AS 80 Pot replacement

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Author Message   Ratfinks3 Username: Ratfinks3 Registered: 11-2004 Posted on Friday, July 07, 2006 - 6:00 pm:    I have a 2001 AS 80 and the tone pots are already shot. I just got this guitar NOS and both tone pots are already gone, faded within a week. I do live on the salt water river so I'm sure that is a factor. Can anyone one recommend a good pot and cap combo to replace them with. I believe they are 500K pots but not sure on the caps. (no numbers) Guitar Jones and Torres Electronics seem to have most anything but, some people recommend the push pull pre-wired set ups. Anyone with that experience as well? I need numbers (500K 250 caps ??? etc)to order by. You guys that are consistant are greatly appreciated. Thanks Mike   Gemberbier Username: Gemberbier Registered: 05-2006 Posted on Friday, July 07, 2006 - 6:26 pm:    500 KOhm is normal for 2 humbuckers (LP, ES-335). 250 KOhm is normal for single coils (tele, strat) There are also booster diagrams with 1000 KOhm pots. But here is the wiring diagram of a LES PAUL. It should work on the AS models too: http://www.1728.com/guitar.htm   Gemberbier Username: Gemberbier Registered: 05-2006 Posted on Saturday, July 08, 2006 - 5:52 am:    I saw your ad in the Classifieds Did you replace the pots and capacitors already? If you still have to buy them get at least Japanese pots, or American CTS. Get rid of the Korean pots. They probably corrode fast in the salty air. If the Japanese develop the same problem you could try CTS like in the old Gibsons. They are more expensive but give a very nice mellow sound. They're not exactly 500 K. Once I pulled out the shaft of a CTS pot on one of my The Pauls and couldn't get it back in. First I replaced it with a Japanese pot, but then I decided to give the old one a surgery in order to get my old sound back. The Japanese sounded different. I think they come closer to your former sound on the AS80, but I don't know how they behave in the moist salty air. I know that in the old CTS there are these white nylon parts (where you click the shaft in), that might give a better corrosion protection. It's the metal corrosion that causes the problems. Did you notice the different values for the bridge tone (.02 mfd) and neck tone (.047 mfd) capacitors? But before you start replacing pots you should measure the resistance in each piece of wire. Put your multimeter on the smallest resistance. Each piece of wire should give ZERO resistance. If not it's corroded. Perhaps under these circumstances one should use fully plastic coated shielded wires. Greetz, Ginger Ale   Ratfinks3 Username: Ratfinks3 Registered: 11-2004 Posted on Wednesday, July 12, 2006 - 12:24 am:    The caps were the same in this AS 80, .47. The pots also worked from about 8 to 10 on the knob numbering scale even before the problem began. I never could see why there was such a fuss over how great these guitars sound as mine was just like an artcore or cheep guitar with humbuckers. It does play great with super action and neck curve, and the wood and craftmanship is far above the artcore, and even the newer 335's. I bought these guitars NOS and they had been sitting since 2000 to 2001 in the back of a warehouse still wrapped in plastic in the box. Perhaps they were factory blems electronicwise and that is why there never were sold. None the less, I can get exact Gibson pots from Antique Radio Supply with the old style Orange Caps. There are so many 500K pots to choose from. How does that combo sound? Thanks you have been a great help. Mike   Gemberbier Username: Gemberbier Registered: 05-2006 Posted on Wednesday, July 12, 2006 - 3:52 pm:    Mike, The values I gave you were Gibson LES PAUL specs but not from an official Gibson website. In another not official wiring diagram on the ES-335 I find TWO .02 mfd capacitors. http://www.guitar-parts.com/images/gibson1.jpg Under left corner. In this Ibanez wiring diagram and parts list you find other capacitors The wiring diagram: http://www.ibanez.com/wiring/wire.asp?y=2001&w=AS80 the parts list http://www.ibanez.com/parts/2001_PARTS/EL-GUITAR/SPEC-SHEET/AS80.htm and the detailed description of the original 0.022 microfarad capacitors: http://www.ibanez.com/parts/2001_PARTS/EL-GUITAR/PARTS-PICT/3CP1J223.HTM#3CP1J22 3 What we see is TWO EXACTLY THE SAME CAPACITORS WITH ANOTHER VALUE THAN THE GIBSON SPECS. Than the original volume pot: http://www.ibanez.com/parts/2001_PARTS/EL-GUITAR/PARTS-PICT/3VR1C500B.HTM#3VR1C5 00B and the original tone pot: http://www.ibanez.com/parts/2001_PARTS/EL-GUITAR/PARTS-PICT/3VR1C500D.HTM#3VR1C5 00D The difference between the potmeters is that the volume pots are logarithmic and the tone pots are linear. Japanese cost €3.65 a piece USA/CTS cost €6.00 a piece in Holland. These are the specs and part nrs: Tone pot for Gibson: Pot 500KA/tone CTS/USA/EP086B Volume pot for Gibson: Pot 500KB/volume CTS/USA/EP4986 Doesn't matter whether your caps are orange, green, blue or purple. Ears are color blind. You can choose between different values, that's what matters. They color the sound together with your pots. The circumstances you keep the guitar in should play a role in your choice. It must be good stuff that doesn't corrode like hell. You must be able to get a beautiful ES-335 sound out off this piece of wood. I have a AS120 of 1999 or 2000 I believe... fantastic guitar. (MOP/Abalone inlays, gold hardware but most of all a good Lucille blues sound)/ Technically your guitar must give the same sound. And the chrome is stronger than my gold hardware. Use this info well and good luck.   Gemberbier Username: Gemberbier Registered: 5-2006 Posted on Sunday, June 17, 2007 - 2:32 pm:    Mortatort 4U History repeats itself. Use this info well and good luck. Ginger   Jazzrat Username: Jazzrat Registered: 6-2007 Posted on Monday, June 18, 2007 - 12:06 am:    I'm sure you tried this but...the tone pot on my '01 AS80 failed the other day, no scratchness or intermittant stuff...it just quit. I thought I was going to have to replace it. On a lark I loosened it up and pushed it into the body enough so that I could get some contact cleaner into it. Believe it or not it fixed it.   Gemberbier Username: Gemberbier Registered: 5-2006 Posted on Monday, June 18, 2007 - 6:51 am:    What I often do, when I hear a potmeter is dirty inside: I turn it from 0-10 and 10-0 several dozens of times, and then it mostly works fine again for quite a while. If you get a mix of dirt and spray inside it can get really sticky. Harry warned for that a few weeks ago. He uses some cleanser afterwards to remove the sticky mess. But with potmeters you'd have to keep them in such a position that the mess can get out. I prefer the dry solution. Anyway, I hope for you that it continues to work. How did you hear that your TONE pot had quit? Did it sound like a hot rod? (Volume only) BTW "on a lark" (I had to look that up: poor bird!) I found "for a lark" too. What is the difference, if there is any? Ginger   Jazzrat Username: Jazzrat Registered: 6-2007 Posted on Monday, June 18, 2007 - 8:14 am:    mine was on full all the time. I did the dry method with no result in this case. I use a contact cleaner called QD for quck dry, it evaporates very quickly. Hopefully as you said it will continue to work thanks   Bluesmeister Username: Bluesmeister Registered: 5-2004 Posted on Tuesday, June 19, 2007 - 1:43 am:    Ginger: for a lark is the correct phrase, it means 'for a bit of fun'. It's derived from 'larking about' meaning behaving in a frivolous manner.

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