Guitar internal quality
mantis
Posts: 17,201
What's up people?
You know I'm a wire nut case right? Yeah most of you already know that and if you didn't , yeah Guilty here.
So recently my 2013 Charvel Pro Mod San Dimas HS HT started acting funny. The 3 positon Toggle switch started scratching when changing pickups. So I thought Good time to upgrade to a better quality instead of just cleaning it and moving on.
I pulled the switch out and just sat there thinking " Why is the internal wiring on this so cheaply done? The wire coming from the pickups is Tin I believe , so is the input jack , Pot wiring etc.
I was looking at the switch and it's like stamped steal or tin or some kind of cheap **** looking material.
I went looking for better quality and met with a Guitar Tech at a really good shop in NJ Russo's Music and got talking about quality.
According to him there is different level of quality Pod's and switches , not really in the wiring as he hasn't seen copper or Silver used. Just plain jane stuff off the shelf even in higher end Guitars.
He went on to tell me that the Switch that was factory stock in my Guitar was made in Korea and is of a lower quality. He had a Switch craft which is used in higher end guitars and thats what I should upgrade to. My switch new would be about $15 and the Switch Craft is $25. Ok I'll go with that but what makes it better? He said the Built quality and the separating plates between the leads is of better quality. The cheap switches use a Circuit board like material and they wear out in a few years or less depending on how much they are used.
So I purchased it and installed it. Other then the better built quality my guitar sounds exactly the same. Same output same tone nothing changed other then the feel of the switch which I like better then the factory one.
I'd like to see higher end wiring like good quality copper and better quality Switches and Pots made from better materials. Now I gotta talk to a master Builder of Guitars from ESP, JACKSON and CHARVEL and see if there is any reason to use higher end materials in the internal wiring Pod's and switches for better sound quality not just longer life.
Who has any experience in Guitar building?
You know I'm a wire nut case right? Yeah most of you already know that and if you didn't , yeah Guilty here.
So recently my 2013 Charvel Pro Mod San Dimas HS HT started acting funny. The 3 positon Toggle switch started scratching when changing pickups. So I thought Good time to upgrade to a better quality instead of just cleaning it and moving on.
I pulled the switch out and just sat there thinking " Why is the internal wiring on this so cheaply done? The wire coming from the pickups is Tin I believe , so is the input jack , Pot wiring etc.
I was looking at the switch and it's like stamped steal or tin or some kind of cheap **** looking material.
I went looking for better quality and met with a Guitar Tech at a really good shop in NJ Russo's Music and got talking about quality.
According to him there is different level of quality Pod's and switches , not really in the wiring as he hasn't seen copper or Silver used. Just plain jane stuff off the shelf even in higher end Guitars.
He went on to tell me that the Switch that was factory stock in my Guitar was made in Korea and is of a lower quality. He had a Switch craft which is used in higher end guitars and thats what I should upgrade to. My switch new would be about $15 and the Switch Craft is $25. Ok I'll go with that but what makes it better? He said the Built quality and the separating plates between the leads is of better quality. The cheap switches use a Circuit board like material and they wear out in a few years or less depending on how much they are used.
So I purchased it and installed it. Other then the better built quality my guitar sounds exactly the same. Same output same tone nothing changed other then the feel of the switch which I like better then the factory one.
I'd like to see higher end wiring like good quality copper and better quality Switches and Pots made from better materials. Now I gotta talk to a master Builder of Guitars from ESP, JACKSON and CHARVEL and see if there is any reason to use higher end materials in the internal wiring Pod's and switches for better sound quality not just longer life.
Who has any experience in Guitar building?
Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.