Build Your Own Clone Message Board

The phaser was my first build about 3 months ago. I built 8 pedals in that time and I love them all! I use my phaser for clean Floyd style stuff like breath, Us and Them etc. I sounded very nice. I was using an Ibanez S470. I just bought a brand new Gibson Les Paul Standard. (perfect time to plug a pic!)


I use the Phaser on the clean channel but on the LP I am getting an unwanted gain boost. The Burstbuckers are probably hotter than the stock Ibanez pups. Any advice on how I can cut out some of the gain without rolling back on the volume of the guitar? Picking lighter is no option for me cause I use 1.14 - 2mm picks.

Perhaps a Pup height adjustment? Just a thought. I have BB Pro's in a Lester Vintage Mahogany and they are pretty hot, so I have them just a touch lower and it helped.

I get a similar problem, how could I decrease the gain but make the phaser more potent (u know, more "oomph")

You could add in input level trimpot or make it an external knob.

What value pot and where would it go?

I might also play with the pickup height. The action is very low on my Lester.

This is how you add a volume knob to ANYTHING:

signal in goes to lug 3 of pot (100k - 500k audio or linear taper work well).
signal out comes from lug 2 (center lug).
Connect lug 1 to ground.

So with the phaser, you would put the input level knob between lug 5 of the footswitch and the "in" eyelet of the circuit board.

Quick question, Fender makes a "Highway One" Strat, which basically is a budget friendly American made Strat, does Gibson have anything like that for their Les Pauls?

Sounds easy enough. Lug 5 on the switch and the "in" eyelet. Do I still need to connect lug 1 of the pot to a ground?


Epiphone, made in China. But the difference between an Epi and Gibson is night and day. The tone and playability is way better on a real LP. I'm not a strat fan but I'm sure that the real American strats are no comparison to the knock offs.

Connect lug 3 of the pot to lug 5 of the footswitch
connect lug 2 of the pot to the IN eyelet on the board.
connect lug 1 of the pot to ground

Some of the cheaper fenders are not bad. About as much difference between a Studio and a standard LP. There's about a $1k difference between a studio and a standard too, but it's almost relative, since the Fenders are cheaper to begin with.

I think they do. They have a Gibson SG with a "faded" finish for sure. It goes for about $600-$700 USD. I know I saw the Les Paul equivalent of the faded SG but I can't remember what it was called. Go to http://www.musiciansfriend.com and do a site search for "Les Paul" and I'm sure you'll come up with something.

But are they made in the US?

All Gibson products are made in the US of A. Epiphone = China/Korea.

Mexican Fenders really aren't as far away from an American as you think. But in terms of budget line, Fender takes the cake. The Jimmie Vaughan Strat is pretty much the best 500-600 dollar guitar you can buy. American parts and wiring, assembled in Mexico.

Oh, and no one likes extra gain. Hurray for trimpots! :lol:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/ ... sku=518341

I was thinking of getting one of these and gutting the insides for better parts, I'd love to see the looks on peoples faces when hear a guitar with great tone with the word Epiphone on it.

IMO, better electronics are one thing, but it's all about the wood. When you buy a guitar, you're essentially buying the wood. Body at least, you can even swap out necks on Fenders. Some of those Epis just have terrible wood, so you'll never have totally killer tone. Sorry to burst your bubble. Thier hollowbody models and upper priced Epiphone Les Pauls usually have better wood, still not gonna sound like a Gibson though.

darn, are there any places I could get just the body or the neck at a really high quality for a good price? (if it's unfinshed I don't care)

Well Warmoth will make Les Paul bodies and necks, but their bolt on. Theres a ton of luthiers out there who will make you a Les Paul. Or why don't you just get an Edwards or something? http://www.katanaguitars.com most of these guys beat out most of Gibbo's Les Paul Studios and Standards. Check Tokai out, too, but they're getting expensive like Gibson too!

I don't know their Web address right off hand but try Warmoth (Warmouth?) guitar parts. They have some of the most killer necks and bodies you can get. AT least they did when I used to put guitars together. They'll even custom cut and build a body for you with your choice of wood and routing. They're not real cheap but they're pretty damn good.

http://www.warmoth.com

:)

now for the last question, Warmoth Les Paul style body and neck v.s. $1,300 gibson, who wins?

Gibson. Warmoth does bolt on bodies, unless you talk to them directly and see if you can do it. Plus, you have to assemble it yourself. If you can set a neck, you're a better person than I. But the possabilities are endless with custom routing and painting. How about a minihum neck, single coil bridge? Done. Tele neck, strat mid, P90 bridge, floyd rose, and a 5 way switch? It can be done. It really depends on how creative you can be-- and how big your wallet it.

Sorry guys but I must get back to the origional question.

So will a cheap old Crappy Shack pot work or should I go to my overpriced electronics store and buy a good one? It would be kinda tricky to mount a trim pot, no where to mount it so I might mount a pot on the enclosure.

A "crappy" shack pot would work just fine. U might not be able to find the value u want, and they are a little larger than your average pot. I used radioshack pots on my first project and if I need more room for mods those are the first things to get replaced to make more space

a pot's a pot. It will work. You could have a "flying" trimpot for experimentation purposes. If it works well for you, then I'd consider panel mounting it.