Coil splitting a PRS Mira x

Tall_martin

Hi,

I've just bought a Mira x. It's a twin humbucker guitar that doesn't coil split.

I really like coil splitting humbuckers! I have a pair of bare Knuckle humbuckers in a Harley Benton that if like to swap into the PRS.

With me so far?

My plan is to get a new pickguard made and do a complete set of wiring to accommodate the coil splitting.

My question are

- are there any particular pots that are better for volume, tone with a coil split?
- are there any 3 way switches that are particularly superior? The three way in the harley Benton tele copy feels loose from new. The 13 year old switch in the PRS still feels right and direct.
- other than a coil switch push pull, are there any other ways to switch a coil split coil split? Mini toggle switches? Any pros or cons to the options?

Thanks for any suggestions

Funkfingers

Q1 Do you want the splittage to be simultaneous or independent? The former requires one switch or push-pull pot. The latter requires two.

Q2 Do you intend to use tuned/partial coil splittage or the simple one coil off method?

Q3 If you only require coil split for one or two coil permutations, it might be more practical to access them via the lever selector switch. (This involves an upgrade to either a CRL Superswitch, Schaller Megaswitch or one of the Freeway lever types.)

Tall_martin

Thanks!

1) is there any advantage/ interesting sounds if the coil split is independent? All my guitars have had a simultaneous coil split 

2)same as above. I think my guitars currently turn one coil off. How can I tell? This is the diagram for the bar knuckle pickups that will be going into the guitar

http://www.bareknucklepickups.co.uk/upload/support/1hum_4_con_push_pull_pot_coilsplit_1cd2a1e.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwjz06vY99H4AhXNgVwKHX3gDzAQFnoECBEQAQ&usg=AOvVaw3B2i2QxD9AK6JKpM5T9-9r

3)I think I'm going for both coils/ one coil.

Dave_Mc

I'm not sure I've tried independent splits (all mine are master splits, too) so I can't help there- @Funkfingers should be able to help with that.

Regarding the pots, to my ears going with a partial split darkens the sound a little and can often mean you can just go with 500k pots for both volume and tone (especially if it's a hotter humbucker). Or you can kick in a resistor to simulate a 250k volume pot but you'd need to go with independent splits (i.e. two push-pulls) for that as you have to use the second side of the switch, I think.

You can also use push-pushes to activate coil splits. I usually prefer those to push-pulls.

Philly_Q

Tall_martin said:

My plan is to get a new pickguard made and do a complete set of wiring to accommodate the coil splitting.

Just curious, why the new pickguard?  You could use either push-pull pots, or a 5-way switch, with the existing pickguard.

Tall_martin

Thanks @dave_mc.

@philly_q I like the idea of a tort pickguard for the guitar and also my soldering is rubbish- I've never done much. So a new pickguard and bits means I can copy the original wiring and if I cook a component, it won't be the original one.

Mostly it's just for a wee project 

TTony

You could use push/pull (or push/push) pots to replace the existing Vol / Tone pots, then one pot splits one HB, and the other splits the other.

Or, if you don't like the push/pull pots (and as you're getting a new scratchplate made anyway) you could add a couple of mini-toggle switches to implement the coil splitting (the Pauls guitar illustrates how it could look).

Neither of those wirings is particularly complex and there are plenty of diagrams out there (and advice on here) to make sure that you got it right.

Mini-toggles are probably easier to see and flick on/off quickly if you're doing it on a dark stage, and avoids the risk of changing a vol/tone setting when you push the knob to split the sound.    

The existing p'up selector switch then works the same as now.

Or, you could build some of the options into a re-wired selector switch, but your options are slightly more limited (unless you get into the more complex - like Freeway - switches).

Philly_Q

Tall_martin said:

Thanks @dave_mc.

@philly_q I like the idea of a tort pickguard for the guitar and also my soldering is rubbish- I've never done much. So a new pickguard and bits means I can copy the original wiring and if I cook a component, it won't be the original one.

Mostly it's just for a wee project 

Fair enough!   I actually got a scratchplate made for my first Mira, because I wanted to get rid of the mini-switch and use a five-way switch instead.  Anyone who knows me will not be surprised to learn that I never got round to doing anything, and ended up selling the guitar.

Dave_Mc

Tall_martin said:

Thanks @dave_mc.

No problem  

Philly_Q said:

Tall_martin said:

Thanks @dave_mc.

@philly_q I like the idea of a tort pickguard for the guitar and also my soldering is rubbish- I've never done much. So a new pickguard and bits means I can copy the original wiring and if I cook a component, it won't be the original one.

Mostly it's just for a wee project 

Fair enough!   I actually got a scratchplate made for my first Mira, because I wanted to get rid of the mini-switch and use a five-way switch instead.  Anyone who knows me will not be surprised to learn that I never got round to doing anything, and ended up selling the guitar.

LOL that sounds like me.

Actually I did eventually get round to learning how to solder- quite a lot of the stuff I'd bought and stashed away thinking "Bet I'll never get around to using that" I actually did! About 15 years after I'd bought it! That actually seems to happen to me a lot (not just with guitar stuff)- I buy stuff just in case, think I'll never get round to using it, and then 10 years later it comes in handy.

Granted, I would guess a fair percentage of it is still in the "might come in handy one day" bracket... 

Tall_martin

I'm still using random screws that my grandad had on his tool box after my dad passed it on to me. So I've had them 22 years, my dad had them a few years and my grandad had them for.....

Waste not want not 

Philly_Q

Dave_Mc said:

Actually I did eventually get round to learning how to solder- quite a lot of the stuff I'd bought and stashed away thinking "Bet I'll never get around to using that" I actually did! About 15 years after I'd bought it! That actually seems to happen to me a lot (not just with guitar stuff)- I buy stuff just in case, think I'll never get round to using it, and then 10 years later it comes in handy.

Granted, I would guess a fair percentage of it is still in the "might come in handy one day" bracket... 

I did a lot of soldering for a while, and although I wouldn't claim to be good at many things, I was really good at soldering!  

The problem now would be my eyesight, I need varifocals nowadays and on the rare occasions I've attempted any DIY work, it always seems to be at just the right point where I can't focus on it properly....

I've still got loads of pickups and spares though.  I might start tinkering again once I've retired in a few years (bring it on!).

normula1

Personally I'd use mini toggles if you're changing the scratchplate anyway. I'd love to do that on my Custom 22, but so far have resisted my no new holes rule... that and they'd look arse anyway without recessing the etc.

Dave_Mc

Philly_Q said:

Dave_Mc said:

Actually I did eventually get round to learning how to solder- quite a lot of the stuff I'd bought and stashed away thinking "Bet I'll never get around to using that" I actually did! About 15 years after I'd bought it! That actually seems to happen to me a lot (not just with guitar stuff)- I buy stuff just in case, think I'll never get round to using it, and then 10 years later it comes in handy.

Granted, I would guess a fair percentage of it is still in the "might come in handy one day" bracket... 

I did a lot of soldering for a while, and although I wouldn't claim to be good at many things, I was really good at soldering!  

The problem now would be my eyesight, I need varifocals nowadays and on the rare occasions I've attempted any DIY work, it always seems to be at just the right point where I can't focus on it properly....

I've still got loads of pickups and spares though.  I might start tinkering again once I've retired in a few years (bring it on!).

I'm still pretty middling at soldering, but it's (just about!) good enough to get sound out of the thing!  I haven't done any soldering for a good few months now, I think I did a bit too much and sort of sickened myself with it!

I hear you about the eyesight- I'm short-sighted so use glasses for pretty much everything bar reading and other really close-up work. I used to be able to use my standard short-sighted glasses for close work too (when it was too much bother to take them off), but I think your accomodation decreases as you get older (I think it starts getting worse at about 10, lol, but I was in my late 20s before I started to actually notice it), so now I can't read while wearing my glasses. But there's a gap in the middle (again, this didn't used to happen) where it's too far away for my naked eye, and too close for glasses... and that's just about soldering distance, lol. Actually, soldering is probably just about ok, it's that having to take the glasses off makes everything else at a slightly further-away distance harder...

Philly_Q

Dave_Mc said:

I hear you about the eyesight- I'm short-sighted so use glasses for pretty much everything bar reading and other really close-up work. I used to be able to use my standard short-sighted glasses for close work too (when it was too much bother to take them off), but I think your accomodation decreases as you get older (I think it starts getting worse at about 10, lol, but I was in my late 20s before I started to actually notice it), so now I can't read while wearing my glasses. But there's a gap in the middle (again, this didn't used to happen) where it's too far away for my naked eye, and too close for glasses... and that's just about soldering distance, lol. Actually, soldering is probably just about ok, it's that having to take the glasses off makes everything else at a slightly further-away distance harder...

I'll have to get something like this if I ever start messing with guitar DIY again.  And remember to take it off if the doorbell rings...

https://www.stewmac.com/luthier-tools-and-supplies/tools-by-job/tools-for-maintenance/optivisor-headband-magnifier/

Dave_Mc

Philly_Q said:

Dave_Mc said:

I hear you about the eyesight- I'm short-sighted so use glasses for pretty much everything bar reading and other really close-up work. I used to be able to use my standard short-sighted glasses for close work too (when it was too much bother to take them off), but I think your accomodation decreases as you get older (I think it starts getting worse at about 10, lol, but I was in my late 20s before I started to actually notice it), so now I can't read while wearing my glasses. But there's a gap in the middle (again, this didn't used to happen) where it's too far away for my naked eye, and too close for glasses... and that's just about soldering distance, lol. Actually, soldering is probably just about ok, it's that having to take the glasses off makes everything else at a slightly further-away distance harder...

I'll have to get something like this if I ever start messing with guitar DIY again.  And remember to take it off if the doorbell rings...

https://www.stewmac.com/luthier-tools-and-supplies/tools-by-job/tools-for-maintenance/optivisor-headband-magnifier/

  

Tall_martin

Get yourself some of orbitals head lights