The switching of an H-H Ibanez RG:


The switching of an H-S-H Ibanez RG:


From what you can see the 5th position (all the way to the right) on the switch, as well as the 1st position and 2nd position on both set-up will be very similar sounding.

As for the other positions, when the center position is engaged on an H-H RG both humbuckers are on at once, this gives a very full sounding tone. Think of it as the middle position on a Les Paul type guitar. It'll be thick and wooly sounding thanks to the neck pickup, but will still have bite and clarity from the bridge pickup. On an H-S-H RG the single-coil becomes the only pickup engaged, meaning there will be a drop in output compared to a humbucker pickup setting, as well as a bit more treble and bite, which is what single-coil pickups are known for. Think of it as the middle switch position on a standard Strat.

As for the second switch position, on an H-H RG the neck pickup goes into what is called "parallel" mode, basically it's running like two single coils together. This gives it a bright and crisp tone with strong treble, think a humbucker with single-coil voicing. It's a pretty good setting for cleans. An an H-S-H RG you don't get a parallel setting, just another series one, and it's essentially a slightly crisper neck pickup tone.

I highly recommend you try out both configurations for yourself, let your ears be the true judge.

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Current "Heard":
UV777PBK - UV7PWH - UV7BK "Green Dot" - UV7BK "Green Silver Dot" - RG7620VK - RG7420BK - RG1527RB

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It allows for a Humbucker and Strat like tones..... My fav pup situation is H/S/H

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Jocko

08 Gibson Raw Power SG
08 Ibanez 770DX
06 Ibanez SA with Amber Curly Maple Top
95 Ibanez Iceman
90 Ibanez RG 550
79 Yamaha 335 Acoustic

Thankyou for the replies - I am grateful for the time you have spent answering my questions
and especially MaxOfMetal for the diagrams.

I haven't managed to get to a shop yet to try any out but I did find a clip on youtube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTYqZJCUWe0 - and I think the guitar is in the 4th pickup position, so looking at the diagrams that's the two inside coils - I quite like that sound.
But I'm not sure if that's parallel or series, it doesn't say parallel on the diagrams so maybe its series?

But I will try to get to a store this weekend to have some fun :)

Thanks again for all your advice

To my knowledge (have never been a huge Strat fan), in the fourth position on a Strat it's actually running in series with the neck and middle pickups being active. It would be closer sounding to the fourth position on the H-S-H guitar, then the parallel connected fourth setting on the H-H model.

Though this only applies to "Standard" configured Strats, as in those without the S-1 switch.

Not to say that you couldn't wire an H-H RG to have a similar tone, it just wouldn't be available factory.

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Current "Heard":
UV777PBK - UV7PWH - UV7BK "Green Dot" - UV7BK "Green Silver Dot" - RG7620VK - RG7420BK - RG1527RB

GUITAR SET-UP AND MAINTENANCE
Ibanez Catalogs---Megatron's Trem Guide
Need replacement parts? Go here.
Want to talk to Ibanez USA (Hoshino USA)? Then call this number (PA area code): (215)245-1648.
OFFICIAL IBANEZ PARTS & APPAREL STORE!!!

Perhaps this diagram will help:



The fourth position on this diagram is the same as MOST Strats, as in the two pickups are running in series.

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Current "Heard":
UV777PBK - UV7PWH - UV7BK "Green Dot" - UV7BK "Green Silver Dot" - RG7620VK - RG7420BK - RG1527RB

GUITAR SET-UP AND MAINTENANCE
Ibanez Catalogs---Megatron's Trem Guide
Need replacement parts? Go here.
Want to talk to Ibanez USA (Hoshino USA)? Then call this number (PA area code): (215)245-1648.
OFFICIAL IBANEZ PARTS & APPAREL STORE!!!

Yeah just a little confused. :P This might explain a little better; but remember, "pickups" and "coils" are somewhat interchangable, as each coil is technically a pickup, so each coil of a humbucker can also be placed into any configuration.

This is serial wiring ("in series"):



This is parallel wiring:



As you can see, pickups wired in series are on the same circuit; the signal from one coil becomes the input for the other coil. This causes the second coil in the circuit to basically add to the signal from the first coil, resulting in a signal that is almost twice the amplitude (output) and has more bass response (technically, a little bit of power is lost from each frequency, but the treble frequencies are higher-energy and they lose that energy in greater proportion, so the result is a typical "humbucker" sound with more bass and less treble).

Pickups wired in parallel are on different circuits, which are then later combined into the same circuit. This type of combination doesn't result in the signals "stacking," but instead it "averages" the two signals into one signal; that signal is going to have an amplitude that's halfway between the amplitudes of the individual coils. This means it will sound a lot more like just a single coil, even though it's two coils. It will still have roughly one coil's worth of amplitude, and will retain some of the tonal qualities of each.

Both serial and parallel wiring WILL cancel hum, so some people feel that a parallel wiring may be better than a coil tap because coil taps will not cancel hum. On the other hand, the further the coils are from eachother, the less defined harmonics become, so a single coil (or coil tap) will get the most precise/clear harmonics. This is one reason why the other group of people prefer coil taps or single-coils over parallel wirings.



What you're talking about above is related to the "phase" of the pickups. In-phase means the pickups are "running oppositely," which is typically what you want; when they run opposite in terms of direction, one of the pickups will have a "north" polarity and the other will have a "south" polarity. If you actually look at a humbucker's coils wired in series, the ground goes in through the "start" of the one coil, then out the "end" of that coil, then it goes *in* the "end" of the other coil, then back out the "start" of that coil. This oppositeness is what allows the signals from each pickup to interfere constructively and "stack."

Out-of-phase is when you have two pickups (or coils) wired so that both of them are the same polarity (e.g. either "north/north" or "south/south," the label is arbitrary). When you wire them like this, the signals cancel destructively, and the "good parts" of the signal are lost and cancelled out. The only parts left are the parts that don't cancel exactly because of the different properties/locations of the coils/pickups, so you get a weak and thin sound that most people don't like.

Depending on the pickups/coils used, out-of-phase can be either really weak and useless, or neat and useful. Some positions are just too weak to hear, but the further the coils are away from eachother, the louder and more defined out-of-phase wirings get. I like the outside coils of an H-H setup wired out-of-phase, it has a sort of "washed out" radio kind of sound to it, sounds neat for jazz and fingerpicking gives it a funky tone. If I ever get a bass I will rewire it to give it an out-of-phase wiring, because slapping the wound strings with my thumb makes it sound super cool even on this guitar, I can hardly imagine how cool it would sound on a bass.

Eh the problem is I'm not 100% sure what type of wiring gives a real strat that "quack" wiring so I can't fully answer your question ... haha. I'm not familiar with the wiring on strats.

If what Max is saying is right, then the neck/middle position should be either the bridge and middle coils in series (S-S-S) or the inside bridge and middle coils, I guess in series? idk (H-S-S), and in phase. The separation between the coils will make getting clean harmonics tough but the seriesness combined with the separation of the coils will give it a wider dynamic range plus the stronger signal of the series wiring. If that's what you define as "quack" then there you go.

I've always been lead to believe that the strats 2nd and 4th positions are just the bridge/middle and neck/middle wired in parallel and in phase. The middle pickup being reverse wound specifically so that it is in phase when joined with the other two pickups. But what do i know, it's been so many decades since i touched a strat i've finally stopped having the nightmares about it.

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I finally got around to playing my very recently aquired 2EX1 today and noticed that it has the 5-way selector with the options that have been discussed in this thread. I assumed (yeah, we know what they say about that word) that it had a 3-way selector like my RG351, but to my surprise it didn't. So, I'm bored at work right now, need some time to kill, and thought I would post what I thought about the 5-way 2EX1 as compared to a 5-way on a Strat (well positions 2 and 4 anyways). The 2EX1 in positions 1, 3, and 5 are pretty typical and identical to that on my 3-way 351. We all know that the Strat positions 2 and 4 have that famous quack - position 2 on the 2EX1 nails that same exact quack to a tee. I swear that it my eyes were closed I'd say I was playing a strat (other than the wizard neck, of course). But what really took me by surprise was the position 4. This is the position that was in alot of discussion using the neck 'bucker running parallel. This did not have that strat position 4 quack. Instead, and what really got me, was that this sounded almost identical to a Gretsch Country Gentleman in the neck position. It had that almost hollowbody tone to it, which is remarkable considering this is coming from a solib body bolt on neck. It really reminds of them Filtertron pups that Gretsch uses. This position has become my favorite for cleans as I love to play rockabilly and blues as well. I am very curious to hear how the bridge pup sounds wired this same way for position 2. I may have to give it a go and find out:)

That's exactly what I would use it for - still very much resembling that Filtertron sound. I think I would like this more than the Fender 2nd position sound