Wiring options
The pickup switch on a guitar is basically a selector for connecting a pickup on the output jack.A three way selector on a stratocaster engage either neck, mid or bridge pickup. Five way selectors introduced pickup combinations pairing pickups, usually mid pickup with neck and bridge. Fender introduced a reverse winding and polarity mid pickup to have a humbucking effect when pairing it.
Guitar with humbuckers integrate additional switch to split coil to recover single coil sound, giving in the end lots of different combination through many switches but houw many are really usable ?
A 5 way selector with two push pull allows 20 combinations, I wanted the finest sounding one only with simple access, super switch is the deal.
Five finest sound
Because finest sounding combination may no be those given by a standard selector, superswitch have been introduced to wire your own combinations on 5 positions.I bought two different make of superswitch : Fender and Eyb. Fender design looks like rotary switches that exist with different range of poles and combination . Eyb looks like classical guitar switches ie based on a PCB. Eyb is thiner , Fender poles arrangement is more intuitive, both are quality products and cost almost the same 20 bucks.
My pickups
My neck pickup is the DiMarzio Virtual PAF neck DP196, it is the most versatile I ever used, its qualities splitted or combined with other pickups are surprisingly good.The mid pickup is a Fender Tex Mex bridge, well balanced single and high output it pairs well with the virtual PAF.
The bridge pickup is the (in)famous Bill Lawrence L-500XL , USA flavour is dramaticaly bright and powerfull and stands no companion.
Virtual PAF arrangement
My combination uses the Virtual PAF at most because of its incredible possibilities.5 - Virtual PAF. Classical wiring in this position, a great mid output humbucker soud with balanced low and highs in clean and lead channels. Great for soloing, arpeggios, rythm, can do anything.
4 - Virtual PAF split single coil screws. This is the hot coil of the humbucker, nice single sound, brighter and lower output than the Fender in mid position, a butifully sounding option I would ´t miss. It Gets density in neck. Nice rythm and arpeggio thin sounding.
3 - Fender Tex Mex bridge. Thicker than usual Stratocater sigles, it reminds me the X1 of my Fender Lead II. It´s my second bridge pickup for more overdriven sound when L500 is definitively thrash bro. Louder clean also, a briter version of the Virtual PAF.
2 - Virtual PAF (parallel coils) in parallel with Fender Tex. Thin sounding with some out of phase sparkling, funky rythm but not as acid as usual out of phase strat sounds, the humbucker is still there but with parallel coils. Usual factory setup split coil of the humbucker.
1- Bill Lawrence USA L500 XL. The beast, alone, my thrash solution.
On my budget Cort Sterling I rather install the Eyb and I'm really satisfied of the overall choice. I also installed CTS pots for a quality sound chain.
I can advise those super switch for any guitarist having very good pickup and wanting to get the best sound of them, dit it.
