Strat 2/4 positions - overrated

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  • Alnico said:
    Damn, just realised I've been getting things the wrong way around with Strats. I though Bridge and Middle was Position 2 and Neck and Middle was Position 4. I also thought that H.S.S meant Humbucker in the Bridge, but that is S.S.H?

    Or am I still wrong?
    Shops and manufacturers describe it as "HSS" because we look at them from the front, so left to right make sense that way.
    Players call the switching the other way around because they look down on the guitar and call it from left to right as they see it.

    At least that's what I always just assumed.
    Makes sense @Alnico ; I'll probably not be able to change the habit of calling Bridge Pos 1 though  B)
    Only a Fool Would Say That.
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  • thegummythegummy Frets: 4389
    I'm fairly sure that position 2 is bridge and middle.

    To the OP - if you watch some Strat demos on YouTube you'll be able to tell if it's just your guitar or if the sound in general is just not to your taste.

    Personally I love all 5 switch positions on a Strat and I love the neck + middle at least as much as the others too!
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  • BucketBucket Frets: 7751
    Sorry for the shameless self-promotion, but I've always loved the sound I can get from positions 2 and 4 on my Strat:

    2:



    4:


    - "I'm going to write a very stiff letter. A VERY stiff letter. On cardboard."
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  • richardhomerrichardhomer Frets: 24793
    edited February 2018
    Bucket said:
    Sorry for the shameless self-promotion, but I've always loved the sound I can get from positions 2 and 4 on my Strat:

    2:



    4:


    Tbh - with your ability, I’d be promoting it at every opportunity. Lovely playing, mate
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  • BucketBucket Frets: 7751
    Bucket said:
    Sorry for the shameless self-promotion, but I've always loved the sound I can get from positions 2 and 4 on my Strat:

    Tbh - with your ability, I’d be promoting it at every opportunity. Lovely playing, mate
    You're too kind! :)
    - "I'm going to write a very stiff letter. A VERY stiff letter. On cardboard."
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  • martmart Frets: 5205
    Bridge+neck for the win - all the warmth from the neck with all the clarity from the bridge. I cannot understand why this is not standard.
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  • The neck/middle combination played through compression, detune, trichorus and delay/reverb is the sound of 80s pop.  I love that sound.  It was the sound of the LA session musicians like Landau and Dan huff, David Williams, etc and all over 80s hits.... 
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  • paulnb57paulnb57 Frets: 3044
    edited February 2018
    ICBM said:
    jpfamps said:
    I have a 3 way on my strat.
    Ah, but what settings does it have?

    I've done a couple which go neck/neck+middle/bridge+middle for customers who want their favourite Strat sounds and not the others.
    @ICBM I would appreciated a sketch of this wiring diagram please?
    Stranger from another planet welcome to our hole - Just strap on your guitar and we'll play some rock 'n' roll

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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71956
    paulnb57 said:

    @ICBM I would appreciated a sketch of this wiring diagram please?
    Sorry, I don’t have one - it’s dead easy to work out though, the switch has two poles so you can turn on any one or two pickups in any position. (With both rotors connected to the volume control as normal.)

    The tricky bit is the tone controls - the easiest way is to use two tone caps, then connect the neck tone control to the unused neck-position terminal so it’s only active there, and the other one to the middle pickup, so it works in the other two positions. You can then use different cap values if you prefer, a .047uF for the neck pickup and a .022 for the middle seems to work well.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • ClashmanClashman Frets: 175
    I picked my Strat up today and my ears still prefer my Telecaster.
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  • LebarqueLebarque Frets: 3755
    clarkefan said: no
    For me the bridge/middle sound is the only sound Strats bring to the table, it's unique and fantastic.  The others are doable better elsewhere or useless.  

    I never got the middle pickup only thing but Gary Moore used it a lot so what do I know :)
    C'mon now. The sound of a strat neck pickup is iconic.
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  • crunchmancrunchman Frets: 11413
    I have a no-load tone pot connected to the bridge and middle pickup, so I can get the spiker sounds if I want, but if I turn it down to 9 then I get it in the circuit.

    I've also got a push-push pot on the other tone control to add the neck pickup to any switch setting.  I mainly use that for bridge and neck together - which is really useful.  I use it more than positions 2 and 4.

    Just for good measure there is a baseplate on the bridge pickup which does seem to beef it up slightly as well.
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  • prowlaprowla Frets: 4896
    Bridge & middle = Smoke On The Water.
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  • ChalkyChalky Frets: 6807
    Pickups make a big difference. Lace Sensor Golds in 2&4 give the archetypal in-between sound to me, whereas my BKP Apaches are much less pronounced in 2&4.
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  • chris45chris45 Frets: 221
    Many thanks for all comments - will experiment some more and probably investigate some pickup and or wiring changes.  Any recommendations for pickups for a pop / indie sound appreciated (I have other options for classic rock)
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  • noisepolluternoisepolluter Frets: 789
    edited February 2018
    I’m a big fan of Richard Thompson who uses the bridge/middle setting a lot.

    Does take a bit of judicious tweaking of various volume and tone controls when switching from neck or bridge to in-between though - still getting used to this. On a tele I find it much easier for some reason.
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  • axisusaxisus Frets: 28280
    I love 2 & 4. They are both in my top five strat pickup selector positions.
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  • p90foolp90fool Frets: 31368
    Funny, Richard Thompson probably single-handedly put me off. Great musician, but his guitar sound is almost as annoying as his Mick McCarthy singing. 
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  • p90fool said:
    Funny, Richard Thompson probably single-handedly put me off. Great musician, but his guitar sound is almost as annoying as his Mick McCarthy singing. 
    You’re just trying to wind me up, aren’t you? :)
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  • p90foolp90fool Frets: 31368
    p90fool said:
    Funny, Richard Thompson probably single-handedly put me off. Great musician, but his guitar sound is almost as annoying as his Mick McCarthy singing. 
    You’re just trying to wind me up, aren’t you? :)
    Haha, is it working? :)

    Actually, because of my screen resolution on the main page I saw there'd been a reply from "richard...", and thought "Fuck,he hasn't joined?!"

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