Probucker wiring question

[BeerGolfGuitars]

I posted this a couple days ago in a the pickup sub forum and am hoping I have a little more luck here. Sorry in advance if you read this twice, but here goes...

I have a quick wiring question I’m hoping you all could weigh in on. I have a set of Probuckers from an Epi LP Custom Pro with quick connects that I’d like to swap into my Epi Standard Gold Top, also with connectors.

Understanding that I’d be losing the coil splitting function since the Standard doesn’t have push/pull pots, are there any other things I need to consider? Or is it as simple as plug and play?

I’m hoping to learn if swapping just the pickups with the existing connector harnesses will work, or if further modifications are necessary to get the Probuckers going in the Epi Standard.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Jymbopalyse]

Are the molex connectors the same in both guitars?




I've never seen the inside of a Standard plaintop.
I'm betting they are not the same given the difference in the pickup wiring.

If they are however, throw them in.
You won't even have to install them to test them.
Just plug them in and see what happens.
Then decide if they are worth installing.

If you can get the wiring harness from the Custom as well, you can install it with no soldering.
It all just clips and unclips.

And unscrews.

 

[DrBGood]

It all just clips and unclips.

And unscrews.

And loosen strings and rescrew and retune.

 

[BeerGolfGuitars]

Thanks, guys. I do my own setups and am generally decent with DIY stuff. I haven’t tackled any electrical projects on the guitar yet, so I’m hoping for a smooth process.

 

[Jymbopalyse]

I'm curious.
Are the molex connectors in both guitars the same ??

I'd love to see inside the cavity of the plain top if you are able to take pic's.

This is the molex from my Custom Pro with Probuckers.

Does the Gold Top have a 5 pin connector for the 2 wire Alnico Classic pickups

 

[BeerGolfGuitars]

I’ll open them both up and post some pics this evening - I honestly can’t remember. Fingers crossed...

 

[Roxy13]

If the connectors are the same I doubt it will be an issue. If they aren't, just swap the harnesses as well.

 

[Jymbopalyse]

I think he just has the pickups. Not the guitar or the harness that came with it.

 

[DrBGood]

I think he just has the pickups. Not the guitar or the harness that came with it.

People ought to read better ...

I have a set of Probuckers from an Epi LP Custom Pro with quick connects that I’d like to swap into my Epi Standard Gold Top, also with connectors.

 

[BeerGolfGuitars]

Thanks again, everyone. We had some storms and lost power for a bit so I didn’t get around to working on this last night.

Since I wasn’t very clear in my initial post, I do have both guitars in hand. I just prefer the sound of the Probuckers but the look and feel of the LP Standard. I’ll follow up with pics comparing the harnesses of the two guitars tonight.

Maybe the easiest thing to do is to swap out the full electronics of the two guitars?

 

[Jymbopalyse]

Maybe the easiest thing to do is to swap out the full electronics of the two guitars?

This totally.

Just swap them.

 

[Jymbopalyse]

People ought to read better ...

I will endeavor to to be gooder at my reading

I'm sorry you has a disappoint.

 

[DrBGood]

It's all gooding, just pay for attention with good glasses.

 

[BeerGolfGuitars]

Every photo I try to take and post is too large for the server to process. Regardless, the wiring harnesses are quite different, I guess due to the coil splitting on the custom pro. I guess I’ll just swap all the electrics. Doesn’t look like any soldering is even necessary.

 

[BeerGolfGuitars]

Alright, I went the “easy route” and swapped out the pickups and pots between the Epi Custom Pro and the Epi Standard. As a long time trumpet player, but new to guitar, I had never worked on an instrument like this.

The swap went pretty smoothly, as I was pretty meticulous to keep all the washers, screws, etc organized so I could get the two guitars back together without too much trouble. I did run into two minor issues: 1) had to pick up a soldering iron so I could disconnect and reconnect the ground wire; 2) the bridge tone pot shaft from the Epi Custom Pro is wider than the rest of the pots, so didn’t fit in the hole in the body on the Epi Standard. I debated How to attack this and avoid chipping the finish with a drill bit or another type of power tool. I ended up wrapping some sand paper around the end of a pen and slowly sanding the hole wider. It went slowly but worked and the finish didn’t take any damage.

Everything seems to be working well now and I’m happy to have the Custom Pro sound and functionality in the Standard Gold Top guitar. Thanks to you all for your thoughts a comments!

 

[DrBGood]

Great !


Now ... you can't walk away like that, without us seeing the guitars, it could be all make believe as far as we know.
https://resizeimage.net/

 

[BeerGolfGuitars]

Hahaha let’s see if I can figure this out.

Here are a several pics of the project. The black finish is the Epi Custom Pro cavity and the brown is the Standard.

Custom Pro cavity

Standard cavity

Disassembling to get the Probuckers and pots

Uh oh, bridge tone pot won’t fit

This will do the trick

Now she’s all back together with the Probuckers

Sexy

Pic of the push/pulls activated

Custom Pro now with Alnico Classics

Close up

Gratuitous pic of my dirty old trumpet!

Thanks again to everyone for your help and interest!

 

[DrBGood]

That's better ... way better. hose are nice.

But we're not done yet .. at least for me Do both feel the same, similar wieghts, necks, playability ? And why did you switch pickups ?

EDIT: ... I rarely look at trumpets, last time must have been when a parade rolled through when I was 12 ... What's the leather for on the trumpet. Looks sexy.

 

[BeerGolfGuitars]

Hey,

The leather around the valves is just a grip for your left hand. In cold weather the metal can be pretty...cold. Heh. But mainly indoors, your hand can’t get sweaty, so it helps with grip and also keeping the instrument clean.

The weight of the Standard goldtop is 9 lbs 5 oz and the Custom Pro is now 8 lbs 10 oz. I’m actually surprised the Goldtop weighs more since it doesn’t have the triple binding and isn’t the upper range of the Epiphone LP line that the Custom Pro is. I guess it just comes down to the density of each batch of mahogany, and a little bit due to the heavier pots and wiring being swapped.

The necks are both the D slim taper, but do feel slightly different. Both are gloss finishes, but I swear I can tell a difference in that the gloss black neck on the Custom Pro is just a tad more sticky. I also like having slightly smaller inlays that the Standard uses - if not in feel, that I like seeing more is the fretboard material when I play.

I decided to switch the pickups and pots because I prefer the looks and feel of the Standard but prefer the sound of the Probuckers that were in the Custom Pro. I just find the Probuckers to be a little brighter and more articulate when strumming chords. Playing lead lines or individual notes, I can dial them both in to pretty much the same tone. But the alnico classics didn’t sound quite as clear in all situations.

Now to sell the Custom Pro, which is now essentially a Standard in a unique finish and style.

 

[DrBGood]

I’m actually surprised the Goldtop weighs more since it doesn’t have the triple binding and isn’t the upper range of the Epiphone LP line that the Custom Pro is. I guess it just comes down to the density of each batch of mahogany, and a little bit due to the heavier pots and wiring being swapped.

I don't think weight has anything to do with hierarchy ... or binding.

A goldtop is always ... nicer.