Three Classic Les Paul® Wiring Options:

So... What is the Best Les Paul Wiring Harness?

The Les Paul has remained relatively unchanged since humbuckers were added in 57'. From then till now, three simple wiring layouts have remained dominant for their ability to draw out a myriad of soul turning sounds.

We have laid out what we know about the 'vintage 50's', 'modern 60's' and '60's Plus / Treble bleed' wiring, to help you find the best Les Paul wiring setup.

Before we get started:

Don't like reading?

Head straight to the bottom of the page. There is a video.

You need to use your tone and volume controls...

The Les Paul wiring harness and most others are designed in such away that they will have very little effect on your tone with everything set at ten. These all use 500k pots, they all use a 0.022uf capacitor, and with everything set to max, your high notes will do their high note things, and you mids and your bass notes will do their things too.

Set any dial to nine, or seven, or four, and the differences between the below three wiring options start to shine. 

If you do not like using your tone and volume controls - you can likely find a better wiring setup for the way you play.

What about the SG, Tele Deluxe, PRS etc...?

Good question, easy answer. This whole guide applies to all of them. If you have two humbuckers, two volume controls, two tone controls and a three way switch, this guide will probably work for your guitar too.

Why are the wiring diagrams not complete? 

We are focusing on the differences between these diagrams so to keep it simple, we have ignored everything else. 

Also note that the physical wiring of the tone control has changed over the years, but the result is the same. These changes are not shown in our diagrams.

Vintage 50s --Vs-- Modern 60s --Vs-- 60s Plus

  • Les Paul Wiring Diagram - Vintage 50s
     

    Les Paul 50s Wiring

    The Vintage 50s Les Paul wiring is the 'Holy Grail' for many. It is perfect for rolling between your classic 'crunch' tone and soulful cleans as smoothly and simply as possible.

    The technical difference:

    Its all in the order of the tone and volume controls. Vintage 50s wiring places your tone controls, after your volume controls.

    Volume Control Wiring: 

    Lug 1: Input from Pickup HOT
    Lug 2: Output to switch + Tone Control Circuit
    Lug 3: Soldered to Ground / Back of Pot

    The ground wires, or outer braid of vintage style wires is soldered to the back of the pot.

    The difference for you:

    Vintage 50's wiring is the easiest way to roll between clean and crunch tones.

    Setup your amp so it is at the edge of break up at around 7 on the volume control, with your tone controls at 10. Crank the volume control up to 10 to drive your amp through to overdrive, or back it down towards zero for your cleans. Bliss.

    The catch - The tone controls will effect your volume levels, making your perfect tones harder to find in a live situation. Clarity at lower volume levels is easier to find than with a modern 60s wiring setup, but not as achievable as with the ever clear 60's Plus / treble bleed wiring.

    Advantages

    • Smooth treble roll off with volume control
    • Easily roll between crunch and clean 

    Disadvantages

    • Tone controls also effect volume levels
    • Not as tweakable as '60's Plus' Wiring 
    See Diagram
  • Les Paul Wiring Diagram - Modern 60s
     

    Modern Les Paul Wiring

    Modern 60s wiring puts the tone control circuit before the volume control. This makes the tone and volume controls more independent, but causes an abrupt treble roll off with the use of your volume control. 

    The technical difference

    The modern 60's Les Paul wiring moves the tone control circuit in front of your volume controls.

    Volume Control Wiring: 

    Lug 1: Input from Pickup HOT + Tone Control Circuit
    Lug 2: Output to switch
    Lug 3: Soldered to Ground / Back of Pot

    The ground wires, or outer braid of vintage style wires is soldered to the back of the pot.

    The difference for you:

    The modern 60's wiring separates out the effect that your tone and volume controls have on each other.... almost. 

    The catch - a new issue is created, where the resistance in the volume control, works in series with the capacitance of your cable, to create a big, inescapable tone sink. The result - wind back your volume and lose all of your highs / treble / clarity.

    Advantages

    • Tone controls will not effect volume levels

    Disadvantages

    • Abrupt treble roll off with volume control
    • Sharp drop in volume levels at top end of volume control
    See Diagram
  • Les Paul Wiring Diagram - 60s Plus / Treble Bleed
     

    'Obsidian® 60's Plus' Wiring

    Like the 'Modern' wiring, but with a treble bleed on each volume control, which allows treble to skip the resistance of the volume pot. This keeps your sound bright and clear at all volumes.

    The technical difference:

    The Obsidian 60's Plus wiring is like the modern 60s wiring, but it includes a treble bleed mod. on each volume control.

    Volume Control

    Lug 1: Input from Pickup HOT + Tone Control Circuit + Treble Bleed
    Lug 2: Output to switch + Treble Bleed
    Lug 3: Soldered to Ground / Back of Pot

    The ground wires, or outer braid of vintage style wires is soldered to the back of the pot.

    The difference for you

    This setup offers the greatest clarity at lower volumes, and the is most versatile of the three classic Les Paul wiring options. The volume controls are also have the smoothest taper from 1 - 10, and the tone controls will not reduce your overall volume. 

    The catch - It is not as simple to smoothly roll between clean and crunch as the vintage 50's wiring.

    Advantages

    • Retains clarity at lower volumes 
    • Smoother volume control taper 
    • Tone controls will not effect volume levels

    Disadvantages

    • Not as simple to use as Vintage 50s Wiring 
    See Diagram

Yeah but... What is the BEST Les Paul wiring?

The best Les Paul wiring harness is the one that helps you find the tone you want, and helps you achieve it as simply as possible.

Choose...

Vintage 50's

For amazing sounding Les Paul, that smoothly rolls between clean and dirt tones with the use of the volume control.

Obsidian 60's Plus / Treble Bleed  

For clarity at lower volumes, and very useable independent tone controls

Modern 60's 

For rolling from beautiful crisp crunch to deep warm cleans.

Or... Choose different wiring for each pickup

The best part about Les Paul wiring - Each pickup gets its own suite of tone and volume controls, so you can choose a different wiring setup for each side. 

I personally love to use Vintage 50s wiring for the neck pickup, and '60's Plus' wiring for the bridge pickup.

The Obsidian® MKII Wiring...

The Obsidian® MKII wiring for Les Paul® is built with switchable 50s & 60s wiring so you can experiment and find a combo you love.

Buy Here

To help you choose... A Demo Video

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We have developed our MKII wiring with switchable Vintage 50s & 'Obsidian® 60's Plus' Wiring in one. You can even select one for your bridge pickup, and the other for your neck...

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MKII for Les Paul® (Vintage 50s & Modern 60s Wiring)
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