badpenguin

First off, pictures. Can't do a damn thing until we see pics of the electronic cavity. start with the Paul special, since it sounds as if something is wrong with the wiring. Does it sound thin and nasally in the middle position of the 3 way? Or by itself? Secondly, as for set ups, you are on your own. we can point you in a direction, but without the guitar in hand, well, it's tough.

Use MIDI to use the Karma as a controller, and the 01W as the sound source. And I am sure there are patches available for the Karma. Check the Korg website, I am sure something is there. Here is the link to the forums. KORG Karma Downloads (korgforums.com)

99% of guitars made today have shielding paint. That eliminates the need for copper shielding. People still do it, but I think, more for a placebo effect. The HPF, if the pot is fully open, it should bypass it completely. (A good quality pot, when fully engaged, is set up to allow full signal out.) As to the type of A5 magnet, ask Yamaha. And like I said before, if you can see those stripes while playing, you need to work on your technique. How hunched over are you when you play?

Sounds nice with a strat and an expensive amp. (Sounded better in the promo with the delay and god knows what else processing it.) But how's it sound with a Paul, or another humbucker equipped guitar?

Oy, here we go again.... You want new? Where you can play first, then decide? Then Go to GC, grab one of the ungodly amounts of Epiphone Pauls they have, and play away. Most of the modern ones from China have a push/pull system that allows for single coil sounds and have the traditional 12 degree radius. Should be in the 600-900 dollar range. And don't let the whole Made In China thing bother you. They have stepped up their game. Want to save a few bucks? And have better quality, in my not-so-humble opinion? Go here: Agile AL-3200MCC Light Blue Quilt (rondomusic.com) 600 plus shipping, and you have something a LOT better than your standard run of the mill Epi. Ebony board, neck thru, multi radius, coil tapping with good pickups, and you can even buy a case with the money saved. I will stand proud and say that everything I have ever gotten from them, is worth 2 or 3 times the price. If that's too expensive, they have Paul like creatures starting at 199. Still prefer the Epiphone? Fine, hunt thru Craig's List and see what is available in your area. Used Epi's should be in the 400-500 range. I prefer the USED Korean models built by Samick, but that's just me. And adding a coil tap is a simple operation, with no holes drilled or parts changed. Ask me how if you ever get a guitar. You'll be kinda beat on a dot neck. Most have brother of pearl or abaphony inlays. Color contrast against the strings.... really? If you have to look where you're picking, you may want to practice more. I have been playing over 40 years. I still blow the occasional note or 10, but I can't tell you the last time I had to look down and see where my pick was. I KNOW where it's at, and most of the players here will say the same thing. (Most of the time, on the floor after I drop it, but hey, I still have a fingernail.)

July of 1996. Made in Korea by.... Cort.

Back in the early 90's Alvarez came out with an electric line to compete in the "super strat" world. Some of you may remember the Alvarez Dana Scoop. Very original design with unlimited access to the 22nd fret. (Go ahead, Google it, I'll wait.) The was followed by the Dana II. Access to the 22nd fret with a more traditional design. I had both, no neck pickup bothered me on the Scoop, and the Dana II was... ehh, okish at best. Then other than a more traditional SSH strat copy, and a few tele copies, poof, the electric line disappeared. (They still make some of the best acoustics around.) I saw this beast in a pawn shop and had to do a double take. "Is it a Reb Beach from Ibanez????? Oh please, let it be that!! Nope, it's an Alvarez." that seemed to copy the design from Ibanez on the Reb Beach model. (Can't afford a Reb Beach now-a-days.) I am a sucker for flame on a neck. This has a fretboard with flame. Stupidly cool fret markers on a maple board. A Floyd, that you can actually adjust your action INDIVIDUALLY, 2 singles and a hum, 1 vol two tone, EXACTLY like a strat. (That will change very soon, trust me.) and the weird/compelling cut-a-way that makes little sense. Ok, you can bend up to the point of your strings snapping, but why? It's a 1992 Alvarez Successor. Most likely Korean but might be Japanese. Hard to believe it's 32 years old. Had the standard crusty "Oh God, do I need a tetanus shot?" strings on it. And after a cleaning, put a set of 9's on it, and played it. (I know, I use 10's almost exclusively, but I didn't want to go and futz with the Floyd for a week getting the balance right with a gauge change.) How's it play you ask? Wonderfully. Low action, nice frets, (After a cleaning and polish of course.) and a perfect balance on your lap. A minor ding on the 11th fret, but hey, it's 32 years old. Sonically, the hum is great. REALLY nice balls to it and sounds good using the switch for the coil tap. The neck pickup..... ehhh. I will change that to a single sized hum in a couple of weeks. Just don't like the sound of the single on it. The middle single is fine. AND it has the original hard case too! All for under $300! (Open cavity shot since I had to clean the heck out of the 5 way.) Enjoy.

ok, play the Yamaha thru an amp similar to what you play out of, and play with the knobs. You might like what you hear. The HH Tele.... ok, it sounds as if you are nitpicking here, over a design that has worked for over 70 years. It's NOT the same as your past Squier! It's a different guitar, with different features. It will require a learning curve. They ALL do. After a while, you don't notice the differences in design, or in shape, or in placement of knobs. You grab it, and play. (I have 45 guitars right now, I think DM has near the same. and mine range from strats, to Pauls, SG, different models and designs of Ibanez, a 55 Guild jazz box, a 62 Silvertone Danelectro, with different pickups, knobs, what-not. I pick one up, and play. It's that simple. And I can bet DM does the same, though all of his are black. 😀) if the HH Tele feels right, than you can flip the switch and pots around. Something that will take a screw driver, and wrench, and a few seconds of your time. People been doing it for almost as long as the tele's been alive. Humbuckers in GENERAL have less hum. The cover is mostly cosmetic. Yeah... you might get a 3db gain in output uncovered, or so the legends say, but they are for show.

The ONLY inlays, other than none, that can confuse me for a second or two, is the tree of life. But again..... side dots. And I don't see how squares/trapezoid/dots/birds/ skulls/whatever can "confuse" the player. You really don't see them if you have some bare basic proper technique.

Les Paul Special has dots. (Find them used for the 700 range) A few seconds with Google shows this. Les Paul Double cut has dots. (Again, used in he 700 range) Epiphones have dots. But the big question here is, do you look at the fretboard constantly, or the side of the neck? And you need the contrast of the light/dark body to see the strings? Vision issues?

ok, so you played a SSS Squier for years, and seem to think that a HSH, the middle pickup will get in the way. Why? Did it on the SSS? I would recommend a GOOD HSH over 2 ok ones. Look at Ibanez. Look at USED Ibanez. And a very simple wiring trick will help you get 7 different tones. Like all three on, and neck and bridge on at the same time.

Let's see... who said I quit? Started playing guitar (badly) and bass (pretty decently) some 42 years ago. Switched to guitar primarily due to hitting a serious plateau on bass, and started developing arthritis so 20 years ago. Haven't played live in a number of years and don't miss it. (Amps have gotten HEAVIER as I grow older.) Still play guitar since i love the instrument. Never had rock star plans, so I missed out on that kind of depression.

You aren't going to find anything "just like it" in a smaller wattage and size. It's a big amp that moves a lot of air, has a lot of wood for resonance, and has wattage. your best bet, is to go amp shopping and see what you may like. Lke the above said, I can attest for the Yamaha THR10, but size wise, you can fit 10 of them in the cabinet of yours!

Well the thread IS 14 years old, so that would have made him 50. So maybe the points were valid at the time.

Done and sent

My friend, you got taken. Most expensive one I saw was a Framus Custom Shop Diablo II Pro Masterbuilt for about 7K USD.

If you can solder it to the pots without over heating the pots, sure, go for it.

Yeah, that would work. The only change you might want to do is the capacitor. Basses typically use a .047, whereas a guitar is typically .022. (The bigger the number, the more treble gets cut.) here's a simple diagram: 1 Humbucker/1 Volume/1 Tone (guitarelectronics.com)

Uhhh, what? I believe you want the push/pull to be in the down position for the split? Very simple: your split wires from the pickup to the center lug on the push/pull, ground to the top lug of the push/pull. No idea of what a "greaser" is. 500K is fine for what you need.

My old band was "Happy Accident". My current projects name is "The Company She Keeps."

Gibson has a 3 way switch. Neck/both/bridge. The diagram I highlighted, uses a mini three way switch on/on/on. And any push/pull pot that has a diagram you may be interested in, can use a single mini switch. It's the same on/on switch. Resistance really has nothing to do with a pickups sound. Bridge pickups are higher output, due to the fact of less string movement at the bridge. While I am thinking about it, magnet play a more important role in tone. A ceramic mag, is generally higher output, and brighter. An A2, lower output, warmer sounding. (To my ears at least YMMV.) Then the standard A5 magnet, an A8 that is perfect in a Tele, the list is endless.

There's no advantage persay, unless you want a bit of lower output. Neck p/u's are generally lower output than bridge p/us. Disadvantage is the string spacing on the pole pieces. Bridge p/u's are a wider spacing, allowing the strings to be over the pole pieces. And if the pickup is 4 conductor, use the series/single/parallel diagram shown here. 1 Humbucker/1 Volume/1 Tone/Series-North-Parallel (guitarelectronics.com)

Here's another, and the link. And I was mistaken, it's NOT 1800, it's 1895. And is charcoal considered black? Perihelion Pro 82628 TT Neck-Thru True Temperament Guitar Charcoal (rondomusic.com)

ok, who wants to do a fret crowning on this beast? And it's only 1800!

Ummmm.... you're sticking something that MANY MANY people has breathed/coughed/left spittle on, close to your mouth and lower lip. Bring your own mic! I am sure a spray of alcohol might, and just might, make it safe, but why risk it? Especially in this age of plagues.