Favorite Guitar Control Layout

[NeoSound]

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.

More than half of the sounds are very usable. I like the neck and bridge humbucker positions, the neck single coil and some mixed bridge/neck combos that sound very strat-like. Also a very tele-like sound. I like having the options but I don't use them much with playing live

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.

Pete Townsend windmill?

 

[jefferski]

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.

As Neo just said, almost all of the options are usable on a 513, it's a question of which ones fit for me, which won't be the same ones for you, and which aren't always what you think ahead of time. Other guitars maybe so maybe not, but that's part of the fun of trying different things (like an American Deluxe Strat w/ all the weird options on the S-1 switch).

And really, how is that different from "Do you really need over 200 amps and 37 drives?" ;-) Don't we all gravitate towards a much smaller set of our preferred ones?

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.

I often strum up at the end of the neck for the fatter tone there. (notice where my hand is in my avatar ;-) Other times I rest on the bridge or strum down lower, just depends on what I'm playing. When I play an LP style I can certainly avoid the switch but I'd rather not have to worry about it.

 

[Rex]

I like both three-way humbucker and Strat-style five-way switches. I prefer to have the switch in the Strat position, where it’s within the arc of my picking hand. This position, where you can reach the selector switch and the knobs with a swing of you elbow, is one of the reasons that the Strat has been the most-copied guitar configuration for the last sixty years. It’s just so quick and convenient.

Selecting positions 2 and 4 on a Strat is pretty easy, once you learn how to wrap your pinky around the switch, rest the heel of your hand on the strings, apply a little crosswise pressure, rockmthe switch into position.

For a one-size-fits-all guitar, it’s hard to beat HSH with a coil tap.

 

[Rex]

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.

You can flutter a toggle-type killswitch faster and with more control than you can with a push button.

 

[Piing]

This is my favorite wiring. All kind of flavors.
I've made the mods myself, at both the J-Custom RG8550MZ and the RG550LTD

 

[Muad'zin]

Lots of people strum over the end of the neck... I imagine your arm could easily flip the toggle in that case.

I reckon that would be the case yes, but I still wonder why you would want to strum over the neck? That would just create a lot of unwanted noise as the pick scrapes over the frets. Don't get me wrong, sometimes you want to create certain sounds and effects, and that could be it, but the position of the switch aside, that seems to be not a very logical and ergonomical part of the guitar to strum over.

 

[Rex]

...I still wonder why you would want to strum over the neck?

It depends on what you're trying to achieve. Most people pick somewhere between the end of the fingerboard and the bridge. Not only is it easier to pick there, but you get a nice balance of fundamental and harmonics.

But sometimes you want a nice, round, sweet sound, rich in fundamentals, with minimal harmonics. You achieve that by picking at the exact center of the part of the string that's vibrating. If you're playing open chords, that particular "sweet spot" is near the 12th fret. If you're fretting at the 5th fret, the "roundest" tone comes from picking at the 17th fret. It's not until you're fretting above the 11th or 12th fret that the "round" spot moves off the fingerboard into open territory. So there can be good reasons for picking over the neck.

 

[jefferski]

It depends on what you're trying to achieve. Most people pick somewhere between the end of the fingerboard and the bridge. Not only is it easier to pick there, but you get a nice balance of fundamental and harmonics.

But sometimes you want a nice, round, sweet sound, rich in fundamentals, with minimal harmonics. You achieve that by picking at the exact center of the part of the string that's vibrating. If you're playing open chords, that particular "sweet spot" is near the 12th fret. If you're fretting at the 5th fret, the "roundest" tone comes from picking at the 17th fret. It's not until you're fretting above the 11th or 12th fret that the "round" spot moves off the fingerboard into open territory. So there can be good reasons for picking over the neck.

Well said.

In addition, the string moves farther in the middle as compared to close to the bridge, so it gives a different feel to hitting the strings.

 

[bishop5150]

Definitely H H. I have a Charvel that has a HSS setup and I always end up hitting that middle single coil.

 

[Muad'zin]

It depends on what you're trying to achieve. Most people pick somewhere between the end of the fingerboard and the bridge. Not only is it easier to pick there, but you get a nice balance of fundamental and harmonics.

But sometimes you want a nice, round, sweet sound, rich in fundamentals, with minimal harmonics. You achieve that by picking at the exact center of the part of the string that's vibrating. If you're playing open chords, that particular "sweet spot" is near the 12th fret. If you're fretting at the 5th fret, the "roundest" tone comes from picking at the 17th fret. It's not until you're fretting above the 11th or 12th fret that the "round" spot moves off the fingerboard into open territory. So there can be good reasons for picking over the neck.

I'm sure it sounds the way you said it does, but its hardly the most practical spot to pick a string now is it? Especially if you strum multiple strings.

 

[Rex]

I'm sure it sounds the way you said it does, but its hardly the most practical spot to pick a string now is it? Especially if you strum multiple strings.

True, it’s not the easiest place to pick. But if you’re going for that round sound, it’s not only the most practical spot; it’s the only spot.

 

[jefferski]

I rarely pick higher up the string, but I do strum up there from time to time - gives a nice chime and fullness on some cleaner sounds (my Vox preset sounded particularly nice there last night, especially w/ the middle pickup). I wouldn't think of doing it for heavy tones, there'd be too much bass flubbing around. But for a full clean tone, yea.

Regardless, there are many guitars in the world. I can make do just fine w/out a Les Paul or Tremonti, and everyone who loves them can have at it... ;-)

 

[TG3K]

I'm sure it sounds the way you said it does, but its hardly the most practical spot to pick a string now is it? Especially if you strum multiple strings.

Sometimes playing is more about the sound than the practicality. Strumming over various location on the neck gives a different sound. For some musical genres (i.e., metal) it may not be a usable sound, but for others it is. People have been doing it since before the guitar was born.

 

[shatteredsquare]

2 hum 2 vol 2 tone 3 way toggle + bridge blower switch