Highway One P - Changing Greasebucket to Traditional Tone

fourstringdrums · #1 06-10-2008, 12:15 PM

I recently got a Highway One P and I was wanting to swap out the pickups at some point, but for now I was just more interested in changing the Greasebucket back to a traditional vintage tone control.

What would I need to take out/put in in order to do this?

Now I have no electronics experience so I haven't decided yet if this will be something I'll practice with or if I'll just have a friend do it.

mongo2 · #2 06-10-2008, 02:35 PM

Go to the Fender website and check under the support heading for the wiring diagrams and parts list for the Highway 1 and an American Vintage Series (RI) Precision or other "non Greasebucket" P bass.

playibanez · #3 06-10-2008, 03:23 PM

im thinking about doing this to my jazz

what effect would it have on the tone?

fourstringdrums · #4 06-10-2008, 03:23 PM

Yes that's true. I guess I'll just have to compare schematics and just go for it. Worst case I really make a mess of things and have someone else redo it.

fourstringdrums · #5 06-10-2008, 03:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by playibanez

im thinking about doing this to my jazz

what effect would it have on the tone?

Well in my case with the Greasebucket, I've found what others have come to the conclusion of which is that the GB doesn't accentuate the lower mids and mute the highs enough when the tone is rolled all the way back. My P is fairly bright even with the tone rolled all the way back and I want to darken things up a bit.

I've wanted to get into doing some electronics work and I figured this would be a good place to start that will only cost a few bucks.

playibanez · #6 06-10-2008, 03:41 PM

that is pretty much what im looking for also acutally. im going to look into removing it from my jazz too, cant hurt.

DavidRavenMoon · #7 06-11-2008, 12:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fourstringdrums

What would I need to take out/put in in order to do this?

Just remove the tone pot and what ever components are attached to it. Get a 250K pot and a .047MF (.05) cap, and you are all set.

You can find the wiring here, and here.

EBodious · #8 06-11-2008, 12:20 AM

please post your results. i am curious about this mod too.

bass_fish · #9 06-11-2008, 01:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidRavenMoon

Just remove the tone pot and what ever components are attached to it. Get a 250K pot and a .047MF (.05) cap, and you are all set.

You can find the wiring here, and here.

uhm all the other electronics are attached to it to... so that would be a bit overkill

DavidRavenMoon · #10 06-11-2008, 01:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bass_fish

uhm all the other electronics are attached to it to... so that would be a bit overkill

I meant attached to the Greasebucket tone control.

The Greasebucket has two caps and a resistor.

The problem with the Greasebucket is it's made to roll off highs without boosting the bass. But that's the best part of a passive tone control!

fourstringdrums · #11 06-11-2008, 02:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidRavenMoon

Just remove the tone pot and what ever components are attached to it. Get a 250K pot and a .047MF (.05) cap, and you are all set.

You can find the wiring here, and here.

Thanks David

So I'm better off just replacing the tone control all together than unsoldering everything from it and rewiring?

Can I get both the pot and the cap from Radioshack or am I best to go with a guitar parts place?

I actually was reading up on it and was finding that I believe a .1uf cap would work too? That's what Fender has on all the vintage reissues.

DavidRavenMoon · #12 06-11-2008, 03:25 AM

Sure, you can rewire it. You can try either the .1 or the .05, depending on how dark you want it. I find .05 to be nice and fat.

fourstringdrums · #13 06-11-2008, 03:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidRavenMoon

Sure, you can rewire it. You can try either the .1 or the .05, depending on how dark you want it. I find .05 to be nice and fat.

Thanks. Can I get the pot and cap at Radioshack or should I go through a place like bass parts resource?

DavidRavenMoon · #14 06-11-2008, 02:46 PM

The caps in RadioShack will work just fine. Some people swear by these big 500V bumblebee caps, but the only thing going on there is at higher rated voltages you have a better chance at the cap being closer to it's actual marked value. Any small poly or mylar cap will work fine, and ceramics aren't all that bad for tone controls either.

One of the caps on the Greasebucket should be .1, the other being .02, unless they use different values for the bass version.

playibanez · #15 06-11-2008, 03:25 PM

just wondering. how much you guys think the caps and all to replace the greasebucket would cost?

fourstringdrums · #16 06-11-2008, 04:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by playibanez

just wondering. how much you guys think the caps and all to replace the greasebucket would cost?

It depends on where you get your cap. I'm looking at going to Radioshack first and getting one for about $1.50. If you buy some from www.basspartsresource.com or www.stewmac.com then it's going to be a bit more, probably around $3. I plan on trying out the Radioshack one and then testing a Fender cap and an Orange Drop cap.

If you have to buy extra wire then that will be a few. I'd say no more than probably $10 or so. But for me I have to buy an iron, stand, desoldering pump, rosin, wire, the cap etc.. because I have nothing.

fourstringdrums · #17 06-11-2008, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidRavenMoon

The caps in RadioShack will work just fine. Some people swear by these big 500V bumblebee caps, but the only thing going on there is at higher rated voltages you have a better chance at the cap being closer to it's actual marked value. Any small poly or mylar cap will work fine, and ceramics aren't all that bad for tone controls either.

One of the caps on the Greasebucket should be .1, the other being .02, unless they use different values for the bass version.

Fender's Parts list says one is a .100uf ceramic disk.

EBodious · #18 06-11-2008, 06:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidRavenMoon

I meant attached to the Greasebucket tone control.

The Greasebucket has two caps and a resistor.

The problem with the Greasebucket is it's made to roll off highs without boosting the bass. But that's the best part of a passive tone control!

whoa, i am no electronic wiz, but i am not totally foolish either (or so i like to tell myself

). i opened up my just purchased '03 hwy 1 and did NOT see 2 caps and a resistor. just a cap (i believe) that said .5 (IIRC)? did they not put greasebuckets in the first hwy1's? or is this why i got such a smoking deal on this bass? i gotta say, the tone control seemed weak, almost useless (i thought that was the grasebucket at work!!).

huh?

mongo2 · #19 06-11-2008, 07:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EBodious

whoa, i am no electronic wiz, but i am not totally foolish either (or so i like to tell myself

). i opened up my just purchased '03 hwy 1 and did NOT see 2 caps and a resistor. just a cap (i believe) that said .5 (IIRC)? did they not put greasebuckets in the first hwy1's? or is this why i got such a smoking deal on this bass? i gotta say, the tone control seemed weak, almost useless (i thought that was the grasebucket at work!!).

huh?

Correct, the first version of the HWY1 had a standard tone control. The Greasebucket came later. Consider yourself a steely eyed missile man.

I prefer the earlier version.

doktorfeelgood · #20 06-11-2008, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidRavenMoon

Just remove the tone pot and what ever components are attached to it. Get a 250K pot and a .047MF (.05) cap, and you are all set.

You can find the wiring here, and here.

This is exactly what I did to my '06 Highway 1 J-bass. I also took out the output jack along with it. It all came out as a unit. That swap did make the bass sound more like a 'normal' J-bass would with those stock pickups. I then swapped the stock PU's to DiMarzio J PU's and I didn't like the sound of the .047 cap so I just swapped back in the Greasebucket tone circuit instead of dinking around with a lot of different caps. With the Dimarzio PU's that Greasebucket tone circuit sounded COMPLETELY different than it did with the stock single coils. Those DiMarzios are side-by-side humbuckers and I like the sound of the Greasebucket now. It has more of the traditional tone control responce now where you don't have so much treble when you roll it back. I've done a few gigs with the bass and I'm gonna keep the Greasebucket circuit in there for awhile. May not change it again. )-(