The Electra Forums

if you had a blank slate for HSH set-up configs, what would you pick?

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I like the three push/pull setup a lot, not too cluttered, versatile and fairly intuitively laid out. The PRS 513 has a similar pickup configuration, and they went with two blade selectors, one three way and one five way. I've never played one, so I'm not sure which switch does what. The name implies that there are 13 different sounds, so not quite as versatile as the Tom Presley setup.

I wish there were individual volume controls, especially for the humbuckers, there are a lot of nuances that can be had by blending the pickups, which can't be done with a single master volume knob. You can also set the neck pickup lower so when going between pickups there is a bigger volume difference at the flick of the switch. Two volumes and a Master tone makes more sense to me, but more guitars seem to have one volume and two tones, you have to wonder if the Fender Strat influence is in effect there.

Overall, the Electra control layout would be pretty tough to beat for simplicity.

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good point. I remember you guys talking at efest about the master/individual volume knob stuff...

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My Electra Pages
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what about mini-toggle to determine which coil is active when tapped?

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My Electra Pages
I have too many projects!

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My Electra Pages
I have too many projects!

got my pups and mini toggles. just need to get the push/pulls and figure out how/if I want to do the pickguard....

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My Electra Pages
I have too many projects!

What kind of guitar is this going in McB? Is it the x130? you picked up with an amp last year?

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"This is the way that pop ends, Not with a BANG but with a box set whose fourth disc you never get around to playing” - Simon Reynolds

"My guitar wants to kill your Mama" - Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention

No, the x130b is staying as is (perfect working order), and hopefully being sold. (Keeping the Amp) it's all stock and in perfect working order...

large hole in the front of the body and some other smaller ones. bridge had been changed out, with mods to the original trem route. neck is shimmed with an extra neck plate because of the switch to a 2 post trem that is long gone... but it has the tuning machines!

I sold my sons mini-v a while back, and he's now getting into "guitar rock", and listening to Foghat, Deep Purple, AC/DC. it's a welcome change from the Rap he usually listens too, though it's not totally out of his system....

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My Electra Pages
I have too many projects!

Great thread!
I really learned a lot from reading your posts guys! thank you!

ok. I'm back at this kinda... This is for a beat/modded hunk of a XV3GR ('83)

I removed the neck plate neck shim, and put it back to normal
added 5+1 Wilkinson Trem
2 new hex pole HB's
1 used Electra single coil

stock it only had 3 knobs, plus the pickup selector...

the hole for the first knob was way enlarged, and another hole had been added... so, I think I'm just going to totally trim out the face of the guitar to match the control cavity and just use a pickguard... this will allow me to put a littel closer spacing in, but allow for the wiring above I hope...

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My Electra Pages
I have too many projects!

I, too, think that TPs' arrangement takes an awful lot of beating, and that the push/pull pots lend themselves to a very tidy, simple control layout. My main gripe is that you cannot get the middle pup on its own.... I know, I know... "Who uses the middle on its own?" Well, I do from time to time and it rips my undies to have to drag out my strat!

Also, some of the sound variations are pretty bloody finely nuanced, and some of the out of phase sounds are almost unusable.... IMHO!!

On the whole though, I like the Westone/Electra H/S/H very much indeed; it was well ahead of its time and it is still a great layout today!!

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"... and on the eighth day, God created New Zealanders.

Because even the Australians need heroes."

I've got a 93' Gibson Nighthawk (H//S/H) and I really like the lay-out of the electronics.
Single Volume, Single Tone (with push pull) and a 5 way switch. It allows for Les Paul tones, Strat tones and even Tele tones.
You can use the neck and bridge single coils together (which you can't do with a Strat. When I first got it I wished it had individual volume controls, but the more I've played it I realized that I don't miss them. Very versatile guitar, does the out of phase Start sound better than most Strats. And the middle (single) + bridge (humbucker) sound is killer. Don't understand why there wasn't more love for these guitars when they came out.

Ed