Here’s how: Better sound for the Gibson Les Paul with three pickups

The guitar maker Gibson has set many standards, but not only convincing ones. For a long time they were fixated on guitars with two pickups (pickups or PU for short), such as the The Paul or the more modern one SG. All replicas follow the Gibson specifications slavishly, be it their own daughter Epiphone or copyists from China like the company Vintage.

The circuit diagram is extremely simple. With a three-position switch are in position Rhythm the neck pickup, in position Treble the bridge pickup and both switched on in the middle position. In the following I use the notation as a short form for the switch positions and the pickups that are switched on:

Neck – Neck & Bridge – Bridge

There is a separate one for each PU Volume– and ToneAdjuster. All four work in the middle position.

Take three

Then, however, Gibson created the Les Paul named Black Beauty with three pickups, but stayed with the three-way switch. Fender has it with the 3-way and later 5-way switch Stratocaster Made smarter (also with three pickups), but used a slot in the pickguard. This is a no-go at Gibson.

With the three possible switch positions, Gibson decided on:

Neck – middle & bridge – bridge

These three positions can all be used, but two important, tonally relevant variants are omitted. On the one hand Neck & Bridgeas usual from a guitar with two pickups. But you don’t get to hear the middle PU alone either. On the station wagon customary at Fenders Stratocaster Neck & middle you can do without it, because it sounds very uncomfortable with Gibson’s humbucker pickups. A variant that activates all three pickups at the same time sounds even less pleasant, which Fender does without.

The problem with too many interconnected (parallel) pickups is that they dampen the resonant circuit that a pickup forms (R + L + C) too much and at the same time lower the resonance frequency. This results in an uncomfortably dull and limp sound.

Common workarounds

Many guitarists are annoyed by Gibson’s spartan circuit diagram. The common and apparently simple remedies do not lead to optimal results. In order to accommodate an additional switch on the guitar without visually changing the instrument, a potentiometer is often used, the axis of which is pulled or pressed to switch. In the simplest case, the central pick-up is connected to the specified switch positions. You then get the following:

Pot switch position 0:
Neck – middle & bridge – bridge

This corresponds to the Gibson standard just described for three PUs.

Pot switch position 1:
Neck & middle (new, but dispensable) – middle & bridge (like 3-PU original) – middle & bridge (a second time)

Obviously, this is not a big hit: Just a new sound that doesn’t add much to it.

You get a little further if you first switch to the classic 2-pickup variant, i.e. first remove the middle pickup from the circuit and then switch it on using the potentiometer. That leads to:

Pot switch position 0:
Neck – Neck & Bridge (new and desired) – Bridge

Pot switch position 1:
Neck & middle (new, but dispensable) – Neck & middle & bridge (new and very dispensable) – Middle & bridge (like 3-PU original, desired)