Favorite Guitar Control Layout

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What's your favorite control layout and why? I started out playing Ibanez RG's but could never get used to the HSH config and 5 way switch. The middle pickup would always get in the way of my picking, and I hate the 5 way switch because it's too easy to bump the switch into the wrong position. Choosing position 2,3, or 4 while playing live required too much precision anyway.

Then I tried a JS1000 and fell in love with the control scheme.....

HH, 3 way switch, push pull volume(high pass filter on/off), push pull tone (split coils for neck & bridge).

The 3 way switch is much easier and more reliable for me while playing. The high pass filter is an awesome tone shaping tool I never knew I needed. The 3 way plus coil splitter allows for 6 pickup combinations that all sound great. I just can't imagine a better layout for simplicity and flexibility.
 
SSH all the way! And none of that coil splitting/parallel/serial nonsense for the humbucker. My favorite control switch would just be a two way switch between bridge humbucker and neck/middle quack positions. The rest I never use anyway. Nor the tone pot. All the fun complicated stuff happens after my signal leaves the volume put, with two kill switches in my signal path, a Les Paul toggle switch for Tom Morello style kill switching and a push button switch for Jonny Greenwood style switching.
 
I never understood why someone would prefer using a toggle as a killswitch instead of a momentary pushbutton killswitch. It seems like the button would just work better for that purpose. But I guess that's just because we all have such a wide variety of preferences with guitar controls. I would be completely lost with the layout you described.
 
My Strats have about the perfect layout, specifically where the 5-way is located is very easy for me to flip quickly w/out hitting any of the other controls. I especially like to go from bridge to neck or vice-versa at the top of a solo, or mid-solo and on the Strat the angle and position is just right. One of the only things I don't like about my PRS 513 is that the 5-way isn't at quite the right angle, I have to pay attention to where my hand goes or I'll hit something else or miss the switch... the Strat is just right for me. So it's not as much the scheme, as it is the physical layout. I'll usually have a tap or split option on most of my guitars as well and prefer either push-push or a separate toggle vs having a push-pull which I have on my G&L and one of my PRS.

The 3-ways on my other PRS's and my Ibby Artist are also in a good spot, easy to use as well. I would probably never get a PRS w/ the rotary switch, that just doesn't work for me on the fly. But overall I prefer HSS guitars for the variety of tone.
 
searching said:
I never understood why someone would prefer using a toggle as a killswitch instead of a momentary pushbutton killswitch. It seems like the button would just work better for that purpose. But I guess that's just because we all have such a wide variety of preferences with guitar controls. I would be completely lost with the layout you described.
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It's a different style of kill switching action. Push button merely interrupts the signal, toggle can switch it completely off. That's how Tom Morello uses it. He makes the weep weep sounds in Bullet in your head by switching his guitar off, hits a harmonic, then uses the toggle to sparsely turn the sound back on. You could do it with a push button, but then you'd have to keep pushing the button, kinda hard to use your hand for something else as well.
 
2 humbuckers 5 way switch. I love a high pass cap but not on every guitar.

About three years ago I built a guitar with two bare knuckle humbuckers. It has a 3 way toggle, two 3 position mini toggles and a high pass cap. The two mini toggles let you pick either coil or full humbucker on both pickups, so with the main 3 way and 2 mini switches there are about 15 combinations :eek:
 
searching said:
The middle pickup would always get in the way of my picking
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For the first time in my life I'm having this problem with a guitar. My JEM's middle pickup is constantly in the way of my pick. The pickups on this were setup very close to the strings so I think I just need to back all three pickups off a bunch and I'll be fine.

As for my favorite? I think I'm most partial to a PRS HH setup but with a 3-way and a push-pull to get the outer coil sounds. But I also really like a 5-way on my Strat or JEM. My preference is very slight. I love them all so much for what they do that's unique to each configuration.
 
Strat style 5 way has always been my fave. Easy to sweep from bridge to neck. I’ve always hated my Les Paul’s toggle. It’s way out of the way and I’m prettt hard on it. It’s always twisting.
 
Most of my guitars are HSS 87/88 Ibanez S-series with 3 mini toggle switches. Some have a 3-way for the bridge which allows for on/off/tap, some are 2-way with a push/push volume knob for the coil tap. Some of them I've changed to use the bridge pickup in parallel instead of tapped - I prefer that sound more.

Great for flexibility, crap for quick pickup changes.

I can select any combination of pickups I want... But changing between any single pickup to another requires two switches to be changed.

I've thought about adding a blower switch type of mod that would go directly to the bridge pickup when engaged regardless of other switch settings.

I also have a couple of the ProLine series that have a very cool switch:

It's a 5-way blade selector plus 5 push buttons. The first button selects between the using the middle 3 buttons for pickup selection or the 5-way, the 3 middle buttons select pickups on/off and the last button taps the bridge.

This is super flexible!
 
I bought a PRS 513 back in 2006 or so after seeing a guitarist cover a wide range of sounds convincingly on one. It uses 2 blade switches: Above the knobs is a three way for heavy humbucking (hotter), clean humbucking (more PAFish), and single coil. Below the knobs is a traditional 5 way Strat type. What makes this all work is a set of five single coil pickups combined in a variety of ways by the switches. It looks like a HSH setup, but can be SSS, HSH, or other combos. One tone, one volume. I've moved to other guitars several times since that first one and always end up coming back. I have two of them now, and they are my #1 and #2 guitars for live use. Most times, combinations of pickups and controls from standard setups are a compromise in sound, and never quite measure up to either. This is an exception, and is perfect for me.

The down side? You can only get them in this guitar. Fortunately, it just happens to be a great guitar.
 
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Yep, my 513 is my #1 as well (as you see in my avatar ;-)

I hate the Les Paul switch location. It gets in the way of my strumming a lot of the time. And just so I'm not bashing on Gibby, I hate that location on any guitar.
 
jefferski said:
Yep, my 513 is my #1 as well (as you see in my avatar ;-)
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That's actually my original 513 in my picture there, opening a concert for the Beach Boys in Galveston back in '08. My main one now is a Brazilian Rosewood neck version, and the second is a standard model. Both are beautiful 10 tops, and play very nicely. I still love playing my other guitars, but these are the ones that always end up in my hands when it counts.

The controls on these, combined with the pickups, really set them apart. If you're not 100% single coil or humbucker, it seems the perfect marriage to me.
 
Yea, I agree. I love the versatility with this setup. I'll bet that Brazilian is nice! Mine's an '09 mahogany, no maple top so it's a bit darker... the singles and the clean hum position are really sweet but the full humbucker is a bit too dark. So I just tweak my presets to be a touch brighter if they're designed for the full position. I found it on GC used for $1500 and couldn't believe they had it listed that low ;-)

I'd also like to check out a 509 and see if I prefer that layout... you can toggle it to be HSS and not have to hit both controls if you want to switch, but you don't get the option of clean vs full humbucker.
 
Love 'em all. I have 3-way, 5-way, no-way, you name it. I have it. I am not looking for a one-size-fits-all wiring plan. I have a few different guitars because I really like their unique personality, and the switching is part of it.
 
NeoSound said:
2 humbuckers 5 way switch. I love a high pass cap but not on every guitar.

About three years ago I built a guitar with two bare knuckle humbuckers. It has a 3 way toggle, two 3 position mini toggles and a high pass cap. The two mini toggles let you pick either coil or full humbucker on both pickups, so with the main 3 way and 2 mini switches there are about 15 combinations :eek:
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Do you actually use those 15 combinations? That's the problem I have with all those switches and options, it sounds great on paper, but then you end up gravitating to only a few of them and the rest just sits their idly, or worse, gets in the way when you have to switch between those few options you really like.

jefferski said:
Yep, my 513 is my #1 as well (as you see in my avatar ;-)

I hate the Les Paul switch location. It gets in the way of my strumming a lot of the time. And just so I'm not bashing on Gibby, I hate that location on any guitar.
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I'm having a hard time mentally picturing how you could actually hit that switch while strumming. Your hand must really make a strange trajectory, unless you actually strum the strings above the frets instead of inbetweeen pickups.
 
Muad'zin said:
Do you actually use those 15 combinations? That's the problem I have with all those switches and options, it sounds great on paper, but then you end up gravitating to only a few of them and the rest just sits their idly, or worse, gets in the way when you have to switch between those few options you really like.



I'm having a hard time mentally picturing how you could actually hit that switch while strumming. Your hand must really make a strange trajectory, unless you actually strum the strings above the frets instead of inbetweeen pickups.
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Lots of people strum over the end of the neck... I imagine your arm could easily flip the toggle in that case.
 
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