How To Make A Cheap Guitar Sound Great
Most beginning guitar players begin with a rather inexpensive instrument. They usually have a mass production clone of a Fender Stratocaster or a Gibson Les Paul. Probably the most popular clones are made overseas by Gibson and Fender themselves through the Epiphone and Squier lines. These are built to the same specs as the American made models. They're decent instruments in their own right but they can be improved greatly with just a pickup replacement. As long as the neck is straight and the tuning pegs are fairly tight, this is often all you need to upgrade to a pro sound.
Iv'e modified a number of Mexican made Stratocasters and I'll take you through the process. The first thing you want to decide on is what type of sound you are searching for. Replacement pickups are obtainable with lots of variety in sound output. I like to make use of Seymour Duncan pickups because they've proven to be of high high quality and reliability. They also have a great selection and have a CD of sound samples you can listen to. Most dealers have the CD's and you can also listen to the samples online. Select your replacement pickups and you are ready to upgrade.
You'll need a number of issues for the job. A good stable workbench or table, with plenty of room to lay your tools out, makes issues much simpler. Here's a list of what you need: 1.screwdriver set, both flat head and philips 2.soldering iron 3.solder 4.new set of strings 5.wire cutters/strippers
The first thing you need to do is remove your guitar strings. I usually leave the low E-string on to keep just a little tension on the neck. Next remove the pickguard cover. Make certain you save all of the screws in a cup as they are small and get lost effortlessly. After you remove the screws you should have the ability to lift up on it and slide it off under the E-string. You need to now see your three pickups and the wiring that's attached to them.
The new pickups come with a wiring diagram that is color coded but take a great look at each pickup before you replace it in case something isn't fairly right with the color code. It's essential that you replace one pickup at a time so as not to mix up the bridge, middle and neck pickups.
Heat up your soldering iron. Remove the first pickup. I usually begin with the neck pickup. Cut and strip the wires according to the directions and solder the wires to the new ones. Repeat the process for the other two. Not too bad, huh?
When you replace the cover/pickguard, take care not to overtighten the screws or they might get stripped. Now would be a great time to clean the guitar before you put the new strings on.
Replace and tune the strings and plug in. You will be pleased with the outcomes. I have a number of of these upgraded strats for the cost of one expensive one and much more versatilty with different pickup sounds. You are able to do the same thing with an Epiphone Les Paul to produce a sound that rivals the Gibson for about a third of the cost. Now you can spend much more cash on all of the cool effects gadgets. Have fun and keep practicing.
