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bbjonz

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Hi All,

The neck pickup in my Silo Special has a short where the wire joins the pup. If I push or pull the wire a bit the pup works but eventually the wire will settle and the pup goes silent again. I'm going to bring it to my tech but would like opinions on whether it can be saved. And if it has to be replaced, what's the closest to the original (which I think was a custom-wound Dimarzio for EBMM)?

Here's a pick with the red and black wires pushed through a bit. It worked like this--until it didn't.
G0xA7K6m.jpg


Tried duct-taping the wire in place, which worked--until it didn't.
WQcSYazm.jpg


Joe
 

DrKev

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Can't tell if it's fixable without seeing it but you should give DiMarzio a call. They may do repairs. The closest DiMarzio match used to be the Blue Velvet, which was discontinued and the True Velvet came next. The standard store bought version has staggered pole pieces but you can order flat poles directly from DiMarzio too. You may also be able to call EBMM and buy a replacement from them direct.
 

bbjonz

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Thanks, DrKev. I'll start with EBMM, tho I suppose this is an opportunity to sub in an SD JB mini-humbucker, just for fun...
 

tbonesullivan

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As long as the two really thin wires are still attached to the solder pads, it should be fixable with a new pickup lead. Looks like it's been twisted around a few times.
 

bbjonz

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Hey Tbone,

It appears they are. I’ll give Dimarzio a shout to see if they’ll repair it. I like the way it sounds and would prefer to keep it.

As long as the two really thin wires are still attached to the solder pads, it should be fixable with a new pickup lead. Looks like it's been twisted around a few times.
 

bbjonz

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Well, I bought an SD lil '59 (neck) on Reverb for the Silo. I'll swap that in and will report back.
 

bbjonz

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I'd put a full-size HB in there if it were routed for it but I ain't gonna cut it up. I know the lil 59 won't sound like a full size HB but I expect it to be a bit fuller than the stock pup. Almost bought the SD "everything axe" set but I do like the single coils in the other two positions.
 

bbjonz

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Arizona
Well, I installed the lil 59. Had to guess at the wiring—I assumed the black wire from the SD should go where the black wire from the original pup was. The red and white wires on the SD are to be soldered and put out of the way. It sounds fine in the first position but seems out of phase in the second. But at least I have a working neck pup, tho I might go back to a single coil at some point. Will send the original to Dimarzio to see if it can be repaired.

Anyone else install a lil 59 in a Silo? Advice?
 

bbjonz

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Arizona
Thanks, DrKev. Black on the SD is north start whereas on the Dimarzio it’s north finish. Now I removed the stock, single-coil Dimarzio and soldered the black wire from the SD to where the black wire on the Dimarzio was. I can’t find it on then web but maybe the black Dimarzio wire and the black SD wire on the lil 59 are reversed. Would that matter?

BTW, I did a respectable (for me) soldering job—the right equipment, patience, and Youtube sure make a difference...
 

bbjonz

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If you just want to wire it with no coil tapping, black from the Seymour Duncan should go to the selector switch. Green to ground, red and white solder together and tape.

Yup, that's what I did. Position 2 sounds bad but will play with it a bit.
 

DrKev

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Sorry, black from the Seymour Duncan to where the RED DiMarzio went. The Green on the 'lil 59 can go straight to ground. The Black (ground) wire from the original single coil pickup also went to the switch but was attached to the silent circuit and ground.
 

bbjonz

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Arizona
Sorry, black from the Seymour Duncan to where the RED DiMarzio went. The Green on the 'lil 59 can go straight to ground. The Black (ground) wire from the original single coil pickup also went to the switch but was attached to the silent circuit and ground.

Ah, that makes sense. So I can just solder the green wire to the back of a pot? That also explains why multiple black wires from the original pups were soldered to the same leg of the switch--silent circuit.
 

bbjonz

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Messages
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Sorry, black from the Seymour Duncan to where the RED DiMarzio went. The Green on the 'lil 59 can go straight to ground. The Black (ground) wire from the original single coil pickup also went to the switch but was attached to the silent circuit and ground.

Finally got around to correctly wiring the SD into the Silo. (Was out of town most of the summer.) That did the trick, though I'm not sold on the SD yet--probably needs more tinkering. But thanks again for the help.

Joe
 
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