Recently a customer brought in his Fender Select Carved Top Jazzmaster to get set up for heavier strings. This model has a simple layout: two humbuckers designed to look like vintage Wide Range pickups, a Gibson-style 3-way pickup selector switch, and a classic Telecaster control layout consisting of master volume and master tone. The 3-way switch was configured like a Telecaster with the familiar switching matrix of bridge, bridge-plus-neck in parallel, and neck positions. It was a rock-solid guitar that played well.
The owner pointed out that the tone control had an additional switch to split the humbucker pickups. (This turned out to be Fender's S-1 switch.) He then requested an additional switch to flip from parallel to series in dual-pickup mode for some ultra-fat lead tones. While talking about this option, he mentioned he'd never played a humbucker guitar that offered such a cool single-coil tone when in split mode—sparkle and shimmer without hum and noise.
I became curious. My first thought was that Fender simply connected both humbucker coils in parallel, rather than shunting one coil to ground when in split mode. As you may know, when using this option, the humbucking feature is still engaged and you receive a pseudo-single-coil tone without hum and noise. Most humbuckers don't sound like real single-coils in this mode. Some say this configuration sounds more like a P-90, while others say it sounds like a cheap, thin humbucker. But I kept my customer's remarks in mind when I started working on his guitar several days later.
Because the electronic compartment of this Jazzmaster opens from the back, like on a Les Paul, I decided to do all the other work first, such as making a new nut and doing a complete setup for the heavier strings. When it came time to perform the electronic upgrade, I was surprised when I investigated the wiring.
After analyzing the wiring more closely, I realized what we had here: an adaptation of a wiring Bill Lawrence developed in the late '80s.
In addition to a resistor connected to the S-1 switch, I found a capacitor wired to it. Clearly, I had to dig deeper into this wiring, so I requested the schematic (Image 1) from Fender. Thanks to my friend Brett Leasure for immediately sending it over.
The 0.1 µF capacitor and standard 1.5k-ohm resistor rang a bell. After analyzing the wiring more closely, I realized what we had here: an adaptation of a wiring Bill Lawrence developed in the late '80s. Though this isn't new, it remains a very effective hum-reducing scheme. Let's see how it works and what it's doing.
When splitting a humbucker to emulate single-coil tone, one of the coils will typically be shunted to ground, leaving the other coil active with all the hum and noise that's associated with a single-coil pickup. That holds true for this specific wiring, but the two humbucker wires that are wrapped together are not directly connected to ground. Instead, they run through an additional RC network (0.1 µF C plus 1.5k R in series). In this network, the capacitor plays the most important role.
Image 1
The cap shifts the resonance frequency of the coil that's sent to ground, moving it down to near the typical 50/60 Hz hum territory. But that's not all—it also shorts out the frequencies we hear as tone. For the hum frequencies, the coil that's sent to ground is still active, but the tone frequencies—those located above the hum frequencies—no longer exist. In layman's terms: The pickup still operates like a humbucker (i.e., both coils are active) in the frequency realm of hum and noise. Yet for all tone frequencies, we're essentially in single-coil mode. The additional resistor mutes the superelevation resonance of the coil that's sent to ground. So this clever little trick works much like a "virtual dummy coil" when the humbucker is in split mode.
In a way, we can say we're abusing one of the coils by diminishing the mids and treble using a series RC network connected in parallel to the coil. The coil still "sees" the bass and hum and noise frequencies, and acts like a virtual dummy coil with the other fully active coil. This was Bill Lawrence's basic idea that Fender adapted to their wiring for this Jazzmaster.
As always with analog technology, there's no distinct separation at, say, 70 Hz. The virtual dummy coil covers the whole range of hum frequencies, but is also partly active above these frequencies, and it uncouples slowly. To create credible single-coil tone, the mids and treble must be uncoupled. The resistor is important because it allows an even transition when uncoupling the capacitor, so both components work together. This interdependence opens the door to experimentation.
Let's see what it takes to transfer this special Jazzmaster wiring to your humbucker-equipped guitar. We'll do this by transferring the S-1 switching matrix to a push/pull or push/push volume pot with a common DPDT switch that's connected to a humbucker for splitting.
Basically, we can influence three parameters with the values of the two components:- The voicing of the single-coil emulation (governed by the cap's value).
- Hum-cancelling effectiveness (governed by the cap's value).
- Voicing of the cap's uncoupling range (governed by the resistor's value).
So as not to bore you with analog-system theory, I'll simplify some explanations that aren't critical to this mod. One common question is about the order used to connect the cap and the resistor in series. Actually, it doesn't matter, but from a theoretical point of view, electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) states the cap should be connected to ground as shown in Image 2.
I'm using the Seymour Duncan humbucker color code for this illustration. If you have a humbucker with a different color code, this should be easy to transfer. Of course, you can only split a humbucker when it has 4-conductor wiring that provides access to the start and finish of each of the two coils. If you have a humbucker with the standard 2-conductor wiring, you'll have to convert it to 4-conductor specs. Have this done by a qualified guitar tech or simply buy a new humbucker that comes stock with 4-conductor wiring. Let's see what happens when you tinker with the values of the two components.
Resistor.
Fender's 1.5k resistor creates a little hole (about -5 dB) in the mids, at around 2 kHz. Depending on the pickups and the amp, this can sound good. But when using Fender blackface amps, this isn't as desirable because of their inherent scooped midrange. Increasing the resistor value to 3.5k will eliminate the little hole in the mid frequencies. My personal favorite value is 3.9k ohm, which yields absolutely no mid hole. If you want more choices, you can wire a switch with two different resistors (for example, 1.5k and 3.9k) or use a 5k linear pot for a stepless control of this factor.
Capacitor.
The cap's capacitance lets us influence two factors, and we can deduce a relationship between them:- The smaller the capacitance, the better the hum-cancelling feature.
- The higher the capacitance, the better the single-coil emulation.
Here's a way to understand the cap's function in this wiring:
As the cap's value drops to zero, it's effectiveness is reduced. Zero capacitance is the same as using this wiring with no cap at all. With very high capacitance values, the coil will be shorted out more and more, until it is completely shorted, leaving only one coil still active.
A good range of cap values is from 0.01 µF up to 0.1 µF. You can use these—and everything in between—to balance the relationship between hum-cancelling and tone. The Fender value of 0.1 µF will result in maximum single-coil-like tone with a bit of hum cancelling—still much more than without the additional RC network. A 0.01 µF cap will result in a very high hum-cancelling ability (almost 40 dB), but with a tone that's quite fat and closer to a humbucker than a single-coil (think P-90 through a warm tube amp).
Explore these cap values, combined with resistor values from 1.5k up to 5k ohm, to dial in the midrange behavior. This will keep you busy for hours! For even more flexibility, you can implement a rotary switch with several cap values and a switch to turn the complete RC network on or off.
All this can be applied to our Fender wiring. Its stock values guarantee maximum single-coil emulation, but the downside—perhaps not for you—is less hum-cancelling and a tone that exhibits a midrange scoop. I think changing the values to a 3.9k resistor with a 0.047 µF cap will result in an authentic single-coil-like tone with no midrange cut, but with the benefit of greater resistance to hum and noise. In the end, it's about finding the right compromise, so experiment with the values of these two components to find a tone you love.
I'll be back with another project next month … until then, keep on modding!
[Updated 9/27/21]
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Onstage, Tommy Emmanuel executes a move that is not from the playbook of his hero, Chet Atkins.
“My biggest decision every day on tour is, ‘What do I want to start with? How do I want to come out of the gate?’” Emmanuel explains to me over a video call. “A good opener has to have everything. It has to be full of surprise, it has to have lots of good ideas, lots of light and shade, and then, hit it again,” he says, illustrating each phrase with his hands and ending with a punch.“You lift off straightaway with the first song, you get airborne, you start reaching, and then it’s time to level out and take people on a journey.”
In May 2023, Emmanuel played two shows at the Sydney Opera House, the best performances from which have been combined on his new release, Live at the Sydney Opera House. The venue’s Concert Hall, which has a capacity of 2,679, is a familiar room for Emmanuel, but I think at this point in his career he wouldn’t bring a setlist if he was playing Wembley Stadium. On the recording, Emmanuel’s mind-blowingly dexterous chops, distinctive attack and flair, and knack for culturally resonant compositions are on full display. His opening song for the shows? An original, “Countrywide,” with a segue into Chet Atkins’ “El Vaquero.”
“When I was going to high school in the ’60s, I heard ‘El Vaquero’ on Chet Atkins’ record, [1964’s My Favorite Guitars],” Emmanuel shares. “And when I wrote ‘Countrywide’ in around ’76 or ’77, I suddenly realized, ‘Ah! It’s a bit like “El Vaquero!”’ So I then worked out ‘El Vaquero’ as a solo piece, because it wasn’t recorded like that [by Atkins originally].
“The co-writer of ‘El Vaquero’ is Wayne Moss, who’s a famous Nashville session guy who played ‘da da da’ [sings the guitar riff from Roy Orbison’s ‘Pretty Woman’]. And he played on a lot of Chet’s records as a rhythm guy. So once when I played ‘El Vaquero’ live, Wayne Moss came up to me and said, ‘You know, you did my part and Chet’s at the same time. That’s not fair!’” Emmanuel says, laughing.
Atkins is the reason Emmanuel got into performing. His mother had been teaching him rhythm guitar for a couple years when he heard Atkins on the radio and, at 6, was able to immediately mimic his fingerpicking technique. His father recognized Emmanuel’s prodigious talent and got him on the road that year, which kicked off his professional career. He says, “By the time I was 6, I was already sleep-deprived, working too hard, and being forced to be educated. Because all I was interested in was playing music.”
Emmanuel talks about Atkins as if the way he viewed him as a boy hasn’t changed. The title Atkins bestowed upon him, C.G.P. (Certified Guitar Player), appears on Emmanuel’s album covers, in his record label (C.G.P. Sounds), and is inlaid at the 12th fret on his Maton Custom Shop TE Personal signature acoustic. (Atkins named only five guitarists C.G.P.s. The others are John Knowles, Steve Wariner, Jerry Reed, and Atkins himself.) For Emmanuel, even today most roads lead to Atkins.
When I ask Emmanuel about his approach to arranging for solo acoustic guitar, he says, “It was really hit home for me by my hero, Chet Atkins, when I read an interview with him a long time ago and he said, ‘Make your arrangement interesting.’ And I thought, ‘Wow!’ Because I was so keen to be true to the composer and play the song as everyone knows it. But then again, I’m recreating it like everyone else has, and I might as well get in line with the rest of them and jump off the cliff into nowhere. So it struck me: ‘How can I make my arrangements interesting?’ Well, make them full of surprises.”
When Emmanuel was invited to contribute to 2015’s Burt Bacharach: This Guitar’s in Love with You, featuring acoustic-guitar tributes to Bacharach’s classic compositions by various artists, Emmanuel expresses that nobody wanted to take “(They Long to Be) Close to You,” due to its “syrupy” nature. But for Emmanuel, this presented an entertaining challenge.
He explains, “I thought, ‘Okay, how can I reboot “Close to You?’ So even the most jaded listener will say, ‘Holy fuck—I didn’t expect that! Wow, I really like that; that is a good melody!’ So I found a good key to play the song in, which allowed me to get some open notes that sustain while I move the chords. Then what I did is, in every phrase, I made the chord unresolve, then resolve.
Tommy Emmanuel's Gear
“I’m writing music for the film that’s in my head,” Emmanuel says. “So, I don’t think, ‘I’m just the guitar,’ ever.”
Photo by Simone Cecchetti
Guitars
- Three Maton Custom Shop TE Personals, each with an AP5 PRO pickup system
Amps
- Udo Roesner Da Capo 75
Effects
- AER Pocket Tools preamp
Strings & Picks
- Martin TE Signature Phosphor Bronze (.012–.054)
- Martin SP strings
- Ernie Ball Paradigm strings
- D’Andrea Pro Plec 1.5 mm
- Dunlop medium thumbpicks
“And then to really put the nail in the coffin, at the end, ‘Close to you’ [sings melody]. I finished on a major 9 chord which had that note in it, but it wasn’t the key the song was in, which is a typical Stevie Wonder trick. All the tricks I know, the wonderful ideas that I’ve stolen, are from Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie, James Taylor, Carole King, Neil Diamond. All of the people who wrote really incredibly great pop songs and R&B music—I stole every idea I could, and I tried to make my little two-and-a -half minutes as interesting and entertaining as possible. Because entertainment equals: Surprise me.”
I share with Emmanuel that the performances on Live at the Sydney Opera House, which include his popular “Beatles Medley,” reminded me of another possible arrangement trick. In Harpo Marx’s autobiography, Harpo Speaks, I preface, Marx writes of a lesson he learned as a performer—to “answer the audience’s questions.” (Emmanuel says he’s a big fan of the book and read it in the early ’70s.) That happened for me while listening to the medley, when, after sampling melodies from “She’s a Woman” and “Please Please Me,” Emmanuel suddenly lands on “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.”
I say, “I’m waiting for something that hits more recognizably to me, and when ‘While My Guitar’ comes in, that’s like answering my question.”
“It’s also Paul and John, Paul and John, George,” Emmanuel replies. “You think, ‘That’s great, that’s great pop music,’ then, ‘Wow! Look at the depth of this.’”
Often Emmanuel’s flights on his acoustic guitar are seemingly superhuman—as well as supremely entertaining.
Photo by Ekaterina Gorbacheva
A trick I like to employ as a writer, I say to Emmanuel, is that when I’m describing something, I’ll provide the reader with just enough context so that they can complete the thought on their own.
“You can do that musically as well,” says Emmanuel. He explains how, in his arrangement of “What a Wonderful World,” he’ll play only the vocal melody. “When people are asking me at a workshop, ‘How come you don’t put chords behind that part?’ I say, ‘I’m drawing the melody and you’re putting in all the background in your head. I don’t need to tell you what the chords are. You already know what the chords are.’”
“Wayne Moss came up to me and said, ‘You know, you did my part and Chet’s at the same time. That’s not fair!’”
Another track featured on Live at the Sydney Opera House is a cover of Paul Simon’s “American Tune” (which Emmanuel then jumps into an adaptation of the Australian bush ballad, “Waltzing Matilda”). It’s been a while since I really spent time with There GoesRhymin’ Simon (on which “American Tune” was first released), and yet it sounded so familiar to me. A little digging revealed that its melody is based on the 17th-century Christian hymn, “O Sacred Head, Now Wounded,” which was arranged and repurposed by Bach in a few of the composer’s works. The cross-chronological and genre-lackadaisical intersections that come up in popular music sometimes is fascinating.
“I think the principle right there,” Emmanuel muses, “is people like Bach and Beethoven and Mozart found the right language to touch the heart of a human being through their ears and through their senses ... that really did something to them deep in their soul. They found a way with the right chords and the right notes, somehow. It could be as primitive as that.
Tommy Emmanuel has been on the road as a performing guitarist for 64 years. Eat your heart out, Bob Dylan.
Photo by Jan Anderson
“It’s like when you’re a young composer and someone tells you, ‘Have a listen to Elton John’s “Candle in the Wind,”’ he continues. “‘Listen to how those notes work with those chords.’ And every time you hear it, you go, ‘Why does it touch me like that? Why do I feel this way when I hear those chords—those notes against those chords?’ I say, it’s just human nature. Then you wanna go, ‘How can I do that!’” he concludes with a grin.
“You draw from such a variety of genres in your arrangements,” I posit. “Do you try to lean into the side of converting those songs to solo acoustic guitar, or the side of bridging the genre’s culture to that of your audience?”
“I stole every idea I could, and I tried to make my little two-and-a-half minutes as interesting and entertaining as possible. Because entertainment equals: Surprise me.”
“If I was a method actor,” Emmanuel explains, “what I’m doing is—I’m writing music for the film that’s in my head. So, I don’t think, ‘I’m just the guitar,’ ever. I always think it has to have that kind of orchestral, not grandeur, but … palette to it. Because of the influence of Stevie Wonder, Billy Joel, and Elton John, especially—the piano guys—I try to use piano ideas, like putting the third in the low bass a lot, because guitar players don’t necessarily do that. And I try to always do something that makes what I do different.
“I want to be different and recognizable,” he continues. “I remember when people talked about how some players—you just hear one note and you go, ‘Oh, that’s Chet Atkins.’ And it hit me like a train, the reason why a guy like Hank Marvin, the lead guitar player from the Shadows.... I can tell you: He had a tone that I hear in other players now. Everyone copied him—they just don’t know it—including Mark Knopfler, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, all those people. I got him up to play with me a few times when he moved to Australia, and even playing acoustic, he still had that sound. I don’t know how he did it, but it was him. He invented himself.”
YouTube It
Emmanuel performs his arrangement of “What a Wonderful World,” illustrating how omitting a harmonic backdrop can have a more powerful effect, especially when playing such a well-known melody.
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