Soldering Braided cable ?

[Riffmeister]

So I'm ripping out the EMG's and rewiring the whole guitar. I got a wiring kit and it has some braided cable . I'm going to use it for the longer runs from the pots to the Jack and I wanted to know if I strip away the mesh braiding on the outside and then strip the solid core and jsut solder that, or do I solder the mesh braiding and everything?

I hate asking stupid question like these , but it seems to me if I solder the outer mesh stuff that the inner solid core isn't going to be making contact , or is that supposed to happen?

Any help is appreciated as always!

[etepbbb]

The inner wire is a signal, the outer braid is the ground/shield. Just strip back the insulation, pull the braided part off the inside conductor and solder it to whatever ground terminal or the top of a pot. Then use the other wire for the signal from the jack to the volume pot or where ever its going, usually the volume pot, but I don' t know how your wiring it.

With EMGs I usually cut the braid kind of short and leave some length to the signal wire. Then solder the whole thing right to the top of the volume pot., and then route the signal where it needs to go. It cleaner and avoids problems with shorting the signal wire.

[atvdave]

http://www.guitarelectronics.com/cat...ringresources/


Here's a good place for wiring diagrams.. It covers most (but not all) pup wiring.

[Riffmeister]

I got the connections covered, what goes where etc.

Just to make sure I have this right, if I am using the braided cable to go from the Volume pot to the output jack ( for both the hot and ground connections) I jsut need to make sure the inner core is connected right?

It's not like a single conductor pup where I have to solder the outer mesh for the ground, right?


I'm only using this braided stuff cause it was included in the wiring kit they sent me.

[rstites]

You always need a ground, so you need to connect the braid to ground on both ends. You have to have a return path to complete the circuit. Otherwise, you'll get no noise from you pickups.

[Riffmeister]

Ok, I am slightly confused here, my other guitar has this vintage cloth covered stuff that is going to the output jack, white for the hot and black for the ground, but it is just the inner core soldered to the jack and pot, the outter stuff is cloth, so how is that different than just using the inner core of the braided stuff?


Also, I am in need of help with my 3 way blade switch...

http://www.seymourduncan.com/support...atic=3ws_trans

My swith is different than the one in this diagram, it has everything on one side, and when I took out the Emgs, the switch has the wire soldered to TWO tabs for each pickup, not one like in the diagram, and it had the output going to two middle tabs so as you see, it is nothing like this diagram

[rstites]

Ok, I am slightly confused here, my other guitar has this vintage cloth covered stuff that is going to the output jack, white for the hot and black for the ground, but it is just the inner core soldered to the jack and pot, the outter stuff is cloth, so how is that different than just using the inner core of the braided stuff?

I'm confused here too, so we're in the same boat! That vintage cloth covered wire has two separate wires internally if I understand you correctly: one hot, one ground. All the braided wire I've ever seen has a single internal wire. It's the hot and the braid/shield is a the ground, just like an instrument cable. If you have braided cable that has a separate internal wire for ground, then you don't need to wire the braid. In fact, you wouldn't want to connect it on both ends in that case.

Also, I am in need of help with my 3 way blade switch...

http://www.seymourduncan.com/support...atic=3ws_trans

My swith is different than the one in this diagram, it has everything on one side, and when I took out the Emgs, the switch has the wire soldered to TWO tabs for each pickup, not one like in the diagram, and it had the output going to two middle tabs so as you see, it is nothing like this diagram

I always have to stare at switches for a while to figure them out as I don't do guitar teching for anyone except myself, and I usually end up poking around with an ohm-meter before I finally figure them out. If you're just replacing pickups and leaving the switch, I'd just wire it up exactly like it currently is wired.

[Riffmeister]

Sorry to confuse you man, I'm already confused enough for the both of us

I just double checked to make sure I was right, but the cloth covered wire has only ONE wire in it.

So basically, what are the lugs on a 3 Way switch. I don't know if the wiring to the switch should stay the same for the passives that are replacing the EMGS. I don't have them yet so I cant jsut start experimenting , which I would rather not do anyway.

The original wiring has the end lugs empty, the next two soldered together and the neck pup wire soldered to them, then the middle two were soldered together and the hot output to the jack soldered, then the next two and the bridge pup wire and finally another empty lug.

Another thing that is screwing with me is that the hot output wire had two wires at the switch end, one going to the case of the switch, I guess for ground, but the other end only had the one wire from the middle swithc lugs to the output jack.

The diagram above doesn't have ANY ground wire , so is that some thing that was jsut for the EMG's I'm hoping

[Chad]

Like rstites, I usually just sit down with a switch and look at it for a few minutes to see what exactly happens as you move throughout the positions. Then I write down what I want to do, then go wire it up.

Do you have a pic of the switch?

[Riffmeister]

Chad,

I don't have a pic at the minute, but it is a 3 way switch and all the lugs are on the same side, unlike the ones in the SD wiring diagram.

[Sunbane]

I got a wiring kit and it has some braided cable .

I just double checked to make sure I was right, but the cloth covered wire has only ONE wire in it.

Right... so do you have cloth covered wires, or braided ones (metal braid shielding)?

[Riffmeister]

Sunbane,

The one guitar has the cloth covered stuff you posted, and the new wire I have for the pups I'm putting in now , has the braiding around a pice of solid core.

I was just thinking that I don't even need to use the outter mesh stuff. Is that right?

Thanks for the help.

[Sunbane]

I was just thinking that I don't even need to use the outter mesh stuff. Is that right?

You are correct, but using the outer mesh has double benefits; a) you only need to use one wire for hot + ground, and b) the ground lead (the mesh) shields the signal wire when it's connected to ground.

[Axewielder]

I've not seen braided wire used as connection wire between switches and pots where one conductor is required, but it can't really hurt. Normally braided wire is used for pickup wires and input jack wires, where multiple conductors and/or separate grounds are needed. If it were me I'd just run single conductor insulated wire (much easier).

[straycat]

If you are using a braided wire going to the input jack just solder the braided part to the ground lug and run the inner wire to the hot lug, clean and neat looking.