How to test my pickup wiring?

[sniperfrommars1]

Im having a nightmare wiring up this project guitar. I need something to test my wiring with. Like im wondering if I can use an electronic tester of somekind to make sure my circuits are working. Basically all im getting right now is hum, and when I turn off my volume knob it shuts off and thats it. I have no sound coming from the pickups whatsoever, and im about to lose it as is. The key word here is cheap i dont want to spend that much more money on this project.

[Petie]

Is the circuit properly grounded? Or maybe you just need to flip the wires so red is where white was and white is where red was. Hard to tell. Are there several pickups in the guitar? If so, is it happening with all of them?

I would recommend going to Ibanez's wiring diagram section on their website, finding a design with the same scheme you're after, and just copying it. That's how I rewired my RG7420 with RG7620-style guts (with 4 wire pickups instead of 2 wire).

[frankfalbo]

I remember that as being the most frustrating time. Before I knew all about the electronics and I was just hooking point A to point B because the diagram told me to do so. When you can't get sound its the worst. The best thing to do is take a break and come back when your head is clear because you might see something that you didn't see before. Like a blob of solder touching ground somewhere, or that your pickup grounds are going to the tone pot but you never grounded the tone pot to the volume pot, etc. The hum is good because it means you have "signal" passing through the volume pot. I'd look to your switch, or your wire from the switch to the vol. With a clear pic of the cavity, some of us could probably catch the problem instantly.

[Scott of Actual Time]

Originally Posted by frankfalbo

Like a blob of solder touching ground somewhere, or that your pickup grounds are going to the tone pot but you never grounded the tone pot to the volume pot, etc.

those are good things to look for. in my last installation, the bare ground wire from one of the humbuckers was brushing against one of the hot poles of the switch and grounding things out.

a voltmeter is a great tool for troubleshooting like this -- all you need is a cheap one from Rat Shack, and many of those have a connectivity setting where if the two leads are connected the voltmeter beeps. you can use this to check all sorts of things: if the back of your volume pot is actually connected to the ground lug on the output jack, if the hot lugs on the switch are connected to the hot tab on the volume pot, etc.

like frank says, the fact that you are getting hum means the volume pot is working. i would suspect from that that you have a bum connection between the hot lug of the volume pot and the rest of the 'upstream' part of the system, like the switch.

[sniperfrommars1]

Makes sense. IS their a particular brand that you could recommend for the voltmeter? I went to lowes the other night and it just seemed confusing. I think I worked the ground loose in the thing when i was resetting the studs, but im gonna go tonight and get new pots and a switch just to be on the safe side. Just so you know, the whole thing worked before I decided to clean it up, and I wired it hit and miss without a schematic. lol. Thanks for all the help guys I really appreciate it

[Scott of Actual Time]

Originally Posted by sniperfrommars1

IS their a particular brand that you could recommend for the voltmeter? I went to lowes the other night and it just seemed confusing.

for just testing connectivity, any will do, so you might as well pick the cheapest one. the connectivity beep thing is sort of a feature for idiots, since a pro will use the resistance setting of a voltmeter and look for zero resistance. a cheap voltmeter will measure DC volts and resistance, but the fancy ones you saw were probably also measuring AC volts and current and lots of other stuff you won't need. a setting for DC volts will let you check old 9 volt batteries [if they're below 8.0 v, toss them], and that's the only other non-pro use i can think would be common.

so the cheapest one you can find at Radio Shack, with a beep connectivity setting if you want the easy way out [i love that setting! ], will be just fine and set you back only ~$20.

Originally Posted by sniperfrommars1

studs, but im gonna go tonight and get new pots and a switch just to be on the safe side. Just so you know, the whole thing worked before I decided to clean it up, and I wired it hit and miss without a schematic. lol.

you can stock up if you want, but i'd do it from a place that will let you return the parts later. if you troubleshoot your wiring thoroughly, i bet you can find the problem. unless you took a hammer to things, i don't think you could have broken any of the existing parts.