Uses the bottom four strings of a Bass VI set to get a low enough total string tension for the Strat tremolo to work.
On the right is the Bass VI. Six bass strings over-stressed the Stratocaster tremolo. It barely worked, so I blocked it. On the left is the Bass IV, with the bottom four strings of the VI. The modified tremolo works perfectly. Both are custom 30" maple necks on eBay bodies.
As everyone should know, the Stratocaster guitar is actually the guitar version of the Precision Bass, which came first. The big innovation on both was the extended upper horn, a necessity on a long-necked bass for balance and to bring the low frets within reach when the instrument is hanging on a strap. Not strictly needed on a guitar, but looks great, and back in the 1950s nothing had ever been seen like it. It was an instant hit.
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A conversion neck is one that can convert an instrument from one scale length to another with no other modification. A common conversion is 34" to 32". By overhanging the 20th fret, or leaving it off, you can use the stock bridge location on the body, just adjust for intonation. Such a neck will work on any standard bass body. A conversion from 34" to 30" requires overhanging two frets, or losing one or both.
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When two pickups are wired in series, the output of one is connected to the ground of the other. The outputs are directly additive, there is no loading effect as with parallel wiring. You get noticeably more output, and usually a much fuller sound. Two pickups may be wired in series with a standard [ON-OFF-ON] switch, available at any hardware store.
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The subject of capacitors in guitars is rife with fraud and nonsense. The fact is, the capacitor is not IN the signal path, it is very much OUT of it, and only has any effect when you select it, which is probably pretty seldom. The capacitor is part of a low-pass ( or rarely high-pass ) filter, basically a frequency-dependent leak to ground. It is not making 'tone', it is taking it away. The type of capacitor that you use for this really doesn't matter at all, as long as you don't use a polarized one the wrong way. Orange Drop, oil-in-paper, film, ceramic -- makes no difference. Anyone who claims it does either has a very vivid imagination or is trying to sell you something.
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