridge to middle. how that part fixable ?
Yeah it takes a little trial and error to get the metal tabs to bend the right way to make sure they stay. Good luck!
So this would work on my stratocaster style guitar made by Johnson? The pickup switch is a 5-position pickup, but the bridge pickup doesn't seem to work when I have the switch in any of the two positions that feature that pickup....
Sadly this wont work for that style but I recommend Opening it up and inspect for any broken wires or wires that are touching accidentally. Good luck!
I’m having this problem with the three way on my bullet Telecaster. All pickups work I just have to wiggle the neck and bridge position to work. How much is a switch fix?
These can range a bit but $25-45 is common for the replacement part and labor.
What if it's not broken but it's super stiff? I can switch between middle and bridge with ease but once I switch up to neck, I really have to push to switch back and can never go neck back to middle, the force needed to get it to move puts it on bridge.
Sounds like the tabs are bent funky. I'd pull the switch out and inspect the motion.
When you clean the plates, what do you mean? Like with what type of cleaner?
De-oxit works really well!
so i have a issue with my prs where my neck will sometimes work, i want to try this but im not exactly completely sure what i have to do
check to see if your switch looks like this first, then pull the switch out and try to see if something is getting stuck or not connecting.
so do you just clean it to fix it? My guitar is only about a year old, and the switch is still shiny and clean, how ever it still wont work.
Lots of potential causes and this is just one of many to check. It has a lot to do with the tabs being bent properly. What kind of guitar do you have?
Ha ha wow just last night my Jimmy Page Les Paul starting doing exactly this. Bridge won’t work but neck and middle do though the sound is thinner.
Was gonna spray contact cleaner in there but looks like I need to have a guy do this.
Contact cleaner is a great first step but if that doesn't work, then you can do this.
When my pick up switch is moved in all three positions, it doesn't cut out but it makes the sound of the bridge pick up on each selection.. Why?!! 😥
I would certainly recheck wiring
@ 2:48 do this every 5 or 10 years? My PRS failed after 6 months, so much for PRS build quality. :(
Yeah thats nuts! Is it a US PRS or one of the SE guitars?
What exactly do you mean by pull it apart and clean it?
If you have the type that I did with two screws, you can undo each layer of the switch and clean the contacts with DeOxit or contact cleaner. Let me know if that makes sense or not.
I'm trying to remove buzz and make a more solid ground. Any tips? I replaced one pickup and now I have more buzz I think it's due to me not grounding it as well.
What kind of guitar?
@@RamonaMusicCenter Epiphone special 1. It has the traditional 3 way switch. With 1 volume 1 tone.
Have you tried raising the Action on your guitar? Try slightly raising your strings and see if that helps you
@@Divine_Finger_er it has nothing to do with guitar action completely different type of buzzing I fixed it eventually
@@armandomorales3809 damn my bad man, hopefully you completely got rid of it, buzzing is the most annoying thing on a guitar
My toggle is missing the part that separates the plates. And I have no idea where that piece went.
Dang! Thats a random part to miss! probably need to replace
@RamonaMusicCenter yea i bought a replacement part.
This is currently happening with my ec 1000. This is the second time with a different guitar of the same kind. It's an expensive guitar and I'm having this issue again. I know nothing of this and I don't know how to fix this :(
Always so frustrating! Id pull the back cover and inspect it first then clean. Easy/cheap repair
if you go to a shop specialised with repairs...would it be best to just ask them to help you upgrade the components? would you need to just pay for them or do you have to buy the parts yourself and give it to them?
Great question! Any decent shop will have quality parts on hand but I would call ahead or swing by first and ask them. Good shops are more rare every year so support them when you can!
@@RamonaMusicCenter alright than...thx for the help
it seems like this problem is common with deans because my dean has the same problem
Funny you say this because I just dscovered that one of my Dean V´s that i havent used i a while seem to have developed this problem, the guitar is 13 years old though and is just one of about 10 guitars that i have that has this kind of switch, most of them Dean, but also Gibsons including a 70´s Les paul and this is the first time i have had this problem.
My switch has a box how do i fix mine
That is much more difficult to rebuild so I would suggest replacement if you have issues.
@@RamonaMusicCenter thank you. i guess that's my only option now.
This just happened to my ibanez.
My problem is I can't get the pickup selector switch plate off to fix it🤦
Dang! screws stripped?
@@RamonaMusicCenter no, they all come out but the back plate is almost wedged in, I can't pry it off😕
So what comes next if this doesn’t work?
replace the full switch or test each pickup to make sure they are all working! Good luck!
Man can I get your opinion. Bridge pickup is loud and clear. Switch to neck pickup and the volume cuts out about 80% switch or pickup?
I just bought a 1000$ guitar straight out of the box and my bridge pickup stopped working, and my sustainic switch stopped working already😭😭😭😭, like the guitar is brand new how does that happen lol
Thats the worst!! Schecter Synester gates?
@@RamonaMusicCenter no but close, its a Schecter C-1 Platinum FR- Sustaniac, it has been so smooth then out of no where the switches and all that just stopped
@@Divine_Finger_er My first guess is either battery died, wiring issues with battery or check the input jack wires. Good luck!
@@RamonaMusicCenter thank you! Ill for sure give it a look tomorrow and see what the issue is
Ugh, mine doesn't cut out.. the switch is physically broken and flops all around.
Oh man! Time for replacement! Good options online
mine is bad out of the box. :(
Ugh thats the worst! Return if you can or try this fix if not.
Why did both of my LPs One G one E......yes!!!! WTF exactly what you just did...your awesome my man...u answered yet never knew my question! That takes talent.
SubD
Heck yes! Exactly why I made this vid! Any other videos you'd like to see?
why not show how you took it apart and straighten it out, you're already there? :(
I'm still learning :) Will do next time. I Cleaned off the contacts with steel wool
@@RamonaMusicCenter thanks. I'm having this issue right now but mine is just loose, i think. i removed it, inspect like how you did but the metal plates still intact. the mechanism works fine but the spring is super sensitive, just a slight tap it can change the switch to middle position. but the problem with my switch(aside from sensitivity) is the nut is loose, my toggle is rotating so i just tightened it a reasonable amount(the nut at the top) and it works fine. but I'd like to take it apart and clean it with steel wool too if you show me how. lol
Sounds like you need to bend the contacts in towards the plug a bit. You only need to use steel wool if there is dirt/gunk on the metal.
why wouldn't you show the disassembly and cleaning for the people with no experience?
Can do on a follow up!
who cares about the switch?? it’s 9 dollars on amazon!
Your not wrong but sometimes if you have a show that night or are on the road, this can be a lifesaver! Also sometimes the new parts from Amazon need some extra TLC.
Stop waffling and just explain how it works for a neck or bridge pickup for each of 3 positions of the switch toggle. He drops the switch repeatedly and then apologizes.... just redo the video and then post it.
Bro you are the MAN! Thank you so much! Subscribed immediately!🤘
Glad I could help! Appreciate the help growing the channel!