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Topic: Tele volume pot value |
Dave Hepworth
From:
West Yorkshire, UK
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Posted 25 May 2022 3:20 am |
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Hi Folks.I know this is not PSG and please delete if not allowed.
I have a USA telecaster with a 250 k vol.pot and 250k no load to a grease bucket both pots are log. .The volume sweep is a bit lumpy and comes on more suddenly than I want.Any suggestions for a remedy.Thanks in advance. |
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Jamie Howze
From:
Boise, ID
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Posted 25 May 2022 12:16 pm
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| Check, or have a tech look to see if the pot is wired correctly. Log pots are designed to correct for the way our hearing detects volume. The ear is very sensitive to volume changes at low levels, but not so much as volume increases. If the pot is wired backwards the rapid change will be at low volumes and cause a quick volume increase early with less control at higher settings. The opposite of how it should work. |
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Dave Hepworth
From:
West Yorkshire, UK
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Posted 31 May 2022 4:53 am
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| Just fitted a 250K linear pot and the problem is resolved.Looks like a linear pot is the way forward.The volume now is very gradual and not lumpy at all.The original pot was wired correctly BTW. |
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Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
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Posted 31 May 2022 6:11 am
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Electronics is the right section for this discussion.
There's no one correct answer to the linear vs. logarithmic (audio) taper question. There's even a reverse-audio taper. This article does a pretty good job explaining the differences - https://sixstringsupplies.co.uk/pages/audio-or-linear-pots
As shown there, the resistance on an audio taper pot will fall rapidly as it is decreased from full-on. This is often useful for a volume control if you want to be able to get a large sweep in signal level in a small range of the control, or if you want to be able to do rapid volume swells. On the other hand, if you want fine control of volume from the top all the way down, linear is, well, linear (i.e., resistance changes are proportional to control changes). So wired in isolation, x% decrease in the pot value yields x% decrease in the signal level.
But volume and tone controls do not act in isolation. They are part of the full complex impedance (resistive, capacitive, and inductive impedance) of the entire circuit, including pickup, wiring, capacitors, and whatever input impedance that whole circuit is plugged into. And you can throw out all reasoning that relates to high-impedance passive pickups if you're dealing with active pickups like EMGs, which use much lower value pots. You may find this extended discussion relating to Telecasters useful - https://www.tdpri.com/threads/linear-taper-v-audio-taper-pots.309826/ - I particularly agree with Wally on page 2 (I think that's Wally Moyers).
There are also some psychoacoustic effects going on. Audio/log taper has been favored by many because it has been found that the ear tends to perceive volume changes logarithmically. But that doesn't negate the fact that, wired in isolation to a pot, the signal level of a linear taper decreases linearly as the control is decreased. If you want a smooth change in signal level as the control is decreased, linear is probably the way to go.
IMO, when it comes to guitar electronic circuits, there is no absolute rule about what is best. My only rule is, "If it sounds good, it is good." |
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Dave Hepworth
From:
West Yorkshire, UK
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Posted 2 Jun 2022 1:00 am
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| Thanks for the replies guys.Much appreciated. |
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