Question about tone pots

[The4thlast1]

Alright pretty simple here. All I want to know is that if a guitar is made with no tone pot at all would it be brighter or have more high end than a guitar that does have one.

 

Also if I were to go from a 500k pot to a 250k tone pot would I notice a difference with the control set all the way up or is it only when turned down ?

 

Maybe a "dumb" question but the search function stinks so.

 

Thanks

[monto]

hi, i was asking these type of questions recently, some stuff i found out is:

1. yes, your guitar would sound brighter/more high end, or some people would say 'glassy' sounding if you dont have a tone pot. apparantly guitar pickups are designed in a way that they are expecting a tone pot to be used.

2. i have been told that, if u use a 250k pot, then with the knob turned all the way up, it would be like using a 500k pot with the knob at 'halfway'

ps. this is strange though, as with my guitar which i thought was too bright sounding, i tried a 250k pot and my guitar didnt sound any less bright. in fact call me a maniac but i almost thought it sounded brighter! so i used a 500k pot instead, but it was a cheaper brand one (the 250k pot i tried was CTS, but the 500k was 'unbranded'). i found that the cheaper pot actually dulled/smoothed my sound a bit, and this was actually what i wanted so i stuck with the 500k. crazy but true.)

[The4thlast1]

hi, i was asking these type of questions recently, some stuff i found out is: 1. yes, your guitar would sound brighter/more high end, or some people would say 'glassy' sounding if you dont have a tone pot. apparantly guitar pickups are designed in a way that they are expecting a tone pot to be used. 2. i have been told that, if u use a 250k pot, then with the knob turned all the way up, it would be like using a 500k pot with the knob at 'halfway' ps. this is strange though, as with my guitar which i thought was too bright sounding, i tried a 250k pot and my guitar didnt sound any less bright. in fact call me a maniac but i almost thought it sounded brighter! so i used a 500k pot instead, but it was a cheaper brand one (the 250k pot i tried was CTS, but the 500k was 'unbranded'). i found that the cheaper pot actually dulled/smoothed my sound a bit, and this was actually what i wanted so i stuck with the 500k. crazy but true.)

 

 

Awesome thank you for that.

 

I am trying to warm up a guitar that is a bit bright. Maybe changing the tone pot is not really the way to go. I find that when I turn down the tone knob on my guitar it does tame the highs a little but it also effects the bass response in a way I do not like. Its very subtle but you know how little things can bother you when you are a tone chaser.

[monto]

yeah im like u, i had a right headache trying to make a guitar i have (gibson sg clone) not sound so bright. in the worst case you could just get yourself a darking sounding amplifier... or, theres a guy on this forum called bryan who makes pickups and could make u a dark sounding one, he does a discount for members of harmony central:

http://www.norcalguitars.com/

[monto]

hey, after reading your sig, have u really used a lot of different speakers?

can u tell me what u think of celestion G12T-75?

i have them in a marshall cab and although i think they are 'ok', im wondering if i should change them. maybe u have some recommendations?

[Scifi Metalhead]

You could try a different capacitor on the tone pot as well.

[The4thlast1]

hey, after reading your sig, have u really used a lot of different speakers? can u tell me what u think of celestion G12T-75? i have them in a marshall cab and although i think they are 'ok', im wondering if i should change them. maybe u have some recommendations?

 

 

Celestion G12T-75 ...... Big bass, Scooped mids, somewhat extended highs compared to say a v30. I have heard them sound good with Marshall amps but in general they are not voiced the way I like. I personally like more mids and tighter bass.

 

Some Speakers I like are:

 

Celestion: v30 , G12k100 , Greenback

 

Warehouse: Veteran, Retro30, Reaper

 

Eminece: P50e's , Governors, Private Jacks, SwampThangs and C-rex

 

 

Those are some I like the most. What type of sound are you looking for ?

[etawful]

2. i have been told that, if u use a 250k pot, then with the knob turned all the way up, it would be like using a 500k pot with the knob at 'halfway'

 

 

That depends on the kind of pot. A linear taper pot would, theoretically behave that way. BUT, an audio taper pot would not behave that way, as it has a different taper where, for instance, changing from 2-3 is not the same amount of change as turning from say 4-5.

[monto]

I personally like more mids and tighter bass........What type of sound are you looking for ?

 

 

well, yeah more bass and mids would be nice, and not too much 'shrillness' at the top

 

i dunno, im not saying i HATE g12t75, but it was after i saw the vid below, i thought 'hmm, the g12t75 sound a bit dull....'

 

check it out:

 

[YOUTUBE]jWK0sa7tlfI[/YOUTUBE]