Beneddetto S-6 pickup wired to Fishman rare earth Switchjack

[Eldon Howe]

Can I attach the Fishman switch jack in this manner?
Directly under and touching the Beneddetto S-6 pickup
The wires and jack itself will be attached with a cover of CF cloth.
This will allow the pickup to be removed.
The Fishman rare earth pickup was damaged, so this would be a salvage job.

I will remove the circuit board/battery’s

[Randolph Rhett]

Are you just trying to use the jack? If so, they are available for less than $10 new on Ebay, not much more from AllParts or StewMac. No need to deal with unsodering or repurposing a used part. Also, it is my understanding that CF is conductive and the outside of the jack sleeve is the ground. I don't know what effect that would have on your circuit. Is that on purpose?

[Eldon Howe]

Thanks Randolph,
The jack comes with a plastic sleeve that slides around the outside of the jack.
So, I would need to Isolate any jack from even the pick guard CF.
I was wondering more about possible accidental shorting out /etc. with the jack touching the bottom of the pickup.

[David King]

Presumably all the conductive surfaces of a guitar want to be connected to ground so no problem having the jack touch the CF. That said I doubt you'll find any continuity in the CF due to the insulating properties of the epoxy matrix. Your photo is too small to show me any potential shorting to the pickup but Rare Earth implies this is a magnetic pickup with a coil or two. The coils are lightly insulated wire wrapped around plastic bobbins but the terminals are where your jack body (which is at ground) could cause a short. You could apply silicone RTV or hot glue to the terminals and tape over the whole thing in black electrical tape.
You might test the coils with a continuity meter to make sure they are still intact before putting a lot of time into insulating everything. Alternatively you can plug the pickup into an amp and see what you get. A loud buzzing would indicate a coil break. If it's quiet you can gently tap on the pickup with a steel paperclip or screwdriver and listen for an amplified "tap".

[Eldon Howe]

Here’s a closer photo
The Benedentto pickup is new maybe I’ll just get a new jack.
You can see the black insulative sleeve to the left. I'd rather not use it due to height issues.
So the black electrical tape would work well enough.

[David King]

Eldon,

From what i can see in the photo the Benedetto's wiring is all sealed under epoxy so there is no chance of shorting. The copper shield on the back needs to go to ground to be effective so no problem with it touching the barrel of the jack.

[Eldon Howe]

Thanks,
The wiring diagrams that came with the Benedetto S-6 show 3 wires from the pickup.
My S-6 only has 2 wires the bare shield and the white wire.

• If I follow the Benedetto diagram there is only one signal wire going to the pickup and I am done.

[Eldon Howe]

However, if I follow the Schatten T-2 thumbwheel diagram
• They use a capacitor as the jumper ( I think wire) between the thumbwheels and two wires a positive and negative to the jack.

I know nothing?? Which diagram too use?

[Mark Swanson]

The photo you show has two wires from the pickup, the inner wire and the outer shield. The shield is the ground wire, and it is the one that solders to the back of the pot.
Some schematics show the capacitor connected in different ways, but they all get you to the same place. If you use the diagram you posted you will be fine.

[Eldon Howe]

Thanks everyone,
I think I'll Keep the thumb wheels connected and use the capacitor.