[boardn10]

Hi guys, can you help me get started on this set in my American HSS strat. After some time, it needs some changes. Too dark overall and all pots are 250K. I was thinking I could go with a prewired board with 3 stacked singles or even the Duncan Everything set. I want something more open.in the bridge slot, better cleans and brighter overall. Would this work well? Air Classic bridge slot, 54 Pro in both middle and neck positions.

Update - I installed a short shaft split shaft CTS 500k for volume. Wow, amazing. Great punch, clarity, tightness, single note runs while muting the strings are great. I have to stop trying to make single coils to work for my style. I must be true to myself. All my guitars will be without single coils. The 54 Pros sound so lame, weak next to my air zone.

[slugworth]

What kind of music? Are you looking to go higher or lower in output?

Without knowing more about what you are looking for, I'd suggest staying with the 250k pots and look for pickups that work well with them. Norton or PAF Pro in the bridge. Keep the 54 in the middle and put an Area 67 in the neck.

[KH Guitar Freak]

Norton and two Area 67s wired to a 250k pot perhaps

[JohnnyGtar]

Before changing pickups, I'd suggest switching to 500K pots and wiring the Air Zone for series/parallel operation (via push/pull pot or a mini switch). I think you might be pleasantly surprised. The Air Zone in parallel is pretty cool... it'll give you the sound you're looking for unless I miss my guess. More bite, nore clarity, more openness, still has some serious balls, and balances better with the other 2 pickups.

[JohnnyGtar]

Before changing pickups, I'd suggest switching to 500K pots and wiring the Air Zone for series/parallel operation (via push/pull pot or a mini switch). I think you might be pleasantly surprised. The Air Zone in parallel is pretty cool... it'll give you the sound you're looking for unless I miss my guess. More bite, more clarity, more openness, still has some serious balls, and balances better with the other 2 pickups.

[RayBarbeeMusic]

You could try:

1) 500k pot but instead of running at 500k, try various resistors across it (1M, 2.2M, 3.3M, 10M) and see which gives you a nice increase in openness without sounding too bright. 

2) If you go 500k full on for the air zone (not a bad idea) use Injector necks in the other two positions.  They work great with 500k pots.  54s might be too shrill.

3) keep the 250k or try some combination of (1) and, as suggested above, pop a Norton in the bridge.  I recently put one in the bridge of a strat in similar circumstance and like it a lot there, whereas I pretty much hated it in other circumstances.  It comes alive in that application. 

[boardn10]

Guys, I realize I hate real single coils. I installed the CTS 500K and it rocks!
Can someone let me know what size pot shaft is required for a Fender? The stock pots are perfect and the stock plastic knobs slip right on and down flush with the body. With the new short shaft can you help me get started on this set in my American HSS strat. After some time, it needs some changes. Too dark overall and all pots are 250K. I was thinking I could go with a prewired board with 3 stacked singles or even the Duncan Everything set. I want something more open.in the bridge slot, better cleans and brighter overall. Would this work well? Air Classic bridge slot, 54 Pro in both middle and neck positions.

Update - I installed a short shaft split shaft CTS 500k for volume. Wow, amazing. Great punch, clarity, tightness, single note runs while muting the strings are great. I have to stop trying to make single coils to work for my style. I must be true to myself. All my guitars will be without single coils. The 54 Pros sound so lame, weak next to my air zone.

The 500K I installed, the stock Fender plastic knobs will not fit and none of my other plastic knobs fit either.
I know now I want the Air Zone with the middle and neck being a chopper, Fast Track or Injector. I will go with 500k pots for the tone as well.

What to do about finding black plastic fender volume and tone knobs to fit these CTS pot shafts? I guess i could order 500k fender pots and replace all.

[boardn10]

I see what is going on - The Fender short shaft CTS pots are shorter than the stanadard CTS short shaft potentiemeter. Therefore, I either have to replace all with CTS pots or order 3 new Fender CTS 500K pots.
In this case, the DiMarzio tech said to leave all of the tone pots stock at 250 and rather than replace the CTS volume with a Fender pot, I will do what I thought of lasty night and just use metal washers to control how much of the pot comes through the top of the guitar. This way, all the plastic caps will sit nicely and flush on the body.

So, according to DiMarzio tech, I can go 500K volume and 250K Tone. I am deciding on middle and neck pickups between Fast Track 1, Injectors, Choppers, Satch Tracks, or any combination.

[boardn10]

You could try:

1) 500k pot but instead of running at 500k, try various resistors across it (1M, 2.2M, 3.3M, 10M) and see which gives you a nice increase in openness without sounding too bright. 

2) If you go 500k full on for the air zone (not a bad idea) use Injector necks in the other two positions.  They work great with 500k pots.  54s might be too shrill.

3) keep the 250k or try some combination of (1) and, as suggested above, pop a Norton in the bridge.  I recently put one in the bridge of a strat in similar circumstance and like it a lot there, whereas I pretty much hated it in other circumstances.  It comes alive in that application.

Hi, I am going with all 250K pots, except the volume at 500K. Is the Injector the only one you suggest? What about Choppers or Satch Tracks?

[RayBarbeeMusic]

I was referring to the Area series, the Injector being the only one that I think works well with 500k.  If you're using a rail type in neck or middle, definitely use 500k.

[boardn10]

I was referring to the Area series, the Injector being the only one that I think works well with 500k.  If you're using a rail type in neck or middle, definitely use 500k.

OK, thanks. The Area series are those that look like real singles? What is the rail series called? The Cruiser series? Interesting how DiMarzio in their explainations will often say how this pickup is an improvement over this other pickup or an enhancement or progression in the series such as Cruiser -> Chopper -> etc.....and Area -> and so on...What are the main characteristic differences? I am a humbucker guy and use singles sparingly and prefer to never, LOL. I don't want this strat to sound like my humbucker guitars but I still much prefer either full humbucker, mini HBs, and I loved the Chopper in the bridge and to be honest, it seemed like a full on HB.

So I am looking at the Injectors, Satch track and maybe the Corgan pickups or the Chopper. I saw a few reviews of the Injectors where guys who were hardcore heavy humbucker users claimed the Injectors were some of the first noiseless singles they could live with and I am tempted to try those with my Air Zone. My Air Zone and 500K volume is eating the Virtual 54 singles for lunch. They are going up for sale soon.

Maybe an Injector in the neck and keep a 54 Pro but raise it much higher in the middle? It would be cool to at least have a more pure single coil clean or solo voice if ever needed. Who knows. Maybe I could learn to love it, LOL.
Another thought was the Satch Track neck and maybe a Cruiser middle? I find the Cruicer sound crazy good for clean and gain anyway. Maybe a Fast Track 1 in the middle and the Satch in the neck?
One thing I must emphasize.....I want my single coil tones to be able to hang with my humbuckers in output and volume. Therefore, they can be big and muscular......keep in mind, I have been using mostly humbucker tones (clean and dirty) for 30 years so I am used to it. I don't want to have to adjust the amp or a pedal to account for a quiet and weak single coil for a song or part of a song. They have to hang with the Air Zone. The 54 Pros are not hanging!

Thanks for the Norton advice. I know the Norton is well loved in the neck of humbucker guitars. I do hear guys loving it in  the bridge of a strat. What to expect over my current Air Zone......which I love with the 500k volume by the way.

DiMarzio tech has told me on several occassions, to not change out the 250k tone pots. They say to leave those be - since I will not notice a big difference with these pickups.

Thanks!

[boardn10]

Hi Ray (your name?),

I am confused about output cause most stock guitars will have the same singles in middle and neck. However, many state the middle pickup should be the weakest? Finally, I know guys who prefer the middle hotter and the neck pickup the weakest.
An example is a guy I know using the Air Zone, with a Chopper middle and Fast Track 1 neck. He says the in between tones are good even though logic would tell you the fast track should be in the middle for this?

So confusing. Like Timmons and others I know just use two cruiser pickups or one chopper or Fast Track thrown in. Ugh, the output confuses me. To me it makes sense that the pickups get weaker the closer to the neck....so something like Air Zone, Chopper and Fast Track or Air Zone, Fast Track, Cruiser.
Keep in mind, only my vol is 500k. Tone pots are stock Fender 250k.

Signing off now as completely confused....

Rich

[RayBarbeeMusic]

Rail types = anything with 2 parallel rails. 

Areas:  61, 67, 58, 54, Injectors, Heavy Blues 2.  Does *NOT* include the HS series, nor the old virtual vintage, although they confuse things with the way they name the 54. 

What I've started doing is using a hotter middle pickup, and in the position where the neck/middle are in parallel usually, I wire a super switch so that the bridge and neck are in parallel as I like that sound better.  This gives me a nice beefy middle pickup that still quacks when in parallel with the bridge, but sounds great by itself for blues tones, the Tele-like bridge+neck combo, and I add a switch or push/pull to get the neck/middle parallel spot if I want, although I really only like that combo with a clean sound. 

[boardn10]

You see, I hate that quak you speak of with singles. I always hated those tones!

[RayBarbeeMusic]

If you hate the quack thing stay away from Areas, Cruisers, etc.