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Kaipa

Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2014
Messages
6
Hi there,

I have an original Musicman JP6 which seems to have problems with the pickup configuration. I have given it my tech and he has put a new Dimarzio petrucci toggle which hasn't changed anything in regards to splitting the coils properly. I'm 99% certain the problem is in the wiring somewhere but he's wired it exactly how it should be

The problem is the middle position sounds like it's not splitting and is both the bridge and neck in full humbuckers modes. It sounds MUCH louder and bassier than the neck pickup . The middle doesn't have that glassy split sound it used to and the neck doesn't sound half as full as it used to
 
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beej

Moderator
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Messages
12,337
Location
Toronto, Canada
In your pic, the top half of that switch selects the pickups and the bottom half shorts one of the coils from each pickup.

The white wire in the bottom middle lug- does that go to ground? I can't tell exactly from the pics. If so, it should short one coil from each pickup in the middle position. You can check this by running an alligator clip from ground to the black & white wires on either pickup.

Other than that it looks ok, but it's hard to say without being in front of it.
 

Kaipa

Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2014
Messages
6
In your pic, the top half of that switch selects the pickups and the bottom half shorts one of the coils from each pickup.

The white wire in the bottom middle lug- does that go to ground? I can't tell exactly from the pics. If so, it should short one coil from each pickup in the middle position. You can check this by running an alligator clip from ground to the black & white wires on either pickup.

Other than that it looks ok, but it's hard to say without being in front of it.

The white cable in the middle is from the neck pickup

The neck sounds like it's got hardly any bass at all but slightly more than the bridge. It sounds nothing like it used to but it's wired correctly :S
 
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sixstrings

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 2, 2013
Messages
118
Location
Stoke, UK
Try this:

For normal series-humbucking wiring, solder the black and white wires to each other and insulate that connection with tape. The red wire is the hot output and the green and bare wires go to ground, usually by soldering them to the back of a pot. If the pickup sounds "out-of-phase" when played with other pickups, use the green as hot and connect the red and bare to ground.

I had same issue like yours and it worked.
 

Kaipa

Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2014
Messages
6
Try this:

For normal series-humbucking wiring, solder the black and white wires to each other and insulate that connection with tape. The red wire is the hot output and the green and bare wires go to ground, usually by soldering them to the back of a pot. If the pickup sounds "out-of-phase" when played with other pickups, use the green as hot and connect the red and bare to ground.

I had same issue like yours and it Will this definitely work? Did you have the same issue with the neck pickup sounding weak and almost not like a neck pup? Along with the middle position sounding louder and not splitting?
 
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sixstrings

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 2, 2013
Messages
118
Location
Stoke, UK
Yes, same thing dude. Neck pup sounded tinny, no bass and with much lower output.
It was driving me nuts as it was wired properly. Then I've found this solution on dimarzio website and minutes later I was sorted.
Though I can't guarantee it will work for you, it's definitely worth trying as the only thing
you have to do is to swap green wire with red, 5mins job really and no need for tech to do it.
 

beej

Moderator
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Messages
12,337
Location
Toronto, Canada
From your description, it still sounds to me like the ground isn't wired up properly for the split. But unfortunately there's not more much we can do from the pics.

What I would do is go over everything with a multimeter for continuity- make sure the right coils are engaged, being grounded, etc. If everything's correct but doesn't sound right, you could have a pickup issue. In which case, I'd unsolder everything and check all of the components.

If you're not handy with a soldering iron, I'd suggest taking it to a better tech- one who can actually fix this. If you're in the US, you can always send it to MM directly.
 
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