Hey Dylan!!! The only thing i want to ask - is what kind of jams do you like? Merle Haggard type jazzy country music makes me giggle. Sometimes i like that on a day when i dont have anything else to worry about=)
I did some research and found 500k work best with humbuckers. My L. P. Studio came with changed pups. 496/500 and 250k pots and garbage wire. I replaced the pots with 550k CTS pots, .11 caps for more treble control to make more use of tone knobs and 22 gauge wire.
Probably should explain that the reason for an audio taper pot is because our hearing is not linear. We hear on a logarithmic scale. Therefor the audio taper actually sounds more linear to our ears.
Yeah you're correct saying that our hearing is not linear but a nonlinear pot does not necessarily match human hearing. That was never the sole intention for the design of a nonlinear pot. I wanted to point that out because I worked in the field of electronics for 45 years until I retired so I've read just about every spec sheet on the most common components out on the market that you could ever imagine. Here's a good example and it is a real world example: A while back I had a mic gain potentiometer that had a bad place on it on a mixing board that I own. It was a linear pot which meant whenever you adjusted it the audio gain or reduction depending which way you were turning it was gradual. I looked everywhere for this particular part and couldn't find nothing but a audio taper pot to put in its place. What I noticed was and what I absolutely expected to happen was adjusting that channel was a little tricky because the mic gain would suddenly go up or go down too fast when adjusting it which made it difficult to set. The saving grace for me was I was using this board as a sub mixer with a digital audio station so for all of the channels I was able to leave them set for a minimum gain due to the fact that the DAW had a decent amount of output gain on it. If I would have had to constantly use that control such as under a live situation or as my main adjustment it would have been annoying to say the least. Before I forget I wanted to mention that they also use nonlinear pots or audio taper pots in other applications that have absolutely nothing to do with audio it all just due to the fact of the way they react when they are adjusted.
@@flash001USA I'm sure there are all sorts of potentiometers for specialized purposes but in the context of this video, which is an audio application, the reason for an "audio" taper is to better match the way we hear and not sound like the volume is only increasing all at the end of the pot's range. This is specifically for volume controls and not necessarily what you would want for tone.
@@chrisyoung8062 You won't get an argument out of me with your reply or even your original reply to this video. An audio taper has a faster attack or "feel" and most guitar players prefer an audio taper over a linear taper so yeah I would have to agree with you that it would be perceived to deliver more of a natural volume curve the way our ears perceive sound but the original pot designs didn't start out with an audio pot in mind. My only point was that in early electronic designs and even today there was an actual need for fast reacting nonlinear pots even for non-audio applications but that the earlier stereo and musical equipment manufactures probably quickly realized that the nonlinear pots were the ticket and much better suited for audio applications and it's probably safe to say that someone pretty sharp sat down and refined nonlinear pots along the way to deliver a better "feel" just for audio applications like musical equipment and stereos.
@@flash001USA Agree I actual prefer close to linear as I like to have usable range from say 2 up some of the boutique "correct taper" actually I cant hear a signal below 5 so not that useful if I want clean dirty and lead in one sweep.
@@chrisyoung8062 Tone needs to be audio for a different reason. It is in 2-terminal mode and electrically the influence becomes more linear with a audio pot. Practically, the upper half of the sweep (e.g. 50-500K) affects resistive loading whereas the lower sweep (0-50K) varies the tone capacitor and the damping of the resonant circuit it forms with the pickup. However, controls can be linear when because settings above the 10% resistance of audio taper are mostly used. This is somewhat true of guitar volume except distortion and compression then swing the choice back towards an expanded sweep to compensate.
small pot "gear ratio" analogy is not geometrically accurate if the knob is the same size. A knob turned 180 degrees will turn a pot 180 degrees regardless of it's size, dime or nickel sized. So glad i just discovered this channel....so much fun and educational! Thanks.
Hmm now this has me thinking. The size of the components inside have a shorter throw, like a smaller gear on a bicycle, so there is definitely a different feel, and I presume that's what he's referring to? Would that change how smooth a knob is or its apparent accuracy?
I have a Squier strat that I did all this stuff too. It sounds great, but really I did it just to do it. It was Covid time and I got to learn a lot. So, sometimes just do it because you can and soldering is fun.
I recently bought a '98 Epiphone Korina Flying V. The seller said it had upgraded pickups, new pots, totally rewired by his "guitar tech" and "professionally" set up. I tried it briefly at his place of business, so I didn't feel I could give it a proper workout. Got it home, plugged it in, and realized that I had NO volume until 5 on the dial, and from 5 - 10 had a marginal increase in volume. The tone didn't work at all. He had a phase/out of phase switch installed, which I think is what is causing the problems. I'm no tech guy by any stretch but I watch a shit ton of videos because I enjoy learning about guitars, amps, etc. Anyway....the guitar is now at a reputable guitar shop, hopefully being restored back to stock. The guy I use worked on my JCM900, so I trust him. Thankfully, the pickups are worth more than what I paid for the guitar, so I think I am still ahead, even after the repair bill comes in. I enjoy your videos a lot. Cheers
I had an ancient Fender Champ Amp that had a volume that went to 11. I gave it to my girlfriends son to finish graduating when he was talking about dropping out a few weeks before he granulated. He has been keeping me apprised of his adventures in making it work correctly. Most of the capacitors were shot or leaking or even burst. He has learned a lot from that amp and I didn't have to mess with it!
I changed the taper of the tone pot on my Squier bass and it made a big difference. It drove me mad that it was really bright and then very quickly really dark with not much in between. Now it goes smoothly from bright to dark with changes in tone happening all the way along the turn of the pot.
Something like this has probably already been said... sound levels (decibels) follow an exponential curve, so we generally find audio taper pots so pleasing because that taper follows what our ears perceive to be a measured, gradual increase in volume through the full rotation. Using a linear taper pot for most volume control applications basically limits that full sweep of control you'd have with an audio taper pot to the first 1/3 of its rotation. The rest of the rotation doesn't seem to do anything because it doesn't allow the circuit to produce the exponentially louder signal--more dB's--that our ears perceive as volume.
Hey Dylan, just wanted to say thanks for doing what you’re doing. I only discovered your channel recently and I’ve learned so much from your vids. Great stuff - much appreciated!
That said, I swapped out my pots only on a $200(Approximate guess, I'm British) epiphone for a set of Bourne's 500k and it did make quite difference to tone, not in it's overall base tone(same pick ups after all) but better response. My best leighman's explanation, was having the tone I already had in HD.
I'm not sure what you said about the small pots being more difficult to operate with accuracy unless you put a big knob on them is correct. No matter the size of the pot, one revolution is one revolution. You could have a giant pot or a minuscule pot with the same knob on both and the knob rotation will be the same on both, hence the same level of accuracy (provided the construction is of equal quality). A big pot with a tiny knob will be difficult to be accurate with, just the same as a small pot with a tiny knob. That's not a drawback of mini pots but rather mini knobs. The drawback of mini pots is that the resistance is packed into a smaller track around the inside and so has a lower resolution making it more difficult to be super accurate with but the resolution is plenty high enough for guitar use.
I agree on using audio taper for all, I do also. I just LMAO when I see people claim how the pots in this 59 LP sound so much better than this new pot. I hate seeing people being taken advantage of because of lack of understanding how something works. I've been arguing with someone over the mis-used terms "handwired" amp and "handmade" guitar. They all are, just different methods of fabricating certain parts. And I've found I really like the way the CTS Emerson Pro pots work. They don't sound any different, obviously, but work really well. You info is very accurate.
@@donrutter6765, I was not referring to the wiring, I was referring to the pot's effect. That comes from it putting resistance in series with the pickup and reducing the resistance to ground, which affects tone no matter where the tone control is connected. Also both wiring's were used in the 50's and thru the years on other guitars. And "better"? That's your opinion,I don't like the other wiring. In the 50's, 60's, 70's & on & on every year had good and not so good guitars. I personally think my PRS Sunburst 22 sounds better than ANY Les Paul I've ever heard, again my opinion. Also with the "50's" wiring the tone controls are less isolated from each other, especially on the center switch setting as they are connected to the output jack and not isolated from each other by the resistance of the volume pot. I agree the two methods sound different. Way to much voodoo & hype on old guitars. Being a musician I tend to get wrapped up in all that nonsense, but being logical and scientifically minded I tend to stay more objective to all of it.
People have probably started this already but the reason logrythimic pots are preferred is because our hearing is logrythimic. Therefore it tracks with our hearing and sounds better.
About not changing anything if one likes their guitar, I have recently faced that issue myself. I have begun collecting First Act guitars, since they were cheap and becoming somewhat collectible. One in particular that I have is a black w/ white pickguard Strat copy three single coils, with a neck that is similar to a Gibson, in that the headstock slanted back. I paid $100 for it, brought it home and put it away. Then one day I was doing some fret polishing and re-stringing on my guitars. When I tuned this one up and started to play it, I was totally shocked by the playability, the beautiful clean sound, and how quiet it was when just sitting on the stand. I have a Strat, two Teles, and a 1975 Les Paul, and I swear I haven't picked any of them up since I started playing this First Act strat copy. So of course, I first thought that there must be something I could change on it, but after two months of playing it, I have decided that it is perfect, just like it is. Do you have a Patreon account? I would certainly like to send some cash your way to help you out.
"If you like the sound of your guitar, don't change it..." I.e., if it ain't broke, don't fix it.... I like that attitude. Common sense. Informative vid.
this channel, is fucking golden, ive watched this video months again when i didnt understand about electronics, and now im back and feel like ive gained so much more than what i understood before
my guitar sounded so cool with my vintage 70s pot and guitar tech replaced it with a new one which i didn't ask for. i kinda miss what it used to sound like. it had such a unique tone now it just sounds like a normal guitar. when i turned it to 10 before, it would make crazy crunchy sound it was awesome
Thanks for the informative videos. I especially like that you try to discourage unnecessary mods. Also, you explain things clearly and thoroughly. I always learn something new. Keep it up!
My pots are rubbish I think. I got a 300 bucks VGS Eruption about... Oh god... 15 years ago? It had a lot of cheap instrument issues, I fixed over the years. I brought it to a guitar geek, that set it up perfectly for me, which made it play soooo much better. Last week I put Seymour Duncans in it and the tone got so much better instantly. Now I want to rip out the electronics and make the rest good. The potis are scratching, not feeling nice, not working as they should be. Then I have a nice playing, nice looking, awesome sounding guitar :D It shared so much lifetime with me and it was a gift from my mother, who couldn't affort better back in the day, I just love the little one, but she needs some help and love to compete today. She deserves better than what she shipped with. :) Thanks for clearing this toppic up for me, greetings from germany.
This is a great channel. You eliminate the BS. I bought an old 1996 Korean Epiphone G400. This was a surprisingly great guitar for the cost. Pickups were not great so I changed those. I also changed the pots and selector switch. The new larger pots were not as good as the original small ones which fitted the knobs better anyway. I put the old ones back in. There was crackling but it turned out that this was the caps. The small pots work perfectly fine. There is tons of BS about all this stuff, especially pickups. Yes, obviously some pickups are better than others but you can put the same pickups in one guitar and they are great but then put them in another guitar and they are not so great.
This is great information. I started with single coil guitars though when I got into humbuckers it was on Ibanez Artcore type import guitars. Being used to single coils I came in the habit of keeping the volume of the guitar around 3 and, initially, same with tone. Years later when I had work done I couldn't get over how "muddy" the same pickups sounded. To your point most folks use audio taper pots and that's what's more common at local stores... but for people who use the volume and want consistency the 50s wiring and the linear volume audio tone is more or less what I'm used to. At this point when I have an instrument where we're changing volume I like to make sure the volume is a linear - I can instantly tell when I have the volume half way up if I hear "the sludge" and I hate that more than life. I wish instruments companies were more transparent about a lot of this because I really had to learn this the hard way. Thanks again for your video.
I think I saw one of your videos two years ago… and then you disappeared from my feed. Glad I could get back, now I wonì’t miss any other vid man, you’re one of the best here on YT
Spot on Dylan. They all do they same thing. Unless the pots faulty, it's way out of spec, or as you said has a weird taper no need to change them. The only thing with cheaper pots is they might die quicker, so change it to something better when it dies. But it's amazing how much time you'll actually get out of cheap pots if you clean it with lube/cleaner occasionally when you hear them getting scratchy.
Great explanation on pots. Couple decades ago I sought out how to test the range pots give you as you turn up or down on the knob. It was then that I concluded what you said in the just because it's small doesn't make it a bad pot as long as you get the performance results the pot has advertised. Still to this day I read over and over again just as you said, got ride of those small crappy pots and I'll ask, so what did they test at that made them crappy. Great video.
Cheap pots wear down the carbon strip and become scratchy, or the wiper falls off, etc. Smaller pots tend to be cheaper pots, but not in all cases. If you bought a 200$ guitar you can be sure it's got cheap ass pots, but if they work, they work - until they don't.
I used 500 pots and orange drop .47 cap on 59 Seymour Duncan Les Paul re pro pick up alone in a single pu 57 Epi Junior re pro with one bridge pu( p 100 crap). And its great, fantastic tonal range, tganks!!
I've had pots of all brands vary a lot in capacitance. I almost never use treble bleed but some need it. My Les Paul has 300k linear volumes and it's so easy to control on stage. My 335 has 500k audio. Different but nice too. The one thing more expensive pots often beat the cheap ones is capacitance.
Love the video, extremely insightful. I had no idea there was such thing as "no load pots". I think that could be useful for people who rarely use the tone pot at all, except on occasion for something very particular. I have to admit, I also thought the little pots were just cheap. 😝
Just ordered new pots for my fender. It got wrecked in hurricane Harvey. Stored at a buddy’s house over the garage and well, you know how hurricanes work.
It did not sit in water but s roof leaked occurred directly above it That hurricane tone sounds like a combination of Arrrrgh And doohhh ( Homer Simpson)
I just re-potted my Tele ! changed the cheap mini's to 250-K standard size Fender "vintage" units also .047 oarnge drop capacitor ! the guitar sounds 100% better ! very noticeable !
Dylan is a wealth of knowledge and information and this man makes sense to me so much other bullshit on the internet and if I want answers I listen to Dylan he's a Legend !
good video for one thing i will comment on is the "pot with the hole" when it goes past its 10 and you said its out of circuit and has no resistance, its actually the opposite it has infinite resistance, well the resistance of the air gap measured between the to points the end of the wiper arm and the wiper material.... tolerances yes on the cheaper maybe 10% up market maybe 5% military spec pots 1% as an example..... older pots can when you turn them grate as the carbon has actually worn of the wiper its self, so you get hills and troughs across the wiper arm its self and have of varying resistance, but some wd40 (water discernment formula 40 can fix this up) but if you want to be serious a little drop of cremlin oil will do a better job as its actually a creeping oil and will prolong the life a little longer.... remember too that pots they had from the 40s 50s and 60s were constructed with differing manufacturing particles in side as well. this affect the noise of the pot its self..when you put a noise meter across a pot it surprising how noisy they are..... just for your interest.
5:00 I have a squier strat from the 90's that have those tiny pots. They work perfectly fine after 26 years I only cleaned them with electronic spray cleaner
Thanks for this vid, Dylan. I've learned so much from you. I recently bought a PRS SE and changed the pots because one of the Alpha pots had a frustrating flat spot. CTS and Switchcraft are my go-tos, but now I want to try Bourns.
You need to change pots when they break. Small ones break a lot easier than the big ones. I suggest that you always replace a broken pot with a large one (if possible) because obviously the last one took a knock, no matter what size it was. You want a strong replacement. But if you just whack in something passable from your parts bin and it works, that's fine too, I'm just trying to head off future problems.
You could be perfectly happy with your tone but still missing out because that’s all you know. That’s why sometimes it is good to try new things to see what you may be missing. I recently upgraded to a Gibson SG that has much better electronics than my older Epiphone that I used to be pretty happy with. I was missing out big time. Now I want to replace all of the electronics in my Epi. With that said, I understand what you are trying to say. Thanks for the great videos.
I thought the same until this last time. Swapping CTS pots in to replace fullsize, crackly Alpha pots made a HUGE difference. And it wasn't related to resistance specs. The Alphas were all 505k-536k while the CTS were 477k-505k. Its louder overall, much clearer, and just generally sounds better. No idea why. I used polypropylene caps and 50s wiring and I'm pretty sure it was already 50s wiring.
Hi Dylan. Great video. Loved your explanation. I recently bought a guitar from Hagstrom. It came with tiny CF pots. The guitar sounds phenomenal, but people have been telling me to change these pots and get larger, more well-known ones just because. They seem to work very well, and after your video, I think I'll keep them.
I never thought about how the diameter of the pot affects the dialing precision. I never had problems with small pots, and always thought about using bigger knobs for more accuracy (if needed), but your point is 100% right and I never thought about it. Thanks!
@@frankscassi4960 this is not true.... both circles have the same infinite number of points.... those infinite points relate perfectly to the paired infinite series of points on the knobs rotation.
@@IamtheWV17 of course, it's just easier to dial the exact point you want. Have you ever drawn an angle with a protractor? 1 degree with a small diameter protractor is not that easy to draw, much easier with a larger one. It's simple geometry: the circular arc of a 1 degree angle of a circle with a 1 inch radius (0.0174 in) is smaller than the circular arc of a 1 degree angle of a circle with a 2 inch radius (0.0349 in)
New subscriber just wanted to say I've been binge watching your content and love the channel love learning about all this stuff very informative and very intelligent can't believe you only have 20k subs
Thanks for your no nonsense approach and content based on fact , not opinion or “tradition”. Could you please do a vid on the pros and cons of passive vs active pickups, and the interchangeability between them - going from active to passive and vice versa. Also why a higher percentage of basses vs guitar are active. Cheers
Very thought provoking. But I don't think a smaller pot gives less control. The angle of rotation will be the same whatever. Also, a larger diameter pot may have more friction to overcome because the length of track will increase for the same rotation and sound effect. However, you will have better control with a larger diameter knob, because your fingers have greater purchase and crucially greater leverage. Maybe a larger pot such as a cts will be better made, last longer and have a more accurate log profile?
The fact that humans are able invent stuff like this, transistors, capacitors, pickup, amps, pedals, tape recorders, computers, computer code that translates through electronic components to a screen + speakers, and phones, is mindblowing. I honestly cant wrap my head around it when I try to think about how any of this could exist. The fact that I am ignorant to how much of it actually works, even if I read about it or have it explained to me from a video like this, doesnt help. Lol. I just don't understand the true 'how/why', yet. Yes, I understand how it works to a degree, but not how each little component in a pot works. I'd love to learn this stuff. I still can't even solder proper, yet. Going nuts trying to fix my bad solder job on my fav partscaster fat strat.
I've a lover of the history of electronics. It all came one step at a time. I'm currently reading 'the saga of the vacuum tube'. It's all about how problems with edisons first light bulb lead to the invention of CRT and amplification tubes. It's all just one thing, then another then another and we keep moving forward.
@@Les537 wow, that is pretty cool! Crazy how human intellect, curiosity, and trial and error can evolve ideas. Amazing stuff. I will have to check out that read.
i considering changing pots on my squier and on my fender. I guess i have to buy 3 tone/volume 500K pots for the Fender strat and 2 for the Squier Telecaster. I have a Dimarzio chopper for bridge pickup in the Squier tele, and the bridge on my strat is a Seymore Duncan Hot rails!
first time I change the pots of my guitar for a forum I ended up with a volume that shut ups at 5 haha a great experience! hope I had your videos at that time
The best T style guitar I made went to a maestro. Ash body, all good parts but the pots were linear. We both agreed they were better . Half is half etc. so we stayed with it. We're both happy. Also got a cheap LP jr. kit and both small pots measured 508 K Ohms. I'm happy. Luck of the draw.
I agree completely Dylan, if you like what you have, don't change anything, some of the best advice I've heard in a long time. I use dimarzio pots, love the taper but, I do believe bourn's or cts makes them for dimarzio.
Thank you for spreading the good knowledge on linear taper. Recently, if not from Gibson themselves, I've heard a lot of logarithmic tapers being called 'linear audio taper' or something like that. The only reason I know the difference is because of the fades DAWs make. Actual linear tapers suck! Cheers.
I just put new CTS pots into an 1995 Strat Squier series. Log taper 500Ω for volume and linear taper 500Ω for tone to match the original values. The capacitor is a Sprague orange drop. 047f. The problem is that now the taper on all the pots is way off. The volume pot does does almost nothing from 1-5 and suddenly kicks in from 6-10. The tone pots
I would say #1 reason to change your pot is if you want different value. #2 reason would be you lost knob and your pot has non standard axle. #3 would be the leaf spring in wiper became weak and is not pushing with enough force. #4 the carbon track worn out. #5 broken pot lead during unrelated repair.
I like CTS, as I'm.told you can actually clean them out. If I have a cheaper guitar though, I will retain the original Alphas so as not to mess with the routing or require new speed knobs.
Found your video through a UA-cam recommendation. You did a good job of explaining this on layman's terms. I've played with guitar players who swore by linear tapered pots and wouldn't use anything else but a linear tapered pot on their guitars and I've worked with people with the exact polar opposite opinion. It really comes down to the persons personal preference and want they're looking for as far as the "feel" goes especially if you have somebody that likes to do swells using their volume pot.
The size (diameter) of the pot does 'not' effect your ability to make fine adjustments as you turn it, because the knob is attached to the shaft at the wipers center. The ratio is always the same. There is no 'gear ratio' to effect it. That's why a bike chain rides on the 'outside' of a gear. So diameter only makes a difference if the knob was attached to the wipers end, and it isn't.
Good explanation and good advice. Size in and of itself is only important when space is a consideration-as you said. If I change a pot its not working properly or - big or: if the feel is loose, wobbly or lacks torque feel.
Why do channels say “please subscribe” right off the bat before they’ve given you any information to make said judgement on? Gotta earn it before becoming a regular on our feed. 🤷♂️ By the end of the video, I agree that this actually is a really good & detailed content. Another 2 videos like this and I’m hitting that (Subscribe) button myself for this channel. ✌️
Buy quality pots and they are simpler to install and use and are reliable and trouble-free. Most guys are not guitar geeks or pros at repair. so a larger pot is easier to solder to and handle inside or outside (through the knob).
The jack output is also a piece you must consider when speaking about good tone... I don't speak about Mojo or other things like that but just good tone with fidelity, reliable connections, I think upgrade for a good socket is not expensive and can protect you against damn connections troubles when you are on stage! I think we all experienced that...😆
I just got a USA Dean time capsule v. The bridge pickup sounded muffled. Sure enough I measured the CGE volume pot and it was 395k. Swapped in a pot that measured 525k and made a huge difference
Just did a ground up Tele build, came out great. However I did have an issue with the volume pot. It felt a little bit gritty when I turned it, but I figured these are CTS so its just me being over critical. Well, It was bad, it also had a loose lug and was shorting our the circuit. No choice, had to unsolder that damn thing and replaced it. New pots CAN be bad.
My 2018 Gibson SG came with PCB and on board pots. The first thing I did was take that out and throw it in the trash. The big problem with it was that the input jack, part of the PCB, would allow the input tip to contact the scratch plate making noise as you handled the guitar. The part about 'gear ratios' with small/big pots that you mentioned was complete bullshit. 360 degree is 360 degree. A good reason to change cheap ass pots is because they will fail down the road, such as the crap that comes on most epiphones. Another reason to change pots is some are metric and some are not and maybe you want to use different knobs. Yet another reason to change pots is some just feel cheap when you turn them. Another reason I change pots is to get no-load tone pots that you mention - to allow the volume to work 50s style. I bought a fulltone deluxe wah pedal that came with some 'custom pot'. It started making scratchy sounds 2 weeks old. I sprayed it and it would stop for 2 or 3 days and do it again. I replaced it with a dunlop pot and it's been clean sounding ever since - though a different taper, not as wide. If you want to change your pots, change the damn things. It's fun and easy.
Are you Canadian because right now I am drunk and I had to go back and listen to what you said couple times to make sure I really was not dreaming because I learned something tonight.
This is A Great pot for a very affordable Price amzn.to/2qq68ZQ , Here is a good pushpull amzn.to/2KFvVnK , and here is a good no load amzn.to/2KJQ9wt
Are they damped? I bought some for my strat a few years ago and they work ok electrically, but move a little too freely.
Hey Dylan!!! The only thing i want to ask - is what kind of jams do you like? Merle Haggard type jazzy country music makes me giggle. Sometimes i like that on a day when i dont have anything else to worry about=)
5 reasons to smoke pot
That great pot for an affordable price has majority of 1 star reviews on amazon?
I did some research and found 500k work best with humbuckers. My L. P. Studio came with changed pups. 496/500 and 250k pots and garbage wire. I replaced the pots with 550k CTS pots, .11 caps for more treble control to make more use of tone knobs and 22 gauge wire.
My Mom hit me once with a pot. she said this should tone you down.
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Probably should explain that the reason for an audio taper pot is because our hearing is not linear. We hear on a logarithmic scale. Therefor the audio taper actually sounds more linear to our ears.
Yeah you're correct saying that our hearing is not linear but a nonlinear pot does not necessarily match human hearing. That was never the sole intention for the design of a nonlinear pot. I wanted to point that out because I worked in the field of electronics for 45 years until I retired so I've read just about every spec sheet on the most common components out on the market that you could ever imagine. Here's a good example and it is a real world example: A while back I had a mic gain potentiometer that had a bad place on it on a mixing board that I own. It was a linear pot which meant whenever you adjusted it the audio gain or reduction depending which way you were turning it was gradual. I looked everywhere for this particular part and couldn't find nothing but a audio taper pot to put in its place. What I noticed was and what I absolutely expected to happen was adjusting that channel was a little tricky because the mic gain would suddenly go up or go down too fast when adjusting it which made it difficult to set. The saving grace for me was I was using this board as a sub mixer with a digital audio station so for all of the channels I was able to leave them set for a minimum gain due to the fact that the DAW had a decent amount of output gain on it. If I would have had to constantly use that control such as under a live situation or as my main adjustment it would have been annoying to say the least. Before I forget I wanted to mention that they also use nonlinear pots or audio taper pots in other applications that have absolutely nothing to do with audio it all just due to the fact of the way they react when they are adjusted.
@@flash001USA I'm sure there are all sorts of potentiometers for specialized purposes but in the context of this video, which is an audio application, the reason for an "audio" taper is to better match the way we hear and not sound like the volume is only increasing all at the end of the pot's range. This is specifically for volume controls and not necessarily what you would want for tone.
@@chrisyoung8062 You won't get an argument out of me with your reply or even your original reply to this video. An audio taper has a faster attack or "feel" and most guitar players prefer an audio taper over a linear taper so yeah I would have to agree with you that it would be perceived to deliver more of a natural volume curve the way our ears perceive sound but the original pot designs didn't start out with an audio pot in mind. My only point was that in early electronic designs and even today there was an actual need for fast reacting nonlinear pots even for non-audio applications but that the earlier stereo and musical equipment manufactures probably quickly realized that the nonlinear pots were the ticket and much better suited for audio applications and it's probably safe to say that someone pretty sharp sat down and refined nonlinear pots along the way to deliver a better "feel" just for audio applications like musical equipment and stereos.
@@flash001USA Agree I actual prefer close to linear as I like to have usable range from say 2 up some of the boutique "correct taper" actually I cant hear a signal below 5 so not that useful if I want clean dirty and lead in one sweep.
@@chrisyoung8062 Tone needs to be audio for a different reason. It is in 2-terminal mode and electrically the influence becomes more linear with a audio pot. Practically, the upper half of the sweep (e.g. 50-500K) affects resistive loading whereas the lower sweep (0-50K) varies the tone capacitor and the damping of the resonant circuit it forms with the pickup.
However, controls can be linear when because settings above the 10% resistance of audio taper are mostly used. This is somewhat true of guitar volume except distortion and compression then swing the choice back towards an expanded sweep to compensate.
But where do I get a volume pot that goes up to eleven?
Do you have a Sharpie? 😁
wouldn’t it make more sense to just upgrade the pot itself? like, make 10 louder?
@@USSLIBERTYREMEMBERER whooosh
Edit: im the idiot who missed the joke
Id talk to the louder is more good folks at jhs
Will Cresson thats almost verbatim how the interviewer responds in spinal tap but alright
small pot "gear ratio" analogy is not geometrically accurate if the knob is the same size. A knob turned 180 degrees will turn a pot 180 degrees regardless of it's size, dime or nickel sized. So glad i just discovered this channel....so much fun and educational! Thanks.
Hmm now this has me thinking. The size of the components inside have a shorter throw, like a smaller gear on a bicycle, so there is definitely a different feel, and I presume that's what he's referring to? Would that change how smooth a knob is or its apparent accuracy?
@@BRZDR yeah, I believe so.
I have a Squier strat that I did all this stuff too. It sounds great, but really I did it just to do it. It was Covid time and I got to learn a lot. So, sometimes just do it because you can and soldering is fun.
I also began soldering during the pandemic, so much fun, now I am obsessed. I am also gonna study electrical from the fall as a result of this. 😀
Same here, but I got a tele. The guitar was cheaper than a kit.
@@danielhanssen8664 oh nice!
@@paulakapablo1749 wow, where u get it?
pots make zero difference in tone. It is all the setup and fingers
I recently bought a '98 Epiphone Korina Flying V. The seller said it had upgraded pickups, new pots, totally rewired by his "guitar tech" and "professionally" set up. I tried it briefly at his place of business, so I didn't feel I could give it a proper workout. Got it home, plugged it in, and realized that I had NO volume until 5 on the dial, and from 5 - 10 had a marginal increase in volume. The tone didn't work at all. He had a phase/out of phase switch installed, which I think is what is causing the problems. I'm no tech guy by any stretch but I watch a shit ton of videos because I enjoy learning about guitars, amps, etc. Anyway....the guitar is now at a reputable guitar shop, hopefully being restored back to stock. The guy I use worked on my JCM900, so I trust him. Thankfully, the pickups are worth more than what I paid for the guitar, so I think I am still ahead, even after the repair bill comes in. I enjoy your videos a lot. Cheers
Still searching for a pot that goes to 11
I had an ancient Fender Champ Amp that had a volume that went to 11. I gave it to my girlfriends son to finish graduating when he was talking about dropping out a few weeks before he granulated. He has been keeping me apprised of his adventures in making it work correctly. Most of the capacitors were shot or leaking or even burst. He has learned a lot from that amp and I didn't have to mess with it!
DiMarzio makes knobs that go to 11.
Old traynor amps
Mad Hatter guitar products
Mike Kelly, you’ll find those at the same place your drummer buys his custom made left-handed drumsticks.
This was the best education I’ve had in years! Watch the capacitor comparison video.
So much common sense. I’m glad I stayed up all night watching guitar repair videos. This ones a keeper! Will subscribe!
I changed the taper of the tone pot on my Squier bass and it made a big difference. It drove me mad that it was really bright and then very quickly really dark with not much in between. Now it goes smoothly from bright to dark with changes in tone happening all the way along the turn of the pot.
What type of pot did you switch to?
how do you change taper? I have same issue.
you went to the taper version? the audio pot?
Which pot did you change it to? I have this same problem
@@mauricerrr I did two audio (linear) pots. I think the tone settings work fine.
Something like this has probably already been said... sound levels (decibels) follow an exponential curve, so we generally find audio taper pots so pleasing because that taper follows what our ears perceive to be a measured, gradual increase in volume through the full rotation. Using a linear taper pot for most volume control applications basically limits that full sweep of control you'd have with an audio taper pot to the first 1/3 of its rotation. The rest of the rotation doesn't seem to do anything because it doesn't allow the circuit to produce the exponentially louder signal--more dB's--that our ears perceive as volume.
Hey Dylan, just wanted to say thanks for doing what you’re doing. I only discovered your channel recently and I’ve learned so much from your vids. Great stuff - much appreciated!
That said, I swapped out my pots only on a $200(Approximate guess, I'm British) epiphone for a set of Bourne's 500k and it did make quite difference to tone, not in it's overall base tone(same pick ups after all) but better response. My best leighman's explanation, was having the tone I already had in HD.
Alpha pots are good too
50s wiring mod is the first mod most all epi phones need.
It's easy, try it.
Of course if you don't like it, will take ten minutes to undo.
I'm not sure what you said about the small pots being more difficult to operate with accuracy unless you put a big knob on them is correct. No matter the size of the pot, one revolution is one revolution. You could have a giant pot or a minuscule pot with the same knob on both and the knob rotation will be the same on both, hence the same level of accuracy (provided the construction is of equal quality). A big pot with a tiny knob will be difficult to be accurate with, just the same as a small pot with a tiny knob. That's not a drawback of mini pots but rather mini knobs. The drawback of mini pots is that the resistance is packed into a smaller track around the inside and so has a lower resolution making it more difficult to be super accurate with but the resolution is plenty high enough for guitar use.
Coincidentally, I've been looking for information about guitar pots this whole week. Good timing, Dylan!
I agree on using audio taper for all, I do also. I just LMAO when I see people claim how the pots in this 59 LP sound so much better than this new pot. I hate seeing people being taken advantage of because of lack of understanding how something works. I've been arguing with someone over the mis-used terms "handwired" amp and "handmade" guitar. They all are, just different methods of fabricating certain parts. And I've found I really like the way the CTS Emerson Pro pots work. They don't sound any different, obviously, but work really well. You info is very accurate.
The 59' wiring schematic is different than reissue 59's thats why they sound better. There is no tone loss when you back the volume off.
@@donrutter6765, I was not referring to the wiring, I was referring to the pot's effect. That comes from it putting resistance in series with the pickup and reducing the resistance to ground, which affects tone no matter where the tone control is connected. Also both wiring's were used in the 50's and thru the years on other guitars. And "better"? That's your opinion,I don't like the other wiring. In the 50's, 60's, 70's & on & on every year had good and not so good guitars. I personally think my PRS Sunburst 22 sounds better than ANY Les Paul I've ever heard, again my opinion. Also with the "50's" wiring the tone controls are less isolated from each other, especially on the center switch setting as they are connected to the output jack and not isolated from each other by the resistance of the volume pot. I agree the two methods sound different. Way to much voodoo & hype on old guitars. Being a musician I tend to get wrapped up in all that nonsense, but being logical and scientifically minded I tend to stay more objective to all of it.
i still believe that materials and electrical connectivity is also having a card in sound.
People have probably started this already but the reason logrythimic pots are preferred is because our hearing is logrythimic. Therefore it tracks with our hearing and sounds better.
I would still go hand-wired for any amplifier. No surface mount components. All-in-all easier serviceability
About not changing anything if one likes their guitar, I have recently faced that issue myself. I have begun collecting First Act guitars, since they were cheap and becoming somewhat collectible. One in particular that I have is a black w/ white pickguard Strat copy three single coils, with a neck that is similar to a Gibson, in that the headstock slanted back. I paid $100 for it, brought it home and put it away. Then one day I was doing some fret polishing and re-stringing on my guitars. When I tuned this one up and started to play it, I was totally shocked by the playability, the beautiful clean sound, and how quiet it was when just sitting on the stand. I have a Strat, two Teles, and a 1975 Les Paul, and I swear I haven't picked any of them up since I started playing this First Act strat copy. So of course, I first thought that there must be something I could change on it, but after two months of playing it, I have decided that it is perfect, just like it is.
Do you have a Patreon account? I would certainly like to send some cash your way to help you out.
"If you like the sound of your guitar, don't change it..." I.e., if it ain't broke, don't fix it.... I like that attitude. Common sense. Informative vid.
funny how people love push pulls- and they often have a pot diameter equal to the "cheap dime sized pots"
I don't like them at all. I prefer the Gilmour mini-toggle. It''s more sure & Seamless when in the middle of a Live performance.
@@michael_caz_nyc Right on- for a strat-Not keen on drilling my les paul though!
this channel, is fucking golden, ive watched this video months again when i didnt understand about electronics, and now im back and feel like ive gained so much more than what i understood before
my guitar sounded so cool with my vintage 70s pot and guitar tech replaced it with a new one which i didn't ask for. i kinda miss what it used to sound like. it had such a unique tone now it just sounds like a normal guitar. when i turned it to 10 before, it would make crazy crunchy sound it was awesome
Thanks for the informative videos. I especially like that you try to discourage unnecessary mods. Also, you explain things clearly and thoroughly. I always learn something new. Keep it up!
My pots are rubbish I think.
I got a 300 bucks VGS Eruption about... Oh god... 15 years ago?
It had a lot of cheap instrument issues, I fixed over the years. I brought it to a guitar geek, that set it up perfectly for me, which made it play soooo much better.
Last week I put Seymour Duncans in it and the tone got so much better instantly.
Now I want to rip out the electronics and make the rest good. The potis are scratching, not feeling nice, not working as they should be.
Then I have a nice playing, nice looking, awesome sounding guitar :D
It shared so much lifetime with me and it was a gift from my mother, who couldn't affort better back in the day, I just love the little one, but she needs some help and love to compete today. She deserves better than what she shipped with. :)
Thanks for clearing this toppic up for me, greetings from germany.
THE BETTER INFORMED WE ARE ,THE BETTER INFORMED WE ARE ,FORWARNED ,FORARMED .FIGHT THE FALSE FORCE. THANK YOU DYLAN.HEART OF GOLD TO YOU , STAY PURE.
This is a great channel. You eliminate the BS. I bought an old 1996 Korean Epiphone G400. This was a surprisingly great guitar for the cost. Pickups were not great so I changed those. I also changed the pots and selector switch. The new larger pots were not as good as the original small ones which fitted the knobs better anyway. I put the old ones back in. There was crackling but it turned out that this was the caps. The small pots work perfectly fine.
There is tons of BS about all this stuff, especially pickups. Yes, obviously some pickups are better than others but you can put the same pickups in one guitar and they are great but then put them in another guitar and they are not so great.
This is great information. I started with single coil guitars though when I got into humbuckers it was on Ibanez Artcore type import guitars. Being used to single coils I came in the habit of keeping the volume of the guitar around 3 and, initially, same with tone. Years later when I had work done I couldn't get over how "muddy" the same pickups sounded. To your point most folks use audio taper pots and that's what's more common at local stores... but for people who use the volume and want consistency the 50s wiring and the linear volume audio tone is more or less what I'm used to. At this point when I have an instrument where we're changing volume I like to make sure the volume is a linear - I can instantly tell when I have the volume half way up if I hear "the sludge" and I hate that more than life. I wish instruments companies were more transparent about a lot of this because I really had to learn this the hard way. Thanks again for your video.
I think I saw one of your videos two years ago… and then you disappeared from my feed. Glad I could get back, now I wonì’t miss any other vid man, you’re one of the best here on YT
Spot on Dylan. They all do they same thing. Unless the pots faulty, it's way out of spec, or as you said has a weird taper no need to change them. The only thing with cheaper pots is they might die quicker, so change it to something better when it dies. But it's amazing how much time you'll actually get out of cheap pots if you clean it with lube/cleaner occasionally when you hear them getting scratchy.
Great explanation on pots. Couple decades ago I sought out how to test the range pots give you as you turn up or down on the knob. It was then that I concluded what you said in the just because it's small doesn't make it a bad pot as long as you get the performance results the pot has advertised. Still to this day I read over and over again just as you said, got ride of those small crappy pots and I'll ask, so what did they test at that made them crappy. Great video.
Cheap pots wear down the carbon strip and become scratchy, or the wiper falls off, etc. Smaller pots tend to be cheaper pots, but not in all cases. If you bought a 200$ guitar you can be sure it's got cheap ass pots, but if they work, they work - until they don't.
This channel is waaaaay to underrated.
You should have 100k plus subs.
Thanks so much man. Feel free to share us around.
@@DylanTalksTone ,I always do. You're very personable and knowledgeable. It's because of your videos I've grown into a better guitar tech.
I used 500 pots and orange drop .47 cap on 59 Seymour Duncan Les Paul re pro pick up alone in a single pu 57 Epi Junior re pro with one bridge pu( p 100 crap). And its great, fantastic tonal range, tganks!!
Thanks for a logical, scientific explanation. Well done, Dylan.
I've had pots of all brands vary a lot in capacitance. I almost never use treble bleed but some need it. My Les Paul has 300k linear volumes and it's so easy to control on stage. My 335 has 500k audio. Different but nice too. The one thing more expensive pots often beat the cheap ones is capacitance.
I’ve been using Bourne for 10 yrs now.I like em too,very smooth & they don’t cut out on you
Love the video, extremely insightful. I had no idea there was such thing as "no load pots". I think that could be useful for people who rarely use the tone pot at all, except on occasion for something very particular. I have to admit, I also thought the little pots were just cheap. 😝
You are so awesome and informative thank you so much!!
Yes i agree. Finnally someone on you tube that knows what their talking about.
Just ordered new pots for my fender. It got wrecked in hurricane Harvey. Stored at a buddy’s house over the garage and well, you know how hurricanes work.
'Hurricane worn' is the latest trend in certain circles.
It did not sit in water but s roof leaked occurred directly above it
That hurricane tone sounds like a combination of
Arrrrgh
And doohhh ( Homer Simpson)
I just re-potted my Tele ! changed the cheap mini's to 250-K standard size Fender "vintage" units also .047 oarnge drop capacitor ! the guitar sounds 100% better ! very noticeable !
Tone Vs Volume pot breakdown would be sweet. Thanks man...
The “rant” was exactly what I needed to hear right now 😂
Dylan, I agree with you it sounds good and ain't broken leave it don't touch
Dylan is a wealth of knowledge and information and this man makes sense to me so much other bullshit on the internet and if I want answers I listen to Dylan he's a Legend !
Did you mean 5 reasons NOT to change your pots..cos that makes more sense..great information vid ty
I feel smarter after watching your videos. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and offering your wisdom, Dylan.
Btw. Your channel is the only channel I’ve set the notifications to on on my UA-cam channel.
good video for one thing i will comment on is the "pot with the hole" when it goes past its 10 and you said its out of circuit and has no resistance, its actually the opposite it has infinite resistance, well the resistance of the air gap measured between the to points the end of the wiper arm and the wiper material.... tolerances yes on the cheaper maybe 10% up market maybe 5% military spec pots 1% as an example..... older pots can when you turn them grate as the carbon has actually worn of the wiper its self, so you get hills and troughs across the wiper arm its self and have of varying resistance, but some wd40 (water discernment formula 40 can fix this up) but if you want to be serious a little drop of cremlin oil will do a better job as its actually a creeping oil and will prolong the life a little longer.... remember too that pots they had from the 40s 50s and 60s were constructed with differing manufacturing particles in side as well. this affect the noise of the pot its self..when you put a noise meter across a pot it surprising how noisy they are..... just for your interest.
5:00 I have a squier strat from the 90's that have those tiny pots. They work perfectly fine after 26 years I only cleaned them with electronic spray cleaner
Thanks for this vid, Dylan. I've learned so much from you. I recently bought a PRS SE and changed the pots because one of the Alpha pots had a frustrating flat spot. CTS and Switchcraft are my go-tos, but now I want to try Bourns.
Funny thing I use Bourns pots in voltage and speed controls on older generator controls for work. They're reliable and good quality for sure.
I love how your channel makes me feel smarter. You’re great at explaining technical things. Insert joke about pot here. 😆
Cheers from Colorado 🙉🙊🙈
Journey of Awesome 👍🏻 from Seattle
You need to change pots when they break. Small ones break a lot easier than the big ones. I suggest that you always replace a broken pot with a large one (if possible) because obviously the last one took a knock, no matter what size it was. You want a strong replacement. But if you just whack in something passable from your parts bin and it works, that's fine too, I'm just trying to head off future problems.
You could be perfectly happy with your tone but still missing out because that’s all you know. That’s why sometimes it is good to try new things to see what you may be missing. I recently upgraded to a Gibson SG that has much better electronics than my older Epiphone that I used to be pretty happy with. I was missing out big time. Now I want to replace all of the electronics in my Epi.
With that said, I understand what you are trying to say.
Thanks for the great videos.
Awesome video, Dylan! I didn't know about "no-load" pots, that sounds like a really useful thing to have on a tone pot!
Thank you
I thought the same until this last time. Swapping CTS pots in to replace fullsize, crackly Alpha pots made a HUGE difference. And it wasn't related to resistance specs. The Alphas were all 505k-536k while the CTS were 477k-505k.
Its louder overall, much clearer, and just generally sounds better. No idea why. I used polypropylene caps and 50s wiring and I'm pretty sure it was already 50s wiring.
Hi Dylan. Great video. Loved your explanation. I recently bought a guitar from Hagstrom. It came with tiny CF pots. The guitar sounds phenomenal, but people have been telling me to change these pots and get larger, more well-known ones just because. They seem to work very well, and after your video, I think I'll keep them.
I like when youtube recommends these older videos from the guitar community.
Time to nerd out :)
Great video...this cleared up a lot of mystery for me!
I never thought about how the diameter of the pot affects the dialing precision. I never had problems with small pots, and always thought about using bigger knobs for more accuracy (if needed), but your point is 100% right and I never thought about it. Thanks!
it's 100% wrong. the diameter of the pot affects nothing but the diameter of the knob everything.
@@BigEdWo it's easier to choose the exact position on a longer piece of material with the same resistence
@@frankscassi4960 this is not true.... both circles have the same infinite number of points.... those infinite points relate perfectly to the paired infinite series of points on the knobs rotation.
@@IamtheWV17 of course, it's just easier to dial the exact point you want. Have you ever drawn an angle with a protractor? 1 degree with a small diameter protractor is not that easy to draw, much easier with a larger one. It's simple geometry: the circular arc of a 1 degree angle of a circle with a 1 inch radius (0.0174 in) is smaller than the circular arc of a 1 degree angle of a circle with a 2 inch radius (0.0349 in)
@@frankscassi4960 still wrong, you're drawing with the knob. 1° of sweep on the knob = 1° of sweep on the pot, regardless of pot size.
You were very clear and profressional and to the point. Nice job and thank you.
New subscriber just wanted to say I've been binge watching your content and love the channel love learning about all this stuff very informative and very intelligent can't believe you only have 20k subs
thanks man. feel free to share.
Thanks for your no nonsense approach and content based on fact , not opinion or “tradition”. Could you please do a vid on the pros and cons of passive vs active pickups, and the interchangeability between them - going from active to passive and vice versa. Also why a higher percentage of basses vs guitar are active. Cheers
If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Great advice man, thanks for saying it. Nobody ever does, it seems.
Thanks Dylan. You are the Man.
This channel is INCREDIBLE thank you!
Very thought provoking. But I don't think a smaller pot gives less control. The angle of rotation will be the same whatever. Also, a larger diameter pot may have more friction to overcome because the length of track will increase for the same rotation and sound effect. However, you will have better control with a larger diameter knob, because your fingers have greater purchase and crucially greater leverage. Maybe a larger pot such as a cts will be better made, last longer and have a more accurate log profile?
The fact that humans are able invent stuff like this, transistors, capacitors, pickup, amps, pedals, tape recorders, computers, computer code that translates through electronic components to a screen + speakers, and phones, is mindblowing. I honestly cant wrap my head around it when I try to think about how any of this could exist. The fact that I am ignorant to how much of it actually works, even if I read about it or have it explained to me from a video like this, doesnt help. Lol. I just don't understand the true 'how/why', yet. Yes, I understand how it works to a degree, but not how each little component in a pot works. I'd love to learn this stuff. I still can't even solder proper, yet. Going nuts trying to fix my bad solder job on my fav partscaster fat strat.
I've a lover of the history of electronics. It all came one step at a time. I'm currently reading 'the saga of the vacuum tube'. It's all about how problems with edisons first light bulb lead to the invention of CRT and amplification tubes. It's all just one thing, then another then another and we keep moving forward.
@@Les537 wow, that is pretty cool! Crazy how human intellect, curiosity, and trial and error can evolve ideas. Amazing stuff. I will have to check out that read.
i considering changing pots on my squier and on my fender. I guess i have to buy 3 tone/volume 500K pots for the Fender strat and 2 for the Squier Telecaster.
I have a Dimarzio chopper for bridge pickup in the Squier tele, and the bridge on my strat is a Seymore Duncan Hot rails!
Thanks Dylan for all this information, I now ready to get stuck into tackle an upgrade on my guitar.
Put new CTS 500K pots in my MIM P-bass and it came alive. Not sure why but it made me want to change all my old pots.
I love the way you explain things. This is going in my Dylan Talks Tone folder.
first time I change the pots of my guitar for a forum I ended up with a volume that shut ups at 5 haha a great experience! hope I had your videos at that time
Bourns are my favorite too!!!!
The best T style guitar I made went to a maestro. Ash body, all good parts but the pots were linear. We both agreed they were better . Half is half etc. so we stayed with it. We're both happy. Also got a cheap LP jr. kit and both small pots measured 508 K Ohms. I'm happy. Luck of the draw.
I agree completely Dylan, if you like what you have, don't change anything, some of the best advice I've heard in a long time. I use dimarzio pots, love the taper but, I do believe bourn's or cts makes them for dimarzio.
Thank you for spreading the good knowledge on linear taper. Recently, if not from Gibson themselves, I've heard a lot of logarithmic tapers being called 'linear audio taper' or something like that. The only reason I know the difference is because of the fades DAWs make. Actual linear tapers suck! Cheers.
I just put new CTS pots into an 1995 Strat Squier series. Log taper 500Ω for volume and linear taper 500Ω for tone to match the original values. The capacitor is a Sprague orange drop. 047f.
The problem is that now the taper on all the pots is way off. The volume pot does does almost nothing from 1-5 and suddenly kicks in from 6-10.
The tone pots
I'm late to the party, I can't stop watching these!
that's a great video, dude.
i had no idea what so ever about pots before i watched it and now i feel that i know so much more.
I would say #1 reason to change your pot is if you want different value. #2 reason would be you lost knob and your pot has non standard axle. #3 would be the leaf spring in wiper became weak and is not pushing with enough force. #4 the carbon track worn out. #5 broken pot lead during unrelated repair.
I like CTS, as I'm.told you can actually clean them out. If I have a cheaper guitar though, I will retain the original Alphas so as not to mess with the routing or require new speed knobs.
The point made around 5:44 only makes sense if you're talking about the size of the adjustment knob, not the pot itself.
Found your video through a UA-cam recommendation. You did a good job of explaining this on layman's terms. I've played with guitar players who swore by linear tapered pots and wouldn't use anything else but a linear tapered pot on their guitars and I've worked with people with the exact polar opposite opinion. It really comes down to the persons personal preference and want they're looking for as far as the "feel" goes especially if you have somebody that likes to do swells using their volume pot.
The size (diameter) of the pot does 'not' effect your ability to make fine adjustments as you turn it, because the knob is attached to the shaft at the wipers center. The ratio is always the same. There is no 'gear ratio' to effect it. That's why a bike chain rides on the 'outside' of a gear. So diameter only makes a difference if the knob was attached to the wipers end, and it isn't.
Good explanation and good advice. Size in and of itself is only important when space is a consideration-as you said.
If I change a pot its not working properly or - big or: if the feel is loose, wobbly or lacks torque feel.
I love this channel! Plenty of priceless information and advice! Thanks Dylan! Big regards from Kyiv, Ukraine!
P.S. that Eminem thing was awesome 😂
Love your channel, very informative, now I'm going to fix all my guitars that aren't broken!
Bravo
Finally described it as it should be done
Why do channels say “please subscribe” right off the bat before they’ve given you any information to make said judgement on? Gotta earn it before becoming a regular on our feed. 🤷♂️ By the end of the video, I agree that this actually is a really good & detailed content. Another 2 videos like this and I’m hitting that (Subscribe) button myself for this channel. ✌️
Buy quality pots and they are simpler to install and use and are reliable and trouble-free. Most guys are not guitar geeks or pros at repair. so a larger pot is easier to solder to and handle inside or outside (through the knob).
The jack output is also a piece you must consider when speaking about good tone... I don't speak about Mojo or other things like that but just good tone with fidelity, reliable connections, I think upgrade for a good socket is not expensive and can protect you against damn connections troubles when you are on stage! I think we all experienced that...😆
I just got a USA Dean time capsule v. The bridge pickup sounded muffled. Sure enough I measured the CGE volume pot and it was 395k. Swapped in a pot that measured 525k and made a huge difference
Just did a ground up Tele build, came out great. However I did have an issue with the volume pot. It felt a little bit gritty when I turned it, but I figured these are CTS so its just me being over critical. Well, It was bad, it also had a loose lug and was shorting our the circuit. No choice, had to unsolder that damn thing and replaced it. New pots CAN be bad.
Dude...Ive been looking for a person to explain it in a way I understood...thanks and I subscribed.👍
My 2018 Gibson SG came with PCB and on board pots. The first thing I did was take that out and throw it in the trash. The big problem with it was that the input jack, part of the PCB, would allow the input tip to contact the scratch plate making noise as you handled the guitar.
The part about 'gear ratios' with small/big pots that you mentioned was complete bullshit. 360 degree is 360 degree.
A good reason to change cheap ass pots is because they will fail down the road, such as the crap that comes on most epiphones.
Another reason to change pots is some are metric and some are not and maybe you want to use different knobs.
Yet another reason to change pots is some just feel cheap when you turn them.
Another reason I change pots is to get no-load tone pots that you mention - to allow the volume to work 50s style.
I bought a fulltone deluxe wah pedal that came with some 'custom pot'. It started making scratchy sounds 2 weeks old. I sprayed it and it would stop for 2 or 3 days and do it again. I replaced it with a dunlop pot and it's been clean sounding ever since - though a different taper, not as wide.
If you want to change your pots, change the damn things. It's fun and easy.
Are you Canadian because right now I am drunk and I had to go back and listen to what you said couple times to make sure I really was not dreaming because I learned something tonight.
Good info. Doing a Frankenbass Vol, Blend,.Tone on a J-bass circuit.
Try series parallel on a P bass pickup push pull and the no load tone. Parallel P bass does Jazz Bass tones really well
Appreciate your vidieos. Thanks for covering all this.
Great video! I'm glad I found your channel.