brewbaker Posted May 31, 2006 Posted May 31, 2006 The taper of the pots--particularly the tone seems different than any other guitar I've had. Can anyone explain Hamer's proprietary approach to guitar wiring? The cap appears to be a .015 not the usual .02 you see in most HB guitars. The tone doesn't have a dramtic effect until it gets down around 4--in other words--very imperceptible "wah" effect.Do most folks keep things stock or this an area for potential modding?BTW the guitar plays and sounds awesome--definitely a keeper.Thanks
straightblues Posted May 31, 2006 Posted May 31, 2006 I had the same feeling when I started playing Hamer USA guitars. The advice I got at the time was to play with it for awhile. I did and I found that I got use to it and liked it very much. I would suggest you do the same.
serial Posted May 31, 2006 Posted May 31, 2006 I don't know ANYONE who takes Hamer pots out of a Hamer guitar. Usually, I hear of people buying Hamer pots to put into other guitars. The volumes are set to give more of a Boost between 9 and 10-you can definitely hear that. The tones are made to be set flat at 5, not like standard tone controls. The Hamer tone control is more of a treble boost above 5. If you're running on 10, they'll be brighter than you're probably used to. They don't get all mushy and unuseable at 1-2 or even 3 like Gibsonesque pots do. Every LP I've ever owned is pure mud below 4 on the tone and really only sounds good between 8-9. On my Historic FB or other single pickup guitars, I need to use the tone, but it still never gets below 4 or it's crap.
pesocaster Posted May 31, 2006 Posted May 31, 2006 I don't know ANYONE who takes Hamer pots out of a Hamer guitar. I rip them out... I'm likely the only one..... but I don't like the stock pots (for Volume control)....... and I do remove them ... but I am in the business so I have access to some pots that better suit what I need ... the thing I don't like about the Hamer pots for the most part is the abrupt 0-ON effect at the start of the pot.... I like a bit more slope at the start... ( for volume swells mostly)... They are fine for tone pots..... however, I usually drop in a Fender TBX..... But take what I say with a grain of salt.... I also insist on a middle single coil in ALL my guitars.... hahhahaha
DavidE Posted May 31, 2006 Posted May 31, 2006 "The tones are made to be set flat at 5, not like standard tone controls. "WHAT???? Why don't I know this? Is this true for all of my 80's and 90's and 00's Hamers? I'm not really a tone control guy, so I leave them all on 10 unless I have some specific reason to do otherwise.
serial Posted May 31, 2006 Posted May 31, 2006 As far as I know. I came dangerously close to ditching my red Proto b/c I thought it was too bright. Set at 5 or 6, it was near perfect.
Jack C Posted May 31, 2006 Posted May 31, 2006 I know Hamer once claimed that their tone controls were set up like that (5 is median), but I think that was just marketing BS. They are still subtractive controls (is that a word?). Their taper is different, but a Hamer with the tone control full on should be like any other guitar with the tone control full on. It doesn't add treble. "Ken" Keller confirmed this at an HFC jam, so if I'm wrong, please complain to management about Ken.
Steve Haynie Posted May 31, 2006 Posted May 31, 2006 Yup, you can only cut highs with passive electronics. The capacitor/resistor values determine what passes through in the first place. So far no one has yet repeated the "you can turn the tone knob all the way down and still get useful tones" line yet.
brewbaker Posted May 31, 2006 Author Posted May 31, 2006 Ha anyone tried switching out the cap to a different value--.02? I've got a Hovland .02 that I'm just dying to put in there...but I do like the tone I'm getting now particularly in the bridge position with the tone down around 4--the PU starts to take on whole new character that I suspect is due to the .015 cap or whatever is in there.
jwhitcomb3 Posted May 31, 2006 Posted May 31, 2006 I usually keep my Hamer tone controls at 6, and adjust my amp accordingly. That way I can have a little high frequency headroom in case I don't feel my guitar is cutting through, or dial it back in case it's getting ice-picky. I use 6 as a baseline for my volume pots for similar reasons.The Hamer tone and volume controls are voiced better than anyone's, IMO.-Jonathan
belgian Posted May 31, 2006 Posted May 31, 2006 I usually keep my Hamer tone controls at 6, and adjust my amp accordingly. That way I can have a little high frequency headroom in case I don't feel my guitar is cutting through, or dial it back in case it's getting ice-picky. I use 6 as a baseline for my volume pots for similar reasons.The Hamer tone and volume controls are voiced better than anyone's, IMO.-Jonathan +1I also started doing this when I got my Monaco 3, at first I couldn't work with the "hot" SD P-90's. Since I use this setting too it sounds great. In fact I do it now also with Phatcats and the prototype. That's also the reason why I will put new Hamer pots in the '78 sunburst.
Guest Mike Lee Posted June 1, 2006 Posted June 1, 2006 My Hamers all have .01 uf capacitors, instead of the usual Gibson .02 uf. This results in less high cut over the entire range of the tone control, even when it's all the way up. So it's reasonable to say you have to roll it down a bit to match the sound of a .02 uf cap on "10". But that assumes the same value pot, and Gibson has strayed from 500K pots.I tried swapping caps in a Strat (actually a G&L Legacy) and you could hear the difference between a .05 uf (later Strat) and a .1 uf (vintage Strat) even on "10".Do yourself a favor - remove the tone cap, and solder two wires to the tone pot terminals so they stick out of the control cavity. Then clip on various caps until you find the value you like best.
Hamer95USA Posted June 1, 2006 Posted June 1, 2006 Hey people, I redid all the electronics on my '95 Studio a couple of months ago, thanks to Mr. Keller. I was able to get the original Hamer pots back into my guitar, so I redid the wiring and now it sounds great. I can do all of the volume & tone settings lon the little chart that Hamer used to give out on their Sunbursts & Special guitars in the early '80s. What a difference the Hamer pots are compared to the standard CTS pots that Gibson uses. If I ever put my Les Paul Custom back to passive pickups, I may order more of the Hamer pots and rewire my Les Paul Custom with new electronics. Guitar George
tomteriffic Posted June 2, 2006 Posted June 2, 2006 BTW. Who's Mr Keller? Kim Keller is the Hamer/Ovation USA Supreme Customer Service Mafoof, a good guy, and a good guy to know. Just don't mention the fishnets.....
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