Guitar Wiring 101
The goal of this series of articles is to explain the guitar signal path and what components are optimal
within that signal path. We'll start with the input jack and follow that up to the pickups. This article
will focus on the input jack and 3-way pickup selector switch. Future article will focus on volume/tone pots
and capacitors.
Input Jack
This is where it all starts and if the input jack isn't right nothing else matters as the signal won't
flow from the pickups to the amp. Trust me there is nothing worse than a crappy input jack where one is
constantly messing with the cord to get the signal to flow.
Is one input jack better than the others? You betcha, Switchcraft rules above all others in this category
and a couple of others as will be evident later. Does not matter if your guitar is a LP type, shredder,
Strat or Tele a Switchcraft mono jack is the one you want.
Pickup Selector Switch
Figure 1
The selector switch is another crucial, aren't they all, electronic within the signal chain. A bad switch
will not make a quality connection which will influence the tone of the guitar and possible frustrate the
owner. Once again Switchcraft rules the day no matter the type of guitar. The main point is getting the
right size for your particular style guitar.
Focusing on the Gibson style guitars first there are a couple of different options regarding 3-way
switches. First, SG style guitars use a right angle switch due to the shallow body, see Figure 1. For Les Paul type
guitars there are two styles of toggle switches available, short and long. Three pickup models use a
special Switchcraft long toggle.
When replacing the pickup selector on your Love Rocks it is best to check the length of the selector
currently in your guitar and order the appropriate replacement part. Figure 2 shows a short toggle while
figure 3 displays the long toggle.
| Figure 2 | Figure 3 |
 |
 |
|
