Tinkercaster
DiMarzio wiring

Telecaster with a rail-style bridge and a humbucker neck

Humbucker neck, rail-style Tele bridge · Three-way Tele switch · One volume · One tone

DiMarzio's Telecaster harness with a four-conductor humbucker in the neck and The Chopper rail-style four-conductor bridge pickup, on a three-way Tele switch. On both pickups the black and white leads are joined and taped. It uses a 500K custom-taper volume, a 250K custom-taper tone, a .022 µF capacitor and a Switchcraft two-conductor jack.

Open interactive diagram ↗
Telecaster with a rail-style bridge and a humbucker neckTelecaster with a rail-style bridge and a humbucker neck: Humbucker neck, rail-style Tele bridge · Three-way Tele switch · One volume · One tone. Original Tinkercaster drawing with labelled terminals.Neck pickupNeck pickupChopper bridgeChopper bridgeThree-way switchVolume 500K custom taper · 500k500kTone 250K custom taper · 250k250k.022µF · 22nF22nFOutput jackBridge groundredgreenblackwhitebareredgreenblackwhitebareT1T2T3T4T5T6T7T8lug1lug2lug3lug1lug2lug3abtipsleeveground

Viewed from the back of the controls, as you solder them. Open the interactive diagram to zoom, move components and try the switches.

Parts and values

In the drawingValuePart
Neck pickupSource: Neck pickup (BARE, GREEN, RED, BLACK, WHITE)—Humbucker (four-conductor, DiMarzio colours)Generic
Chopper bridgeSource: The Chopper™ bridge DP384 (RED, WHITE, BLACK, GREEN, BARE)—Humbucker (four-conductor, DiMarzio colours)Generic
Three-way switchSource: Three-way switch for Tele® (EP1105)—CRL 3-Way BladeExample part
Volume 500K custom taperSource: Volume 500K custom taper pot (EP1201)500kCTS 500k Audio PotExample part
Tone 250K custom taperSource: Tone 250K custom taper pot (EP1200)250kCTS 250k Audio PotExample part
.022µFSource: .022µF capacitor (EP1022)22nFOrange Drop .022µFExample part
Output jackSource: Switchcraft® output jack, 2-conductor (EP1301)—Switchcraft #11Example part
Bridge groundSource: TO BRIDGE GROUND—Bridge ground wireGeneric

“Example part” means any part with the same value and lugs will do; the source does not name a brand. “Generic” stands in for an unspecified pickup: check your own pickup's lead colours before you solder.

Specific to this wiring

  • On the neck humbucker, the black and white leads are joined and insulated.
  • On The Chopper bridge pickup, the black and white leads are joined and insulated.
  • The Chopper's green and bare leads go to the volume casing; its red lead goes to the switch.
  • The tone signal enters at the tone pot's middle lug (wiper); the capacitor sits on an end lug.
  • The source gives no position legend. The switch tags are not labelled, so they are mapped by what each does.
  • The source specifies custom-taper pots. The simulator treats them as linear, so settings between the knob ends are approximate.

Connections

In soldering order: grounds first, then the switch, the pickups and the signal path.

#FromToHow
1Neck greenVolume casingTo a pot casinggreen
2Neck bare shieldVolume casingDrawn thin grey beside the green.Shield or groundbare
3Bridge greenVolume casingTo a pot casinggreen
4Volume casingVolume top lugTo a pot casingblack
5Volume top lugTone casingTo a pot casingblack
6.022 µF capacitorTone casingTo a pot casing
7Tone casingJack sleeveWireblack
8Bridge ground wireJack sleeveLabelled TO BRIDGE GROUND.Wireblack
9Bridge bare shieldVolume casingDrawn thin grey beside the green to the lower casing dot.Shield or groundbare
10Neck redSwitch top-row first lugWirered
11Bridge redSwitch bottom-row fourth lugWirered
12Switch bottom-row first lugSwitch bottom-row second lugJumpergrey
13Switch bottom-row second lugSwitch top-row third lugJumpergrey
14Switch top-row third lugSwitch top-row fourth lugJumpergrey
15Switch top-row fourth lugVolume bottom lug (input)Wiregrey
16Neck blackNeck whiteJoined at one solder dot with nothing else on it.Joined and insulatedblack
17Bridge blackBridge whiteJoined at one solder dot with nothing else on it.Joined and insulatedblack
18Volume middle lugJack tipWiredark grey
19Volume bottom lugTone middle lugWirelavender
20Tone bottom lug.022 µF capacitorWire

What each position does

SettingThe sourceEngine result
Neck—Neck pickup (both coils).
Neck and bridge—Neck pickup (both coils) and Chopper bridge (both coils) in parallel.
Bridge—Chopper bridge (both coils).

Checked with the Tinkercaster wiring engine against the switching the source describes.

  • The source's custom-taper pots are not reproduced: both pots are simulated with a linear track, so settings between the knob ends are approximate.
  • Hum cancelling and phase describe the generic pickup models, not measured DiMarzio pickups.
  • Pickup resistance is not specified, so no numeric meter readings are given.

Before you solder

Ticks are kept in this browser only, as a reminder. They are not a check of your joints. New to soldering? Read the soldering cheat sheet.

Check before plugging in

  • Position 1: continuity from jack tip to sleeve through the neck humbucker only.
  • Position 3: continuity through the bridge pickup only.
  • The taped black–white joints on both pickups should read open to ground.

Measure across the output jack with a multimeter on its resistance range. No exact readings are given where the source does not specify the pickups.