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PEC Pot post identification

Posted: 9 Feb 2015 2:22 pm
by Austin Tripp
Hey all! What are the terminals on the pec 500k pots? I.e which is the ground, input and output? Thanks!

PEC Potentiometer

Posted: 9 Feb 2015 5:01 pm
by Dick Sexton
Does it look like this?

Image

Usually this type of Pot has no connection internally to the WIPER and the configuration is left to the circuit designer. That said, the center tab or connection is the WIPER and the two outer tabs or connections can be connected as need. Ie. to ground or to the hot. On my volume pedal the center tab is the output, one of the outer tabs is the input, the other outer tab is the ground.

Posted: 9 Feb 2015 11:47 pm
by Steven Husting
If it's a linear taper pot, then what Dick said is correct - the middle is the wiper (output) and you can use whichever of the others you want as input and ground. But usually lug 1 (on the right seen from the back with the lugs up) is used as input, and 3 as ground.

If it is an audio (or logarithmic) taper pot, then there is a difference between the outer lugs. Looking at the pot from the rear, with the lugs up, the input is on the right (lug 1), and the ground is on the left (lug 3). If you hook it up backwards, it will not respond the way you expect. An audio taper pot will usually be used (but not only) for volume and tone controls.

If it isn't printed somewhere on the pot (500kA or 500kB) you can measure the DC resistance across the right (1) and middle (2) lugs with the pot set at the half-way position. If it is something around 250k (it could vary quite a bit, but is within say 50k of 250k) it is a linear pot.

steven

Linear or Log

Posted: 10 Feb 2015 4:40 am
by Dick Sexton
Thanks Steven, absolutely true...

http://www.wikihow.com/Wire-a-Potentiometer

Re: Linear or Log

Posted: 10 Feb 2015 5:25 am
by Steven Husting
Dick Sexton wrote:Thanks Steven, absolutely true...

http://www.wikihow.com/Wire-a-Potentiometer
Note that I numbered my lugs backwards ... don't get confused.

But - it calls the middle lug the input, and the right-most lug the output; that is backwards from what I usually see in guitar amps.

steven

Posted: 10 Feb 2015 8:11 am
by Marty Broussard
Good info.....I'm changing a pot so this helps

Posted: 10 Feb 2015 11:02 am
by Austin Tripp
Thanks guys I got it! Now if I can get this dang string to do what I want I'll be back in business lol.

Posted: 14 Feb 2015 3:59 am
by Bill Ferguson
You should have brought it to me last Sunday. I would have changed that pot and put a new string on in about 10 minutes.
Had to change Cowboy's on Saturday. I don't know how he was playing as bad as his sounded.

Posted: 14 Feb 2015 9:25 am
by Austin Tripp
Hey Bill! I have the pot in but I can't get the string set like it should be. Will you be in belvedere tomorrow?

Posted: 14 Feb 2015 9:34 am
by Mark Fowler
Then there is the taper, 10%, 20% or 30%.