Fun Modding an Epiphone Joe Pass

[Para]

Takes me around 10 mins to reinstall all the wiring and pots but I have done it quite a few times, using something to stiffen the loom helps, run the wiring through heat shrink tube or use a long cable tie attached to the loom. I make a template of the holes for the pots and switch and transfer it to a cardboard box, attach the pots and switch to the box and wire it up, that way you don't get uneeded length of wire.

[nosoyninja]

Here's what my rewiring project currently looks like. In The perfect world that exists in my head, I will be able to pull the entire wiring including the pick ups out, then just put this whole harness in and just attach the grounding wire.

[Para]

You'll have to feed it all in through one of the pickup routs.

[Skiptracer]

I did the same thing with the cardboard. I used a piece of paper and laid that on the top and used a pen to pop holes in the paper for all the pots and switch and traced the pickups. I then transferred to the cardboard.

I did cut the tailpiece ground wire a bit short so that gave me a little fit but it took me about 25 min. To get everything put back. Not too bad for the first time.

I was mostly commenting on the les Paul 50s style wiring of the pots and the component (cap) wires connecting the pots being thin and feel fragile.

[vinlander]

Hohi, your sound clip sounds great. I have a 2006 Incheon-made Joe Pass and have spliced a few different pickups in it but still have the original pots, caps and switch since I don't have the patience to rewire it. After hearing your clips, I might pay someone to do it, though. I had Phat Cats in the neck and bridge and liked them. Then I put Vintage Vibe HCC's in neck and bridge and they sort of disappointed me since I was expecting something along the lines of what you might get with Lollar's CC pickups ...

If I may ask, I would like to know what makes the Lollar CC sounding better to your ears than the VV HCCs ?
I am asking because my next late fall tinkering project is a complete rewiring of my 1995 Samick made Epi JP.
Still not sure if I will go 50s wiring like I did on my Sheraton, but so far I plan to order a set of HCC from Vintage Vibe since my experience with one in my Regent has been so awesome.
I will change everything including pots and caps and will ask Pete' s advice regarding specs on those to get as close as possible to 50s tone.

[mongrel]

Lollar uses .38 gauge coil wire in his traditional CC pickup. Pete uses .42 gauge because he can't fit enough wire in the HCC humbucker-sized housing with the fatter wire. The tone is bigger with the thicker wire. I'm not sure if the Lollar HB size CC uses the thicker wire but I think it might. Now I really like the three HCC's I've had but I've only tried them with the A2 and A5 magnets. I would be curious to try the A3 and the A8 also but have may lone remaining HCC in a Tele clone and it sounds good with the A2's so I'm leaving it alone.

I've read that taking 1,000 winds off the Phat Cat mellows it out quite nicely getting it into classic Gibson P-90 territory.

[entresz]

The .38 gauge wire creates a very low DC resistance coil which would have some effect on the tone of the pickup when comparing to a .42 gauge wire pickup. The CC pickup on my Godin 5th Avenue (Vintage Vibe) is wound with .38 gauge and it's got a big round, clear sound.

[nosoyninja]

Finally done with my epi joe pass mod extravaganza! Final tally:

- ebony and rosewood knobs
- ebony tuner pegs
- darkened pickguard and erased signature
- stew mac bone nut
- bad ass tailpiece
- stewmac parsons street humbuckers
- K&K definity pickup
- stereo jack (Y cable separates acoustic and mag).
- CTS pots and all new wiring.

Did it little by little over the past few years. Finally added the tailpiece today.

K

[jazzimprov]

Nice choice of pickguard! !

Fits perfectly style wise and with classic beauty

[Naquat]

Old thread I know but I was reading it because I just picked up an Epi Joe Pass.

For those wanting to work on or replace pots I've found that Dental Floss works great to pull the pots through the guitar. I also use thin hemostats to grab the shaft which makes it easier once it gets to the hole. The floss is thin, tough, and flexible so you don't have a lot of heavy stings all over the guitar plus you can then cut it off the shaft with an Xacto knife once they're mounted.

[Doctor Jeff]

Actually what works best for the pots is clear plastic tubing, often called aquarium tubing, that you can get at the hardware store. Get the size (1/4" IIRC, maybe 3/8") that just fits over the top of the post with a little pressure.

I've tried floss and fishing line, but the tubing works better, IMO.

Also another good tip is to make a cardboard template of the top to hold the pots in place while you do the soldering.

Any way you slice it unless you do this for a living it's a PITA. I did it for an Epi JP a few years ago, but I'm not looking forward to doing it again...

[vinlander]

+1 on the cardboard trick for soldering pots and caps in place.
During my intense tinkering period, I fished all electronics in an Epi Sheraton II with a center block and no possible access from the pickup hole all through the very tight f-holes using the only thing I had at the time, cooking rope.
That was a great learning experience; fishing a fully hollow arch top is a piece of cake after that.
In any case, these cheap Epis are great learning platform to tinker on and great value too.
Here is my Joe Pass in its final form, everything has been swapped from tuners to TP.
I condemned the (imho) useless bridge pickup, made a rosewood veneer plug with foam under it.
(I removed the pickguard since then too...)

[Naquat]

I have a set of Gibson T-Tops that I purchased around '78-'79 that I've used in a few solid body guitars that sounded great. I'm thinking of dropping them in the JP as I need to at lease pull the pots to clean them.

Anyone ever try the T-Tops in a jazz box?

The Epi JP I just picked up sounds a little thin because it's strung with round wound 10's. It's also had the frets dressed at some point but not crowned. I'm hoping there's enough meat left to crown them so when I put flat wounds on the guitar won't sound like "THUD". It's in pretty decent shape with a number of very small dings which don't bother me and I paid $400 delivered with hard shell case.

[vinlander]

Mine is currently strung with TI Swing JS113 but I will experiment next with Monel Flats RS200 from Rotosound.

[jwnagle]

Hi Guys,

New to the forum. Here are my modded Epiphone Emperor sisters. I am pretty much done with the modifications, but always looking for new ideas. I may yet add ebony tuning keys to the Joe Pass model similar to the Emperor Regent.

I also was also considering changing the pickups & pickup covers to black ones?? Any recommendations on the pickups, was considering Seymour Duncan Jazz models, at least for the neck?

The Emperor Regent has a Kent Armstrong mini humbucker and schatten mini-pots/thumbwheels hidden behind the L-5 pickguard.

Anybody have any additional thoughts?

[GNAPPI]

I don't mod my JP's but I can't think of a better git to start with.

Do any of you have before and after recordings?

PS. the double cut ES-150 had T tops.

[Bigsbyguy]

Anyone ever tried traditional looking P-90's or Dynasonics?

[Thumpalumpacus]

I like what I heard. Even through these latop speakers, seems like there's more clarity than what I hear when I play the occasional JPEII at GC.