EMG 808 Installed and Working Without Tone or Volume Pots

From the beginning of my multi-string baritone project pickups have been a pain in my ass. If it wasn't pole pieces completely out of alignment with the strings it was one of various buzzes.

I finally won. I bought an EMG 808 on eBay a quite some time ago but I never got serious about installing it for a variety of reasons. Those reasons have melted away and I couldn't be happier.


I just nosed in under the line on maximum string spread. There are multiple sources online for wide pickups designed for extended range instruments but they are made in small numbers and a little pricey. I'm glad I got the 808 to work.

The documentation supplied by EMG with the pickup shows two wring scenarios--with and without tone control. As I pored over them (I really, really don't understand electrical circuits) I realized that the volume control could be eliminated in much the same way as the tone control.

Eliminating nobs has been a design goal from the start. For me volume and tone pots are little more than additional points of failure. I almost never use them.


I don't know that I'll remove all of the zip ties, since they are actually working pretty well, but I do need to tiddy things up and remove the old output jack.