Has anyone clipped the capacitor on a Mickey Mouse Pickup?

[jaan]

Hi,
I picked up a 65 Slim Jim yesterday, and love everything about it but wish the neck pickup was more clear sounding. I’m not sure I’d do it anyway, but am curios if anyone has done it, and what was your results. Did you just clip the capacitor?

 

[Default]

Yup, I would say that everyone that knew it was there clipped or resoldered it.

 

[SFIV1967]

Welcome to LTG!
I would just remove (clip or desolder) that .0015uF or 1,500pf disc cap from the pickup. The idea back when they were made was to shunt the high frequencies to ground for a darker jazzier tone of the neck pickup.

Ralf

 

[Rambozo96]

Do they just wire it in series with the neck hot lead? I don’t see any wiring schematic for one so I haven’t a clue what role this cap plays.

 

[SFIV1967]

Do they just wire it in series with the neck hot lead? I don’t see any wiring schematic for one so I haven’t a clue what role this cap plays.

No, the cap is simply soldered between both leads to shunt the high frequencies to ground.
Ralf

 

[Rambozo96]

Reminds of the weird Crucianelli guitars from Italy that had a bunch of weird filters and caps. In the case of this Guild however I guess it’s fer dem slick jazzeh toenz.

 

[SFIV1967]

Reminds of the weird Crucianelli guitars from Italy that had a bunch of weird filters and caps.

Now they had an interesting inside...

But the Guild X-350 also had a few Rs and Cs on their switch, which users clipped out:

Ralf

 

[Default]

Mind still has the caps soldered in.

 

[GGJaguar]

My ST-301 still has the cap in place and I don't think it's too dark sounding (sound clip).

 

[GAD]

Mind still has the caps soldered in.

Does that make it difficult to think?

 

[Default]

Does that make it difficult to think?

Yers? Mah braim gits too hots, an' ah needs a calmin' daown.

 

[Nuuska]

Yers? Mah braim gits too hots, an' ah needs a calmin' daown.

dat sere's tha problem - ya needa bleeda to let da hot drain out - sumpting like paranoid resistance.

 

[jaan]

Welcome to LTG!
I would just remove (clip or desolder) that .0015uF or 1,500pf disc cap from the pickup. The idea back when they were made was to shunt the high frequencies to ground for a darker jazzier tone of the neck pickup.

Ralf

Thanks so much for the welcome, and the tip! I gently removed it. Sounds SO much more open and vibrant; and the tone knob is now useful. For me, it was a great move! It was too woofy for me before. It still has girth; it sounds more like a Jazzmaster pickup than a Strat to use familiar tones as a guide. I've got the cap put aside, so it can always be restored in 5 minutes if I ever wanted. It's really made the in between position so much more fun; there's so many great tones blending the pickups now.
It's nice to have a Guild again. The first nice guitar I ever bought was a 1966 Starfire IV that I bought in 1985. Traded it for a my first PRS, but always missed it. I happened into a very clean 1965 Slim Jim, and I'm just tickled with it! Still getting used to the tiny frets, but it's coming to me.