Need some EMG help

[JACKSONFREAK]

OK here's the situation. I'm installing EMG 81 sa sa Into a newer Kramer Striker.
everything went in the guitar OK. I followed the wiring schematics to the letter. However i did have to combine schematics for the new solderless connections and the old hard wired connections due to still using the original 5 way blade switch. I drew a diagram of the existing switch and where the wires were attached. All made sense. I had to switch the jack out for the switchcraft flush mount jack. ( yes its stereo ) The problem im having is no matter what positin the switch is in all 3 pups are on and the vol and tone have no effect. I've tried all 9 possable connections on the jack with no luck It either works the way stated above or not at all. I've had this customers guitar for a week now and have put way too many hours into this thing. I need to get it done and gone. I normally dont have this problem woring up EMGS but im baffled.
Also i will be wiring a kill switch inline. It isnt hooked up yet cus i wanted to make sure i had the wiring roght first. Where would be the best place to wire in the kill switch considering theres three wires. Would it bebetween the volume out and the 5 way? or the 5 way to the out out on the jack?
Any help is hugely appreciated.
Gil

[Sunbane]

Does the signal chain look like this? : pups -> switch -> pots -> jack

Reason I'm asking is because your last paragraph confuses me. Normally I'd place a kill switch between the volume out and the jack. The 5-way wouldn't have anything to do with it, since only thing it does is select pickups, and you'd want the kill switch to mute the entire guitar.

[JACKSONFREAK]

AH ok yeah thats what i was thinking. But with all the re-dos ive done to this poor Kramer my mind started to wander and started thinking other ways to wire stuff up. Wiring it inline to the jack out makes the most sense. Any ideas on the EMG issue tho? The electrnics have no effect on volume or tone or pickup selection. All pups on all the time.
Gil

[Sunbane]

Weird. Like something's overriding the pup selector switch and pots?

[Newc]

Sounds like you've got one of those 8-prong import blade switches, and might have the pickups wired to the Commons and the pots wired to the pickup tabs.

Disconnect all the pickups and plug the guitar in.
Put a jumper on the 81 and put the switch in Bridge position.
Touch each tab until you get output.
Flip the switch and see if the 81 is on more than the Bridge and Bridge+Middle positions.
If it is, the pots are wired to the wrong spot of the switch.

[JACKSONFREAK]

It did have the stock 8 prong switch originally. I swapped it out for a fender 5way and wired it correctly according to the EMG diagrams. I don't get it.
Gil

[Echo]

When you wire the killswitch you what to use a normally open switch. Hook up the signal(output of tone pot) to one side of the switch and the other side of the switch you hook to the casing of the tone pot with the other ground wires. This way you wont get any popping sound because the signal isn't being broken at anytime.

[Rich#6]

I don't know if this is any different than what you have but this is how a soloist I have is wired.
It has the 4 on a side 5 way blade switch. the white wires from the pickups are soldered to the back of the pickup and then are solder to the first 3 connection of the blade switch, the 4th connection is wired to the first connection on the other side that is also wired to the first tab on the volume pot. no other wires are on the switch. The first tab of the volume pot also has the capacitor going to the middle tab on the tone pot. the volume and tone pots are connected by a ground. the white wire from the input jack is connected to the midel tab on the volume pot and the black to the battery and the red wires from the pickups.
I don't know if that is anything different that what you have or not. I will PM you my number incase something didn't make sense and you think I can help.

[Luafcm]

This isn't a solution to your specific problem, but it might help...

When I run into problems like this, I completely gut the electronics. Then, I test each individual piece to make sure it works and redraw the wiring diagram. It sounds like a pain, but what else are you going to do?

Take a piece of cardboard and trace your guitars control layout onto it. Mount the electronics on the cardboard, flip it over and start wiring. It's just so much easier to do when the guitar isn't in the way. Connect your pickups loose on the bench and test that they work with a tuning fork (in place of your strings).

Once you've got it working, mark the solder points and unhook the pickups. Now, because you used a cardboard template, your electronics will easily drop back into your guitar in one piece. Then just reattach the pickups to where you know they are supposed to go.

It's just really hard to trouble shoot when everything is hooked up and inside the guitar. Solving the problem will be easier once you are confident with the operation of all the components, especially the switch.


BTW, This is a KV2 with an EMG81 in the bridge and an EMG85 in the neck. This is two volumes and one master tone.

The pink wire coming off the tone pot is connected to the TIP of the output jack (the white wire in the EMG drawing). The Brown wire coming off the tone pot is connected to the SLEEVE of the output jack.

[Luafcm]

When you wire the killswitch you what to use a normally open switch. Hook up the signal(output of tone pot) to one side of the switch and the other side of the switch you hook to the casing of the tone pot with the other ground wires. This way you wont get any popping sound because the signal isn't being broken at anytime.

So instead of breaking the signal, you short it to ground?

[Sunbane]

Take a piece of cardboard and trace your guitars control layout onto it. Mount the electronics on the cardboard, flip it over and start wiring. It's just so much easier to do when the guitar isn't in the way.

That's sheer genious. :idea:
Thanks for sharing!

[Luafcm]

That's sheer genious. :idea:
Thanks for sharing!

Not my idea, but thanks!

[fordsho90]

That's sheer genious. :idea:
Thanks for sharing!

+1....Never thought of using a cardboard cut out I always hook up my junk outside first cause like you said it is so much easier to fig. out a problem before everything is hard wired into the guitar.....Good luck Jacksonfreak hope you resolve the problem soon! Make sure you post up results so the rest of us know what not to do

[JACKSONFREAK]

Rich yeah that made sense. The only difference i noticed is the outs are jumped from the 4th tab to the 4th tab on the other side of the switch. Im using and offset tabbed fender style Grigsby 5 way switch.
I have the three pups each going to the proper tabs on the switch pups are grounded to the back of the vol pot. Tone is wired to the vol and not the switch. could the jumper from the 4th tab to the 8th tab be my problem? I did manage to get the vol and tone working now. But the switch still has no effect. All pups on all the time. I did call EMG the other day to get some help but he sent me a diagram that didnt help all that much.

Thanks for the help guys. The only consistent thing ive had hooked up is the jumper on the switch. I'll try disconnecting it tomorrow and see what happens. Maybe since the tone isnt wired to the switch i dont need that jumper and its making the switch kind of short out. Also do i need to ground the switch?
As for the Kill switch. I got it wired in and it works great. I did connect it like suggested above. Hot wire between pot and jack to one lug then a ground to the back of the v pot and it works.
Thanks again guys ill try the new ideas and let ya know.
Gil

[JACKSONFREAK]

Luafcm I tried that cardvoard thing once a while back and yeah it worked great except i had the pots in the wrong places when i tried to put it into the guitar. LOL i love being dyslexic sometimes; it amuses me.
Gil