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Lefty guitars: Pots should NOT be wired in reverse


SpliffyJonez

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Some guitars companies, including Fenders and Epiphone, wire their lefty guitars wrong.

 

They reverse the two outside lugs on the pots to make the volume/tone increase/decrease by turning the knob in the opposite direction than standard right-handed guitars.

 

This works, but not properly. Instead of getting a nice gradual

decrease in highs as you turn the tone knob, wired the lefty way, you get almost no change from 0-9, then suddenly it goes full on tone from 9-10. I think this has to do with the pots being log(audio) pots and not linear.

 

I didn't know this before and haven't got good use out of the tone/volume controls until I re-wired them the standard right handed way.

 

I think it's better and easier for leftys to get used to turning the

knob the opposite way than to have controls that aren't useful.

 

I checked at the music store today and the only lefty guitars that had pots wired the standard way were gibsons. Epiphones and Fenders were all wired reverse.

 

Any leftys here notice this? You guys think we should let Fender and Epiphone know this? You think they'll care?

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Hey, yeah. I've been a bit bummed about the tone knobs on my AS-820. I have no change from 10-~1 then it just acts like a switch from 1-0. I thought it was the pots, but with a semi-hollowbody I haven't gotten around to changing them. It'd be nice if I only have to rewire. The volumes are fine, though. Maybe a difference in how the signal is affected between tone and volume?

 

I started out playing righty guitars left handed, so I'm forever confused by left-handed knobs now.

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Sounds like the pots are "audio taper" and wired for right hand use. By reversing the wiring you make the pot actually worse than normal taper because it will actually do the opposite of what it was intended.

 

I'm amazed guitar manufacturers are doing this routinely.....

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Originally posted by SpliffyJonez

Do they even make lefty-tapered pots? I have never heard of such pots. I doubt they do.

 

 

Inquiring (enquiring?) minds what to know.

 

I've always wondered about this, but I was affraid I'd sound stupid if I asked.

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