easy to install, very "tele" in the twang,
TL/DR - This time, Obsidian Wire didn't quite deliver. wrong guard, mixed plastics, and the bridge pickup had something wrong with it and was also microphonic. This added $85 to my overall purchase cost. I have *no* doubt in my mind that Obsidian Wire would have made this right. But it was a Saturday and I wanted to play my new guitar!
The review:
I was honestly really excited about this product. Overall it fell a little short. I love Obsidian Wire's units for my guitars. I found out about them because one of their units was installed in a Tele I picked up. I have them in 4 guitars now.
Time to receive and Communication: Excellent over all, especially coming from New Zealand!
Presentation: Meh. A bunch of packing bubble wrap, wrapped around the pickguard, tossed along with a sticker, and a little baggie that held the prewired output jack into a plain white box. No instructions. I get it, but given the cost and the hype, In my head I had envisioned something nicer based on the packaging and presentation for the other products I've gotten from Obsidian Wire.
The Obsidian Wire unit: It's great! - 5 way switching with a Schaller made CRL type switch, solderless, nice big axial cap for the tone, treble bleed switch, CTS pots, Bridge and middle on T2, neck on T1, and a push/pull for activating the neck. It's the Obsidian Wire quality we know and love.
The Pickguard: Meh. Felt thin, 3 ply (!), and was warped. Nothing a hairdryer couldn't fix. But why a 3 ply on a Pompeii?
Plastics: Meh again. No switch tip, three different colors were visible between the pickups and the knobs. Yes I checked for the tip everywhere. The DHL bag, the bubble wrap, the box, and even the floor.
Wiring: Great job here! It's hard to mess this up when it's the Obsidian Wire solderless right? Included prewired output jack was a very nice touch. These are all cloth covered wire pickups, jack had PVC coated wires. Who will see or know? Just me. Maybe they were out of cloth pre-wired ones. I had a Puretone jack waiting for this build, I'll save this one for a rainy day or a fix.
The Pickups: Man this was the part I was excited for! The good - The Tonerider Pure Vintage pickups in the neck and bridge delivered. The bridge however was harsh, thin, and nasally. No real bass response through any of my amps. After some troubleshooting and swapping of pickups, there was clearly there is something wrong with this poor guy and he was microphonic to boot! But it was Saturday and I wanted play my new guitar! I called my local GC who happened to be able to sell me an new SSL-5 and also had the fender plastics in Antique White! After 45 minutes and also $85 lighter in the wallet, I was back home and installing the SSL-5 along with now matching plastics into the guard. Put the neck back on, tuned up, and everything was right with the world!
You shipped it halfway around the world with the wrong pickups. I ordered it with the city limits pickups but it has classic blues pickups.
Good, well put together. Working great.
I don’t have the guitar ready yet still need to paint it
Just got the HSS/HSH Gen2 Strat harness with the Gilmour mod, and couldn't be happier with it. Build quality is great, clean work, and uses solid components like CTS pots and a Schaller selector switch. Especially awesome that it has the option to utilize either an HSS or HSH setup.
Put this in a baritone partscaster I put together with Bare Knuckle pickups. The install was super easy; it literally took me longer to disassemble and remove the old wiring I had than it did to put the new harness in. While the whole project took me around an hour, only about 20 minutes was spent putting the Obsidian harness in. Not to mention, it's awesome having the additional switching and sound options.
Will definitely be getting more of these the next time I'm upgrading or swapping pickups or electronics in my guitars. Can't recommend these enough for anyone looking for an easier way to upgrade electronics, or anyone who likes trying out different pickups since there's no soldering required.
This has added new life to my tele. I love the versatility of it and seemed to have thickened up the sound a bit.
Worked well with new fender ultra noiseless pickups. Mounting plate fits Japanese fender jazz bass which was a nice surprise. Cable attachment is a lot more secure than my old harness. I like the Larger volume knobs.
Had a little trouble figuring out the correct diagram to use. Obsidian Wire text support helped and now everything sounds great.
I put this is my Les Paul Tribute and couldn’t be happier. Wider tone control range, more effective volume control so clean to dirty sound tweaks are easier. It only took about 15 minutes to install and worked perfectly 1st try. I tried one of the other solderless systems before and it was difficult to install with tiny screws and never did work right. Obsidian is definitely the way to go - Highly Recommend!
I have built three Jazz Bass variations over the last 12 years, my first one was a fretless, and it never really sounded right and the tone was off. I Finally got around to installing your Vintage JB controls and now it sounds great. I really love your product!! Keep up the great work!
This kit is amazing. I replaced a PCB that came in a Les Paul this went in easily and it really transformed the 57 classic in the neck. It was muddy before and now it’s clear and wonderful.
In about 20 minutes, I had a guitar that sat dormant and is being used quite heavily again. Thank you so much.
...that i now don't know what to do with my other guitars that don't have this upgrade!
Just kidding, i love them! The overall tone, 7-way switch and included treble bleed mod are exceptional and a lot of fun! Installing was incredibly easy!
Absolutely recommend it!
simple, EZ to use and install, fantastic design and tone. Highly recommend.
Just what I needed and very easy to install.
I got it for a G&L tribute bass. The holes were not designed for it. I just widened the holes and done. It feels and sound so much better than the stock electronics. Can’t wait to put a different pickup. It will be a breeze.
I replaced the electronics and added a humbucker to an SSS Squire Strat. This made the process very easy! These are excellent quality too. I would buy Obsidian products again.
My second one so far, and I'll buy it again if I get a third p bass for sure
Previously, my Strat was wired with a super switch and an S1 so that it could switch between Strat switching and PRS switching. It never quite worked right. I stumbled upon this and decided to give it a shot. I took my time with the install, just to be safe. But it was easy enough to do.
Wow - the guitar sounds absolutely incredible now. So much clarity. I love the Gilmour mod; the extra tonal options are great. I can’t recommend this enough. If you’re on the fence, go for it!
For reference, the guitar is an American deluxe with DiMarzio pickups (Steve’s Special neck, Evo middle, and Breed bridge).
This is my 6th or 7th ObsidianWire harness and I love the ease as well as top notch customer service. This is my second 7 Way and both are great. One was HSS and this one which is SSS. Gilmore on both. Beautiful! Can’t go wrong. Thanks guys fo a great product.
What I didn't like is the wires don't stay in the slot like their suppose to....
What a great product! Easy installation and improved sound quality. Changing pickups no problem. Thank you mate, you New Zealander’s pride and quality workmanship make me want to move there.
