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POTS!

paparoof

paparoof

Apr 27, 2011
1,296
691
Minneapolis
www.paparoof.com
Disclosures
fEARful koolaid drinker
#1
Help me find the right pots for me?

I do enough work on my own instruments that I'm sick of paying 7 and 8 bucks a piece for CTS pots from my local shop. So I'm looking for a better price online where I can order a dozen or so of each type I want (250K, 500k, etc....) and them just keep 'em in a drawer somewhere till I need 'em.

And as long as I'm looking to stock up, I may as well look for allthe features I want the most - right? Well one thing the guiarists seem to love so much is a looser/faster sweep so they can tust touch 'em with their pinkies and have the pot move. Well I want the opposite of that. I want my pots to stay where I put 'em, even if I do brush against 'em. I want 'em to be kinda tight and stiff feeling. Smooth of course, but not necessarily *easy* to turn.

Mouser has Bournes pots that get down around $2.50 each if I order more than ten, so that's a nice price neighborhood, but everything I read about Bournes pots says you can just about turn 'em by blowing on them.

Got recommendations?
 
#4
paparoof said:
Help me find the right pots for me?

one thing the guiarists seem to love so much is a looser/faster sweep so they can tust touch 'em with their pinkies and have the pot move. Well I want the opposite of that. I want my pots to stay where I put 'em, even if I do brush against 'em. I want 'em to be kinda tight and stiff feeling. Smooth of course, but not necessarily *easy* to turn.
Click to expand...
get the straight-up flat-back CTS pots from allparts; decent price, good quality and on the stiffer side.

(their "vintage" pots with the dimple in the back are the easy-turning ones.)

i use their linear tapers for bass volumes, works great.
 
#5
maurilio said:
bourns comes in three different torque tension (loose mid and tight)
allparts.com has all kind of pots
Click to expand...

Hey looks like this was the hint I was looking for. Mouser does indeed sell the Bournes in different torque strengths, though I only found "STD" and "HIGH".

The part numbers I ordered:
Mouser #: 652-PDA241HRT02504A2
Mfr. #: PDA241-HRT02-504A2
Desc.: Potentiometers 500Kohms Plain Shaft HIGH

Mouser #: 652-PDA241HRT02254B0
Mfr. #: PDA241-HRT02-254B0
Desc.: Potentiometers 250Kohms Plain Shaft HIGH

$2.66 each. That beats the hell outta buying 'em a pair at a time for 7 or 8 bucks each locally.


They just got here and they do indeed require a fair amount of torque to turn and they feel pretty darned smooth to boot. They look a bit taller than the CTS pots I've been buying locally, but I don't think that'll be an issue at all. I'll hopefully get some time soon to install a couple and try 'em out in the real world.

Thanks for the suggestions y'all!
 
#6
Since you said "instruments" plural, you probably have several thousands of dollars' worth of rig, and you're complaining about the price of a single CTS pot? Come on....
 
#8
iiipopes said:
Since you said "instruments" plural, you probably have several thousands of dollars' worth of rig, and you're complaining about the price of a single CTS pot? Come on....
Click to expand...

So someone should be happy paying to much for something if they have expensive gear? That post makes no sense and is uncalled for.



OP,

I use these pots, they have a pretty good amount of resistance when turning them, and they are about the only solid shaft mini pots I have found. Good quality as well
 
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#9
Hopkins said:
I use these pots, they have a pretty good amount of resistance when turning them, and they are about the only solid shaft mini pots I have found. Good quality as well
Click to expand...
if those are like the bourns minis that are the basis for the push-pulls and blend pots allparts has, they're indeed pretty good quality.

OTOH, the full-size $2 bourns "music instrument" pots from the mouser catalog are junk; i got a bagful, and a large percentage failed after a little while (2 in one guitar in one case) :spit:
 
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#10
walterw said:
if those are like the bourns minis that are the basis for the push-pulls and blend pots allparts has, they're indeed pretty good quality.

OTOH, the full-size $2 bourns "music instrument" pots from the mouser catalog are junk; i got a bagful, and a large percentage failed after a little while (2 in one guitar in one case) :spit:
Click to expand...

I ordered 25 500k and 25 250k I am down to about 7 or 8 of each pot. I haven't had any failures yet. I will let you know if that changes.
 
#13
Hopkins said:
I ordered 25 500k and 25 250k I am down to about 7 or 8 of each pot. I haven't had any failures yet. I will let you know if that changes.
Click to expand...
i had high hopes for them, both because of the Bourns name and because they were super-easy turning; after they bit me on the ass (in failure rate, in an unpleasantly steep taper, and in the "import" coarse splines that didn't fit better knobs), i turned to the dimarzio CTS pots which are terrific, with a brass shaft, dimpled back, a slightly smoother taper, the little c-clip that keeps the shaft from getting pushed through the back, and very easy turning.

absolutely no comparison, and i can sell them for like $7.50 each, still a good deal. (i just wish they had linear taper versions for bass volumes.)
 
#15
walterw said:
i had high hopes for them, both because of the Bourns name and because they were super-easy turning; after they bit me on the ass (in failure rate, in an unpleasantly steep taper, and in the "import" coarse splines that didn't fit better knobs), i turned to the dimarzio CTS pots which are terrific, with a brass shaft, dimpled back, a slightly smoother taper, the little c-clip that keeps the shaft from getting pushed through the back, and very easy turning.

absolutely no comparison, and i can sell them for like $7.50 each, still a good deal. (i just wish they had linear taper versions for bass volumes.)
Click to expand...


The ones I have don't seem anything like you describe. The taper is fine, and they are as stiff or stiffer turning than most CTS pots. I think they must be different than the full sized ones you bought.
 
#16
Hopkins said:
The ones I have don't seem anything like you describe. The taper is fine, and they are as stiff or stiffer turning than most CTS pots. I think they must be different than the full sized ones you bought.
Click to expand...
hmm, yeah; mine were very inexpensive, super-loose turning, and a very steep taper.

they were round with a basic flat back.

it's been a few years, but i think it was Invalid Link Removed.
 

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