Goodwill Stratocaster has two position switch instead of tone knob. Why?

[LeeH]

1994-1995 production date MIM Strat I picked up at GW has a two position switch instead of a knob at the bottom. Any idea why would someone make this mod? The guitar is in great shape. Switch is nicely installed. I'm just wondering why. Is this a feature or a flaw?

[redstrosekNic]

I've never seen that before. I'm curious to hear some opinions.

How does it play?

[VaSteve]

Parts caster mod probably.

[flipper35]

They didn't add active pickups did they?

[Rick Lee]

It could switch the phasing between pickups or cut that humbucker down to a single coil. Wolfe would know.

[hawaiipcar]

When you change the strings take the pick gaurd off and have a look to see how its wired. If everything works and you like how it sounds then just play it... If your unsure about it take it to a tech and have them check it and do a set-up job.

[Gogar]

It's a coil tap for the humbucker.

[BlueSkyJaunte]

What Gogar said.

[sammyg2]

yeah.




Wait, what does that mean?

[BlueSkyJaunte]

LOL

Or were you serious?

[herr_oberst]

The secret "11" switch.

"Nigel Tufnel: Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you're on ten on your guitar. Where can you go from there? Where?

Marty DiBergi: I don't know.

Nigel Tufnel: Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is, if we need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do?

Marty DiBergi: Put it up to eleven.

Nigel Tufnel: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.

[Cajundaddy]

Originally Posted by Gogar

It's a coil tap for the humbucker.

Most likely this. People did some crazy mods to Strats in the 90s but a coil tap switch (humbucker to single coil) was pretty common and useful. Explanation:
Guitar Coil Tap and Guitar Coil Tapping

[Nostril Cheese]

Pull the pickguard off and take a picture of the wiring. It's most likely a coil tap, which is a cool feature to have.

[Rick Lee]

My Soldano really does go to 11.

[stuartj]

When people put a humbucker into a strat, they often either wire it for coil tap or coil split to try to keep some ability to get a "strat" bridge sound- with varying degrees of success. That guitar has most likely got a master vol, master tone- although the tone may be gone and it has two vol controls, and the tap or split switch fror the bridge humbucker.

[72doug2,2S]

Whatever you do, never ever, and I mean ever, hit that switch. It's obviously a launch sequence of somekind.

[scottmandue]

Originally Posted by 72doug2,2S

Whatever you do, never ever, and I mean ever, hit that switch. It's obviously a launch sequence of somekind.

If you are near a wormhole and hit that switch you will be transported to a parallel universe!

I have an old Yamaha 'Santana' model that has pole switching for both humbuckers

[ramonesfreak]

looks like a coil splitter for that humbucker

[sammyg2]

Turns one of them pick-em-ups into a cowbell. I'm pretty sure.

[WolfeMacleod]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

It could switch the phasing between pickups or cut that humbucker down to a single coil. Wolfe would know.

Likely a split. Most people don't seem to like out of phase things.

That being said, doing it with a switch like that.. don't see why they didn't put in a push/pull or push/push pot instead of removing a tone control altogether.