Humbucking Pickup Wiring

by Daniel P. Coyle

Originally published as Guild of American Luthiers Data Sheet #203, 1982



The use of dual-coil or “Humbucking” pickups enables a wide range of samples of string sounds, along with a heightened complexity of switching problems. A flexible switching installation for either 6-string electric guitars or electric basses has the ability to arrange the coils of the two separate pickups in the following configurations:

a) Pickups in either series or parallel configuration.
b) Coils within the pickups in either series or parallel configuration.
c) Coils within the pickups arranged as “single-coil” or “Humbucking”.
d) Ability to select either pickup individually or both pickups at once.
e) Phase reversal between pickups.
f) Tone control defeat.
g) The regular volume control and high-cut tone control.