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Hey guys. I just bought a new Bill Lawrence USA L-250 pickup, but it did not come with any wiring instructions. It has a black wire, a white wire, and a bare wire. I looked on their respective websites, and found no info. If any of you guys could tell me what wire is what, that would be great. Thanks in advance.

from : localhost/and go to the Wilde Gate link at the top left. You should be able to find the diagram there. Or just give Bill and Becky a call and ask.

Thanks, for the link. But since Bill and Becky doesnt make the pickup anymore, I cant find any wiring info.

A wiring diagram may not help in this case. Here's the deal - if you're using two BL's, it doesn't matter which wire is ground and hot, as long as you wire both pups the same. (Bare will always be ground.) Just use both blacks as ground, both whites as hot.

If, on the other hand, you're mixing two brands, ie., Lawrence and Duncan, again it doesn't matter, by virtue of the fact that there's no way of knowing if both manufacturers used the same absolute phase. For example, even if you know that BL uses black for hot and the Duncan, (Kinman, Fralin, etc.) uses white for hot, they may still be out of phase with each other.

Ultimately, you'll just need to wire them up, and see if they're in phase. You have a 50/50 chance.
If one's backwards, you only need correct the error once.

The only exception to this would be if someone else has actually used a BL with whatever else it is you're using. So . . . what, if any, is the other?

Artie


Originally Posted by Kindred_SpiritsThanks, for the link. But since Bill and Becky doesnt make the pickup anymore, I cant find any wiring info.

I beg to differ. They do make them...they make the real Bill Lawrence pickups. These are not to be confused with those from Bill Lawrence USA ( If you bought yours in a retail store, it is not a real Bill Lawrence pickup.

Bill and Becky still make them but via internet or phone sales only. They cannot be purchased in any store. Bill actually designed the SCN pickups found in the 2004 Deluxe Strats.

Its a cool rails neck, and a Dimarzio Tone Zone bridge.


Originally Posted by Kindred_SpiritsIts a cool rails neck, and a Dimarzio Tone Zone bridge.

Well . . . at least you'll have a lot of diversity in that axe.

But that still brings you back to the basic problem, that you'll just have to hook up the BL one way, and try it. If its O-of-P, reverse its wires. The only other thing that will save you a step is if someone else has actually combined a BL with a CR. (And they chime in.)

Hmm... im still having a lot of trouble. I wired it up with with white as hot, and black and bare to ground. Then i tapped the pickup to hear it in different positions. Its loudest when combined with the bridge, but when alone, and with the neck pickup, it barely sounds at all. I assumed that the pickup was out of phase with the neck, so I switched the neck pickups hot wires, and then did the test again. It was still the same. And the pickup is still very quiet when selected alone. So then i spent the next 30 mins swapping numerous wires, and it all sounded the same as when i first did the quot;tapquot; test.

Since its a strat, I cant have the strings on while I rewire it. Is the quot;tapquot; test a valid way? Or should I just string it up each time and see?

Unfortunately, the quot;tap testquot; is only good for seeing if you have any output. It won't really help for other issues. Here's what I do when I'm having these kinds of problems:

Make yourself a quot;testquot; pickguard. Use some easy to cut material, like a piece of balsa wood, or plastic, if you desire. Make it the quot;upperquot; half of the Strat pickguard, so that the control cavity is left open. Use the original pg for a pattern. That way, you can manipulate the wires, even if its just twisting them together, to see whats what. When everything is copacetic, reinstall the original. Its a bit of work, but not as bad as re-stringing the guitar 10 times . . . or more.