Some ideas for the modding the Axis

[acwild]

I absolutely love my PDN Axis but after watching the Steve Morse video in which he shows how he uses his tone pot as a mild wah, I'm itching for a tone knob now. Since I don't want to drill holes in my Axis, a concentric knob will probably do the trick and it'll still be in the sweet spot for using my pinky to roll the knob. Another mod that I think would be great is to have a push/push pot to split the coils in the same knob. Have the button kind of like Fender's S1 button to keep the assembly from getting ridiculously unwieldy. I don't know if one of these controls exist, but it would be cool.
Since I generally hate the results of splitting coils, if EBMM would set it up so that there's a mini trim pot for dialing in the "split" coil and keep it in the electronics cavity, we would be able to dial in the value that works best.
A high pass filter would also be cool so keep our tone while working the volume knob.
I think the guitars have exceptional quality overall but the electronics packages are the details that are often overlooked. Jmho. Would these mods be possible for production? I think the overall design of the guitar would stay intact. Just the electronics cavity would get a little more crowded.

While we're at it, two of these knobs would be even better. This way I can preset the neck pickup at a low volume for cleans.

If EBMM doesn't like my suggestions, does anyone know if a knob like this exists? I can do the other stuff myself.

 

[Dr.Strangenote]

I'd say to Music Man, just make the Game Changer in the Axis SS flavor.

 

[acwild]

I'd say to Music Man, just make the Game Changer in the Axis SS flavor.

The Game Changer is a bit overwhelming with options for me. I get stressed out when I go to Starbucks if ya know what I mean.

 

[Jack FFR1846]

It sounds like you either want a 3 dial pot or a 2 dial with a push button. It would take some searching, but I'm sure they are out there. I've gone to a local place (You do it electronics) when I want something like that. 4 pole, 6 position rotary switch? Sure.....$6. You will want to decide what you want (linear or audio) for the second (or third) pot. I expect you'd stick with 500k.

I will say that if you do a simple push-pull to split both coils, it's a very easy change. I did that when I had an Axis, before I realized that I never use the trem.

 

[auxren]

I replaced the pot on my Axis with a push-pull so I can tap the coils. Easy upgrade and surprisingly useful

 

[beej]

The Fender S1 switches are notoriously unreliable, I would stay away from them.

Also, concentric pots are great, but they're tough to deal with on-the-fly. You have rings of different diameters, but they're half as tall as a normal pot would be. So when you're fumbling quickly, it's easy to accidentally move the wrong one. (I used to have this kind of setup.)

Treble bleeds are cool, but not everybody likes them. I can see why most manufacturers don't offer them, though they can be useful.

Given your suggestions ... I'd say you're a prime candidate for a Super Sport. If you can do without the Floyd, you can get a tone pot and lever switch that you can wire up for any combination of coils

 

[acwild]

The Floyd is a big consideration which is why I would hope that EBMM would design their own to accommodate the height. I think it's also possible to design the knobs so that there would be enough room to maneuver them without too much deftness.
Thanks for the suggestions! I'm going to see if I can find a pot like this and play around.
I did look at the ASS and may get one in the future but for now I think it's possible to make my current Axis my signature model.

 

[Tim O'Sullivan]

Why not buy a used volume pedal on eBay and modify it to be a floor mounted tone pot?

 

[acwild]

Why not buy a used volume pedal on eBay and modify it to be a floor mounted tone pot?

If it's on the floor, then I'd prefer a real wah. The less that I have between my gear and amp, the better. I'm weird like that.