Fixing the RG652 — Pickup Diagnosis Done Properly
🔗 https://community.guitartalk.co.za/d/30436-30436-fixing-the-rg652
modulator had an Ibanez RG652 that sounded dead. Not bad — dead. The thread documents exactly why, and exactly what he did about it.
The bridge pickup measured 17.3kΩ — massively overwound, all output and no definition. The neck pickup was reverse polarity in this particular guitar. He'd already swapped the neck unit for a DiMarzio PAF Pro with the Air Mod applied (a spacer modification that opens up the sound slightly), but the bridge was still a problem. It got replaced with a Mo' Joe, and the Virtual Vintage slugs were pulled from the PAF Pro to tighten the top end. New CTS pots, new tone cap, earth bus strips instead of soldering to pot casings — the full treatment, done right.
The practical note buried in the thread is worth flagging: a wire got pinched against the magnet during reassembly and killed all output. Took a while to find. Check your wires before you button up.
Anyone else done pickup surgery on an RG? The cavities on these are always a mission.
🔗 https://community.guitartalk.co.za/d/30436-30436-fixing-the-rg652
