Measuring pots

[Emiel]

Sorry for asking this question, I did a search but couldn't really find the exact answer.

What method do I have to use to measure the values of the pots in my '93 Les Paul Standard? It still has the original ones...

[alligatorbling]

get rid of the original ones, buying 4 500k audio tapers will cost you less than the tool you need to measure the ones you have lol

a volt ohm meter

get one with alligator clips
connect one clip to two prongs the other to one prong, by two prongs i mean (outside and middle) youll figure it out

get the cts pots

[Emiel]

I have a volt ohm meter at home. You're saying that I should connect one clip to one outside prong of the pot, the other clip to the other two?

My guitar is bright enough, I wouldn't like to switch the volume pots to 500k... though the neck pickup can be a little bit brighter. That's why I want to measure the pots, to see if the one on the neck pickup has a higher value than the bridge volume pot, because I have the feeling this is the case (the neck pickup is quite a bit darker). The pots work fine, have a good taper so I'm not really thinking of replacing them. Why change a winning horse eh?

Thanks!

[axepilot]

Originally Posted by Emiel

The pots work fine, have a good taper so I'm not really thinking of replacing them. Why change a winning horse eh?

Thanks!

Then why bother measuring them?

[MrRhoads]

Originally Posted by Emiel

I have a volt ohm meter at home. You're saying that I should connect one clip to one outside prong of the pot, the other clip to the other two?

My guitar is bright enough, I wouldn't like to switch the volume pots to 500k... though the neck pickup can be a little bit brighter. That's why I want to measure the pots, to see if the one on the neck pickup has a higher value than the bridge volume pot, because I have the feeling this is the case (the neck pickup is quite a bit darker). The pots work fine, have a good taper so I'm not really thinking of replacing them. Why change a winning horse eh?

Thanks!

Switching to a higher value pot doesn´t necessarily means brighter as in harsh or painfull.
My Gibson stock caps were 220k and 310k for the volume pots and let´s just say that the brigde were a little ice picky sometimes and blurry.
So i bought a RS Guitarworks Vintage kit which has 2 500K RS Long Shaft SuperPots and 500K CTS Long Shaft Audio taper pots.
The sound got alot brighter but not harsh or anything like that it was 100% clarity in the sound, no more blur/mudd.
It was PIO caps as well which were real smooth.

The orange drop caps that Gibson puts in the guitars make them ice picky bright IMO.

[Emiel]

Let me explain .

I'm very happy with my guitar right now. The bridge pickup is the best I've heard, it's just right with the stock pots. The neck pickup though is thicker sounding, and also a bit darker. Most of the time I run my bridge tone knob at around 7-10, while the one of the neck stays at 10, where it's just a bit too dark compared to the bridge pickup. I would like to even them a bit more, thus giving the neck position a bit more sparkle/brightness.

I heard though that Gibson tends to put pots in these guitars with quite a big difference in value, so that one can be like 250k and the other more like 480k ohm (just an example). Now I wondering whether maybe the neck volume pot has a lower value than the bridge volume pot. If that's so, I can swap them and my 'problem' might be solved...

[jake.unruh]

If you have a meter, then do as alligatorbling suggested. you put one lead on an outside, and the other lead on the middle and the other outside. either way you're going to get one reading of next to nothing, then when you roll the pot the other direction, you're going to get your pots measurement. This is how you get your measurements if you are just curious.

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The rest of this is suggestion, take it for what it's worth.

You obviously already have some nice PIO caps in there. You can test the pots and see if the measurements are to your liking. If so, I would at least do a little "housecleaning" with your soldering and dress.

Another tip: You can bend the tabs and remove the back housing on your pots to make it WAY easier to clean off old solder, and resolder connections a lot cleaner. Also, the heat from soldering can ruin a pot, so this eliminates that chance. While open, you can also douse them with some electrical cleaner as general maintenance.