Grateful Dead Music Forum

While putting together my new rig or FX and GCX I looked at my EQ pedal and thoughtm "now what to do with you" then it hit me....

Dial in the EQ pedal to increase the volume that is lost when tapping from duals to singles and bring up the low mids a bit too!

Well I did this and WOW! Worked perfectly. Plus it's also a nice little boost to get on top of the mix when in dual mode...

Just figured somebody might find this useful!

Thank you, I do!

But here's a stupid question:

I've never used an EQ in my line. From what I've gathered from here, it's helpful in raising volume when switching from dual to single pick-up, which is one of the main reasons I hate using my bridge pick-up on my Gibson SG: the volume drops out big time. I almost exlusively use the neck or mid pick-ups for this very reason.

So do you only switch on the EQ pedal when you are using your single coil pick-up?

What else is it useful for? Should it be a pedal I have it my repetoire? Which brands are recommended?

Thanks!

I have a BOSS g7 eq and I definitely like it. It has a "boost" level on there I guess you would call it but yeah I like to crank that end I put the highs up a little more. I like it alot. I leave it on all the time.

Personally, I only use it so that it compensates for the changes of going from duals to singles. And with that, I use it first in my chain. I'm sure others will say I'm crazy but after using it yesterday with all my FX I'd say that is the perfect spot for it!

shakedown_04092 wrote: From what I've gathered from here, it's helpful in raising volume when switching from dual to single pick-up, which is one of the main reasons I hate using my bridge pick-up on my Gibson SG: the volume drops out big time. I almost exlusively use the neck or mid pick-ups for this very reason.

That either sounds like the bridge pickup is out of height-adjustment relative to the other pickups, or it's a dud, or possibly a wiring problem. Try gradually raising the pickup (by like, one half turn per side at a time)and listening to its output until it matches the other pups in volume. If it touches the strings, you probably have a bad pup or bad wiring.

tigerstrat wrote:

shakedown_04092 wrote: From what I've gathered from here, it's helpful in raising volume when switching from dual to single pick-up, which is one of the main reasons I hate using my bridge pick-up on my Gibson SG: the volume drops out big time. I almost exlusively use the neck or mid pick-ups for this very reason.

That either sounds like the bridge pickup is out of height-adjustment relative to the other pickups, or it's a dud, or possibly a wiring problem. Try gradually raising the pickup (by like, one half turn per side at a time)and listening to its output until it matches the other pups in volume. If it touches the strings, you probably have a bad pup or bad wiring.

Thanks TS. I've already tried raising it a lot; it's not quite touching the strings, but it's close.

Being that I'm not electronically inclined, I'm guessing I should just bring it in to somebody to have either the pup tested to see if it's a dud and/or to have them look at the wiring?

Is there any way I can do this myself, or any tips you can give me, w/out me having to spend the $$ to have someone else do it? (i'm guessing not....)

Well im no electrician but if I were you Id open it up and make sure the connection between that pickup and the selector is a good, shiny connection. If its a dull connection that could be a problem. Make sure no other open wires are touchin that connection because that could definitely cause big problems. Umm how to test if its a dud well I dunno about that. You could always recoil it and see if that helps. If none of these help and you know your pup is shot then instead of takin it to someone just purchase a new pup and solder it right in. This isnt hard considering you just place the new one exactly how your old one is connected and Voila! you got yourself a new pup in place.

shakedown_04092 wrote:

tigerstrat wrote:

shakedown_04092 wrote: From what I've gathered from here, it's helpful in raising volume when switching from dual to single pick-up, which is one of the main reasons I hate using my bridge pick-up on my Gibson SG: the volume drops out big time. I almost exlusively use the neck or mid pick-ups for this very reason.

That either sounds like the bridge pickup is out of height-adjustment relative to the other pickups, or it's a dud, or possibly a wiring problem. Try gradually raising the pickup (by like, one half turn per side at a time)and listening to its output until it matches the other pups in volume. If it touches the strings, you probably have a bad pup or bad wiring.

Thanks TS. I've already tried raising it a lot; it's not quite touching the strings, but it's close.

Being that I'm not electronically inclined, I'm guessing I should just bring it in to somebody to have either the pup tested to see if it's a dud and/or to have them look at the wiring?

Is there any way I can do this myself, or any tips you can give me, w/out me having to spend the $$ to have someone else do it? (i'm guessing not....)

Another factor may be that the neck and middle are set too high. Get a good bridge pup sound and set the other two accordingly.

Plus what Blob just said is a good idea: eyeball the solder connection where the pup lead connects to the switch and see that it's a good solid one with plenty of solder filling the eyelet. Check out all the connections while you're in there.

Thanks guys, I appreciate all the help. I'll let you know if I have any more questions.