Seymour Duncan wiring

Two humbuckers with a three-way toggle and two volumes

Two humbuckers · Three-way toggle · Two volumes · No tone

Neck and bridge Seymour Duncan humbuckers, each with its own 500k volume before a three-way toggle, and no tone control. The red and white leads on each pickup are joined and taped off.

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Viewed from the back of the controls, as you solder them. Select a component to move, rotate or flip it. Follow wires and try the switches in simulation mode. Use Full screen for a closer look.

Parts and values

In the drawingValuePart
Neck pickupSource: Seymour Duncan Neck Pickup—Humbucker (four-conductor, Seymour Duncan colours)Generic
Bridge pickupSource: Seymour Duncan Bridge Pickup—Humbucker (four-conductor, Seymour Duncan colours)Generic
3-way toggleSource: 3-way toggle (unlabelled)—Switchcraft 3-Way ToggleExample part
Volume 500k (bridge)Source: Volume 500k (left, bridge)500kCTS 500k Audio PotExample part
Volume 500k (neck)Source: Volume 500k (right, neck)500kCTS 500k Audio PotExample part
Output jackSource: Output Jack—Switchcraft #11Example part
Bridge groundSource: Bridge Ground Wire—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 each pickup, solder the red and white leads together and tape them off.
  • Each pickup's black lead goes to its own volume; each volume's middle lug feeds one outer toggle tag.
  • The toggle tags are not labelled in the source, so they are mapped by what each does.

Connections

In soldering order: grounds first, then the switch, the pickups and the signal path. Choose Show to highlight a connection in the drawing.

#FromToHowDrawing
1Bridge greenBridge volume casingTo a pot casinggreen
2Neck greenNeck volume casingTo a pot casinggreen
3Bridge bare shieldBridge volume casingShield or groundbare
4Neck bare shieldNeck volume casingShield or groundbare
5Bridge volume right lugBridge volume casingLug bent onto the casing.To a pot casing
6Neck volume right lugNeck volume casingLug bent onto the casing.To a pot casing
7Toggle frame lugBridge volume casingTo a pot casingblack
8Bridge volume casingJack sleeveWireblack
9Neck volume casingBridge volume casingArcs over the toggle leads without joining them.To a pot casingblack
10Bridge Ground WireNeck volume casingShield or groundblack
11Bridge volume middle lugToggle bridge lugWireblack
12Neck volume middle lugToggle neck lugWireblack
13Toggle middle lugJack tipWireblack
14Bridge redBridge whiteSoldered together and taped off.Joined and insulatedred
15Neck redNeck whiteSoldered together and taped off.Joined and insulatedred
16Bridge blackBridge volume left lug (input)Wireblack
17Neck blackNeck volume left lug (input)Wireblack

What each position does

SettingThe sourceEngine result
Rhythm (neck)Neck pickup through the neck volume.Neck pickup (both coils).
BothBoth pickups, each through its own volume.Neck pickup (both coils) and Bridge pickup (both coils) in parallel.
Treble (bridge)Bridge pickup through the bridge volume.Bridge pickup (both coils).

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

  • Hum cancelling and phase describe the generic pickup models, not a measurement of any specific Seymour Duncan model.
  • 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

  • In each toggle position, the meter across the jack should read the selected pickup, or both in parallel in the middle.
  • Each taped red–white joint 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.