Guitar-X Pickup Back Plate Installation Guide

This guide explains how to prepare and mount a pickup onto the patented Guitar-X system, creating a hot swappable guitar pickup that can be swapped in seconds. At the end of this guide you will have created an interchangeable pickup for use in the Guitar-X system.

This instruction manual is for use with Guitar-X Pickup Back Plates

Warnings

  • We are not liable for any damages caused during improper installation. You may void any warranties by adapting pickups.
  • Before following this guide, you should be comfortable and competent at soldering and have a basic understanding of pickup wiring.
  • This process permanently modifies the pickup. Installation requires shortening the pickup wire and removing the pickup baseplate legs.
  • Pickups with centralised pole pieces, such as humbucker-sized P90s, may also require the pole pieces to be shortened (not covered in this guide).
  • You cannot mount a pickup larger than 70mm x 39mm as it will not fit through the Guitar-X Pickup Frame. 
  • The Guitar-X system is recommended only for use with passive pickups. We do not offer advice or instructions for active pickups.

Please read the instructions and above warnings carefully before beginning installation.

Parts

Ground Plate

Fix Plate

Brass Bolt

Fix Plate Cover

Instructions

Sand the connectors

Sand the bottom of the spring connectors on the fix plate to remove any excess glue and ensure a clean surface ready for soldering. Use at least a 120 grit sand paper.

Lubricate the bolt thread

Apply a light coating of oil or similar lubricant to the bottom of the brass bolt.

Remove pickup screws

Remove the four screws from the back of the pickup. If necessary, remove the baseplate legs.

Mount the ground plate

Position the brass bolt on the pickup and place the ground plate over the top, threading the bolt through the hole. Use the pickup screws to fix the ground plate over the top, ensuring the bolt turns freely.

Pass the pickups wires through the fix plate

Cut pickup wire to approximately 8cm, then strip 1cm of outer casing from the end. Strip approx 2mm from each smaller wire to leave enough for soldering. Then pass the wire through the fix plate hole.

Mount fix plate

Place the fix plate onto the brass bolt, then turn the bolt counter-clockwise using a 3mm allen key. This will draw the plate down onto the bolt.

Place rubber ring

Place the rubber ring on the top of the brass bolt.

Pre-solder the fix plate spring connectors

Pre-solder the bottom of each spring connector at 310 degrees. Only solder for a maximum of 3 seconds on each connector.

Pre-solder the pickup wires

Pre-solder the tip of each wire, joining the south start and the ground wire together.

Solder the wires to the fix plate spring connectors

Solder the wires to the back of the spring connectors. Ensure this is done as quickly as possible so that the spring connectors don’t get too hot.

Use the wiring guide in the next step.

Fix plate wiring guide (4 conductor pickup)

For a 4 conductor pickup, with spring connectors facing away from you, attach wires from left-right as follows:

  1. Ground wire (usually bare)
  2. South Start (pre-soldered to ground)
  3. South Finish
  4. North Finish
  5. North Start

If you do not know how your pickup is wired, please refer to this pickup wiring colour code chart.

Fix plate wiring guide (2 conductor pickup)

For a 2 conductor pickup, with spring connectors facing away from you, attach wires from left-right as follows:

  1. Ground wire
  2. Empty
  3. Empty
  4. Hot wire

If you do not know how your pickup is wired, please refer to this pickup wiring colour code chart.

Trim excess and fit cover plate

Trim any excess wire and fit cover plate over the fix plate spring connectors.