Volume pot taper, linear or audio... discuss!

cvogue

Yes, that's Oolong. :)
So I broke out my Les Paul at practice yesterday (usually use a PRS CE 24) and I had forgotten how kinda "useless" the LP's volume controls are. Pretty much all the way on until you get it down to about 2.5 and then it cuts out very quickly as it gets towards off.

The PRS has a much more even (and in my opinion usable) decrease in volume as I turn down. I'm not sure if they use audio taper pots but it is different.

Thinking about having my LP worked on (getting the pickups repotted, was getting some microphonic squeal when I kicked in my OCD for a gain boost) and was wondering if I should have the volume pots replaced with audio pots... they're obviously linear right now.

Thoughts? Linear pot fans?
 
So I broke out my Les Paul at practice yesterday (usually use a PRS CE 24) and I had forgotten how kinda "useless" the LP's volume controls are. Pretty much all the way on until you get it down to about 2.5 and then it cuts out very quickly as it gets towards off.

The PRS has a much more even (and in my opinion usable) decrease in volume as I turn down. I'm not sure if they use audio taper pots but it is different.

Thinking about having my LP worked on (getting the pickups repotted, was getting some microphonic squeal when I kicked in my OCD for a gain boost) and was wondering if I should have the volume pots replaced with audio pots... they're obviously linear right now.

Thoughts? Linear pot fans?
I definitely know what you're talking about with the vol pot. My Les Paul seems to be pretty "full on" until I turn to about 5, then it smooths out. My Strat is smooth the whole way. Keep us informed on what you decide, I may follow suit if you're happy with your results.
 
If I am using Alpha pots, I like to use linear taper for volume. If I use CTS pots, I like audio taper with a volume kit.

Don't know which ones I have in the Les Paul, but apparently a lot of folks are experiencing this. Interesting it's more of an issue of how the ear perceives the volume change than what's happening technically.
 
I definitely know what you're talking about with the vol pot. My Les Paul seems to be pretty "full on" until I turn to about 5, then it smooths out. My Strat is smooth the whole way. Keep us informed on what you decide, I may follow suit if you're happy with your results.

Will do.
 
500K audio taper with a "treble bleed" mod (you'll have to experiment with resistor/cap values) to keep the mud away as you turn the volume down.
 
My Nash Tele has a treble bleed cap on the volume pot. It works wonders with my Orange amp. Dial in a nice gainy tone and the volume pot cleans things up extremely well.
 
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