How to save an agathis guitar! (anyone?)

[teleplayer]

Okay, I have an agathis guitar. Yes, I know, it's a shitty wood. Can anyone tell me how to save this guitar? as in like, the wood muds up everything. I am using laney LX35R btw. is there any way to minimize the 'mud' like changing of pots or whatnot?

Thanks in advance.

 

[wasp]

I got an agathis too. I plan to get a 2nd hand body probably from ebay to replace the body totally. More practical I think?

 

[LadyInTears]

you mean a really muddy tone?

 

[teleplayer]

Not really muddy. But muddy. haha.

wasp: change guitar lah! haha. i got my own designs on this guitar so that's why I haven't discard it.

 

[faizal_rocks]

I once had a Squier Standard Tele made of agathis (I recall its a substitute for alder) and I dun find it muddy at all. In fact, I really loved that guitar, how I wish I still had it

Maybe u would like to upgrade to orange drop capacitors? Whats ur pickup config?

 

[LadyInTears]

actually a really muddy tone may be because of the pickups.
beez commented on my rg550 that the stock pickups made the tone really muddy.. well thats what i know

 

[teleplayer]

erm I put a dimebucker for the bridge only.

since this is the case, is there any really bright sounding humbucker for the bridge that's suitable for an agathis guitar..? okay, maybe a set...?

 

[rimuel]

i don't recall "muddy" tone is related by the wood.

 

[faizal_rocks]

Ok, teleplayer, the tone is muddy in clean or distortion modes?

 

[teleplayer]

clean and distortion. but clean is expected to be muddy for a high-output pickup.

rimuel: so it has something to do with pickups?

 

[eclipze]

@teleplayer... knock the wood ... u hear muddy sound?
whats the PU? humbucker or Single coil? and the pot? 250K or 500 K?
if not the wood ... maybe its from your pots, change it with 500K or 1000K (1 mega-K) pots .... bigger the pot value, brighter the tone, bigger output

dont forget the capacitor ok... change to smaller value ... it'll help decreasing the muddy tone

 

[teleplayer]

the pickup is dimebucker, a humbucker.

hmm okay, maybe i should change the pots to 500k/1000k... and the capacitors too...

 

[eclipze]

the pickup is dimebucker, a humbucker.

hmm okay, maybe i should change the pots to 500k/1000k... and the capacitors too...

what value r your current cap and pots? if it 250K no wonder if its muddy :mrgreen:
don't forget u have to change the vol pots and the tone pots.... both of them :mrgreen:

 

[teleplayer]

hmm I'm not sure what value is my pot... :X so what do you recommend ah? 500k or 1000k?

 

[wasp]

Its most probably the wood for my case... my alder body guitar sounds better and they both use identical pickups. Or possibly coz the agathis one is downtuned and thicker strings therefore causing less resonance?

 

[PatheinRaindropMoe]

for most guitar shops around, you can only find 250k, 330k(maybe) and 500k.

For guitar purposes, you wont find much place selling 1meg pot. For general purpose pot from sim lim, then yeah, you can easily find 1meg, 2meg etc. But those are not for guitar purpose, and quality suffer, in term of value accuracy and taper.

And the bigger value pot you use, it will have more prominent effect when use as volume pot then tone pot. Still you are free to try out and see how it sound to you.

Big value tone pot doesnt have much effect when i was trying it out among various geetars i have. Using bigger value pot for volume has more effect.

The increase of resistance value, while making your guitar sounds brighter/glassy/piercing sounding what so ever, will see increase of noise level as well, in some instances.

heh, if you have google or read up before hand on the pot value and cap value generally used in guitar, you will know this..

single coil-250k
humbucker-500k
Tone cap- 0.022uf, 0.033uf, 0.047uf
treble bleed cap- small value of picofarad region, 180pf-470pf

anyway, those are easy info which can be gotten from google. If you are curious enough, you will continue to go search why the above values.

Hehe, have fun...

 

[hatecrew]

^ Fender Jaguar - 1meg!

i love the 1meg pot