USA Legacy From PTB to 2 tone knobs

[brianr0131]

On my USA Legacy....

I am wondering about changing to a tone knob for N/M and a tone knob for Bridge only. I find I have to "tame" my bridge pup quite a bit and I would like to have more of a "set it and forget it" thing going on.

I really enjoy the PTB and the variations I can get from it. Specifically the full bass I get from having the bottom knob on "10". Since the system is passive having both knobs on 10 is essentially the same as having vol and tone on "10" on a regular setup. Right?

The main thing I don't want to lose is the fullness of the bottom end I get from the PTB. I find myself lowering the top knob to about 7 or so for most pickup settings.

Any advice would be appreciated. I just don't want to have to roll knobs all the time when I switch pickups.

[Boogie Bill]

On my USA Legacy....

I am wondering about changing to a tone knob for N/M and a tone knob for Bridge only. I find I have to "tame" my bridge pup quite a bit and I would like to have more of a "set it and forget it" thing going on.

I really enjoy the PTB and the variations I can get from it. Specifically the full bass I get from having the bottom knob on "10". Since the system is passive having both knobs on 10 is essentially the same as having vol and tone on "10" on a regular setup. Right?

The main thing I don't want to lose is the fullness of the bottom end I get from the PTB. I find myself lowering the top knob to about 7 or so for most pickup settings.

Any advice would be appreciated. I just don't want to have to roll knobs all the time when I switch pickups.

I play classic rock and blues through Mesa amplifiers. I like Clapton's tone, and Robert Cray's. I had a vintage 1960 Strat that I used for over 20 years; sold it after my divorce in 1990 and eventually found G&L. I have never really regretted selling that guitar--the G&Ls are better guitars in every respect. The PTB controls are a major improvement over vintage Strat controls as they give you GLOBAL control over your tone in all switch positions. Here's how I set my guitars and amps.

My pickups are staggered from bridge (highest) to neck (lowest). I adjust the middle pickup to get good "quack" from Position #2 (bridge + middle). I go for good, broad, natural rhythm tone, FIRST.

Here's how I recomend using the PTB controls:

Set your guitar's volume at about 7-8. Set the PTB Treble full up. Set the PTB Bass on 5. These are the NORMALS.

Now set the amp for best tone in all positions with the guitar's T and B normalled. Do this by setting the bridge pickup tone with the maximum amount of TREBLE on the amp that you'll need for that pickup with the PTB controls NORMALLED. This will give good quack in Position #2, and with the bridge pickup, you'll get that bite that Strats are famous for.

For solos, roll up the volume.

To mellow the tone, you can quickly roll off the PTB Treble--great for "woman tone" with the neck pickup.

If you need to, use the PTB Bass control to "punch up" your solos. Roll it back when you need more edge and twang--you can almost get into Tele territory here, though a Tele pickup will always sound different due to the difference in construction.

HOT TIP: The PTB controls can be very effective in dialing in cool harmonics when your guitar is on the edge of feedback--a very neat trick, indeed. BTW, the PTB controls work even better on the guitars with the hotter pickups--Legacy Special, Comanche and S-500.

I find that NORMALLING my PTB controls at T-10 and B-5 gives me the most tonal variation at my fingertips. It's quick and easy to go from twangy country tones to jazzy tones with a minimum of motion. That's how I've used my PTB controls since I got my first S-500 in 1992. I now have 9 Legacys, and 16 G&Ls total--so it's a system I believe in.

Once you find you amp's sweet spot you'll be amazed at how much versatility that PTB has. It really does though, require a little thinking outside the box, so you may not be able to use the amp settings that you would use for a standard Strat. These really aren't "set and forget" tone controls like on most guitars. They are designed to be used and they are tremendously valuable in shaping your tone.

Another thing to remember is that while playing solo, we like to have deep and full bass tones on the guitar. It's great when you have a wonderful clean tone with that fullness of tone, like a rosewood Martin D-28 dreadnaught. But, if you are playing in a band, that tone might not serve you very well. You'll often find that the sound of the band gets muddy if the guitarist(s) use too much bass. It infringes on the the tonal spectrum of the Bass. Keyboardists have to watch that their left hand doesn't get too crazy, for the same reason. You don't say what kind of amp you are using, but in my experience a guitarist using a Fender Twin at home might want the bass on 6, but on the gig, he'll probably cut it back to 2-3--to get his tone to cut through. Many amps, like Mesa and Marshalls, deliberately cut the bass on their amp, and they're voiced with these reasons in mind. Put too much bass on a Marshall or Mesa and their bass notes can get flabby and mushy. Part of all of this is the the way you hear the tonal spectrum at volume. (Check out "Fletcher-Munson curves" to get a better idea of these concepts.)

My advice, spend a little more time with your amp and guitar before you make any changes. Personally, I'd advise against the change--seems like most of the guys who do change their PTB wind up going back to it. If you do the mod, keep the old pots and caps and inclued them should you ever sell the guitar. Myself, I looked at an Eric Johnson Strat a few years back when they first came out, and found its control wiring very constricting and limited.

And, you might want to consider a bridge pickup change, to a pickup with slightly more power and a darker tone than the stock alnico. The Duncan Texas Hot Antiquity Custom Bridge pickup comes to mind, though the polarity may be different than the G&Ls--check with Duncan.

I hope this helps. Good luck!

Bill

[brianr0131]

Wow Bill. Thanks for the informative post. I should have mentioned that I changed all 3 pups to DiMarzio Areas 58N/67M/Virtual Solo Bridge. The VS is probably has the least inherent high end of all Areas.

My issue is with the tonal variance between pickup settings on the guitar without an independent treble roll off for the bridge pup. This occurs on all of my amps. Orange Rocker 30, VHT Pittbull 45, and Silvertone 1471.

I will try your suggestion to see if I can find a middle ground. My initial thought is that if I can find a suitable bridge tone, my Neck and Middle pups will sound less bright and shimmery than I like them to sound. While I haven't tried your method exactly, I'm no stranger to amp settings and tweaks. Although, I still think amp knobs shouldn't have l;abels so we just set them how we like them instead of how we think they should be set.

I know some people here have done the change. I was hoping someone would chime in about the bottom end.