# Easiest guitar mod ever!!



## Chris420 (Sep 1, 2021)

I recently added a kill switch to a few Squire Strats i have and its was the easiest mod that i have ever seen for a guitar lol has anyone else added these? For how easy it was i really like it. Ive been able to expand on the ways i play by adding it as an extra nuance where it makes sense without being overpowering over the rest of the sound. 🤟🏻


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## uranium_jones (Sep 1, 2021)

I tried it with a few different push-button switches until I finally found some that were reliable and robust. I currently have one that lives between the Volume and Tone knobs on my Tele switch plate. It's important to know that there are two ways to pull this mod off:

1) A momentary spst switch that is normally closed. Probably the most straightforward idea - you cut the wire going to the output jack, and solder both bits to the opposing terminals on the switch. When you press the button, it cuts the signal. Easy Peasy, CBGB.

2) A momentary spst switch that is normally open. Cut the signal wire going to the output jack and solder both to the same switch terminal. Then, solder the opposing terminal to ground. When you press the button, it immediately grounds everything going to the jack. This is the way mine is currently wired. I think it's a little bit more reliable this way, since with option 1 you might get a DC offset. Most circuits should be able to handle this, I think, but who knows.

Edit: Sho' nuff, the switch I bought was from Tayda: A-3489


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## BuddytheReow (Sep 1, 2021)

I would ask you to show us the robot porn but don't want you to sacrifice you strings. Oh well, I'll just fantasize about it


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## Chris420 (Sep 1, 2021)

quality_jones said:


> I tried it with a few different push-button switches until I finally found some that were reliable and robust. I currently have one that lives between the Volume and Tone knobs on my Tele switch plate. It's important to know that there are two ways to pull this mod off:
> 
> 1) A momentary spst switch that is normally closed. Probably the most straightforward idea - you cut the wire going to the output jack, and solder both bits to the opposing terminals on the switch. When you press the button, it cuts the signal. Easy Peasy, CBGB.
> 
> 2) A momentary spst switch that is normally open. Cut the signal wire going to the output jack and solder both to the same switch terminal. Then, solder the opposing terminal to ground. When you press the button, it immediately grounds everything going to the jack. This is the way mine is currently wired. I think it's a little bit more reliable this way, since with option 1 you might get a DC offset. Most circuits should be able to handle this, I think, but who knows.


Yes i actually want to have both and a two way toggle to switch between them. I really like the way that it kills the sound when i push it for some things but for things like rage against the machine songs id rather have a toggle to switch it over to the reverse where when i push the (revive button 🤟🏻) it turns on the sound just like guitar hero type thing.


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## Chris420 (Sep 1, 2021)

quality_jones said:


> I tried it with a few different push-button switches until I finally found some that were reliable and robust. I currently have one that lives between the Volume and Tone knobs on my Tele switch plate. It's important to know that there are two ways to pull this mod off:
> 
> 1) A momentary spst switch that is normally closed. Probably the most straightforward idea - you cut the wire going to the output jack, and solder both bits to the opposing terminals on the switch. When you press the button, it cuts the signal. Easy Peasy, CBGB.
> 
> ...


I also put it straight to the jack which is why i found it so easy. I just add one to the live wire and one to the ground and made a little hole in the plastic cover and thats all there was to it hehe. When i first saw these i expected it to be more complicated and saw some people doing it wrong and hooking it to pots and other places making it not ground properly. Then eventually saw a tutorial showing the easy straight to the jack method and decided to give it a go 🥳


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## uranium_jones (Sep 1, 2021)

Chris420 said:


> Yes i actually want to have both and a two way toggle to switch between them. I really like the way that it kills the sound when i push it for some things but for things like rage against the machine songs id rather have a toggle to switch it over to the reverse where when i push the (revive button 🤟🏻) it turns on the sound just like guitar hero type thing.


Well, both methods I talked about above describe a push-to-kill setup. If you reverse the wiring descriptions, then you can make a reverse killswitch. Probably wouldn't be that difficult to make it accompany a toggle switch to reverse the functionality. 

Personally my brain finds it easy enough to keep the killswitch pressed in, and letting off the pressure rhythmically gives the same effect as a reverse killswitch.


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## Chris420 (Sep 1, 2021)

quality_jones said:


> Well, both methods I talked about above describe a push-to-kill setup. If you reverse the wiring descriptions, then you can make a reverse killswitch. Probably wouldn't be that difficult to make it accompany a toggle switch to reverse the functionality.
> 
> Personally my brain finds it easy enough to keep the killswitch pressed in, and letting off the pressure rhythmically gives the same effect as a reverse killswitch.


Nice i wish i could easily do that as well however my brain cant seem so easily process the releasing rather then pushing. I cant properly do the “know your enemy” opening riff when using the kill switch. but if i had the switch in reverse it would be very easy lol.


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## andare (Sep 2, 2021)

quality_jones said:


> I tried it with a few different push-button switches until I finally found some that were reliable and robust. I currently have one that lives between the Volume and Tone knobs on my Tele switch plate. It's important to know that there are two ways to pull this mod off:
> 
> 1) A momentary spst switch that is normally closed. Probably the most straightforward idea - you cut the wire going to the output jack, and solder both bits to the opposing terminals on the switch. When you press the button, it cuts the signal. Easy Peasy, CBGB.
> 
> ...


Wouldn't 1 cause a pop through the amp, like pulling out the cable?
I always thought the proper way to kill a signal was to ground it, not open it.


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## Chris420 (Sep 2, 2021)

andare said:


> Wouldn't 1 cause a pop through the amp, like pulling out the cable?
> I always thought the proper way to kill a signal was to ground it, not open it.





This is how mine are setup at the moment.


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## andare (Sep 2, 2021)

Chris420 said:


> View attachment 15612
> This is how mine are setup at the moment.


So it grounds the output and it's silent.


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## Chris420 (Sep 2, 2021)

andare said:


> So it grounds the output and it's silent.


Yes exactly 🙂


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## uranium_jones (Sep 2, 2021)

Yeah, that's method #2, where the switch's default position is open and you momentarily close it.


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## uranium_jones (Sep 2, 2021)

I'm no electrical engineer, but I thiiiink this might get you the killswitch that reverses function when you toggle the DPDT switch. Somebody check my homework.


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## Feral Feline (Sep 2, 2021)

Chris420 said:


> Yes i actually want to have both and a two way toggle to switch between them. I really like the way that it kills the sound when i push it for some things but for things like rage against the machine songs id rather have a toggle to switch it over to the reverse where when i push the (revive button 🤟🏻) it turns on the sound just like guitar hero type thing.



That's how I did one in a 1590A I call "_La Petite Morte_" or the "Utter Stutter".



For some reason my hand has no problem using it either way, but my foot...
For me it's MUCH more intuitive to tap my foot on-on-on--on--on-on, than to lift off-off-off-off--off --off-off.

I've got a DPDT regular footswitch wired to switch the DPDT-momentary stomper's orientation,
I based mine on OXDFX's Morse devise:


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## Chris420 (Sep 2, 2021)

Feral Feline said:


> That's how I did one in a 1590A I call "_La Petite Morte_" or the "Utter Stutter".
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Nice!


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## Chris420 (Sep 25, 2021)

So I had a bit of time on my hands last night and also had some of my parts arrive (not enough to build the pedal yet lol) and decided to finish my idea I had for the Kill/Revive switch that has a switch to switch between kill and revive lol (I said switch a lot didn't I ) and after a bit issues from components being to close to each other i managed to get it working the way I wanted it and it’s pretty awesome so far 🤘🏻


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