JTV-89 5 position switch wiring diagram available?

[urlordfu]

I did post recently about a hack-fix for my slipping 5 position switch, and that is still working. But I wanted to ask now that the JTV Variax line is EOL, is there an available wiring diagram for the JTV-89?  I did try to purchase the switch assembly but it was not available and I was hoping to get more information about that custom 5 position switch.  I do love this guitar JTV-89F with my Helix Rack and Floor unit.  It is a Lamborghini or Bugatti of guitars and sound, in my opinion at least.  I am just crazy enough to want to buy 2 of the PowerCab 112 Plus units next.  

Anyway... a switch or circuit diagram of the JTV-89(f), if not breaking any rules, would be amazing.

[psarkissian]

No diagram for the switch is available, intellectual property issues and such. But there is a pick-up connection diagram 

in the Line 6 Knowledge Base.

 

 

Pick-up connect diagram is okay,.. the switch diagram itself is verboten.

 

Check with Full Compass, may be a special order thru them for a 50-02-0121 switch.

 

[urlordfu]

Ah ok.  I have seen all of the diagrams already and it is useful but it seems if I want to replace the switch, I will need to disassemble the one I have.  And it does look like a custom print on top of a normal enclosed 5 position fender-style switch.  I could PCBWAY myself a new board on a modern switch.  But, from what you are saying regarding I.P. I should not post my findings.  Am I picking up what you are putting down?  Also thank you!  I've seen a lot of very helpful posts and so many have your signature in them.  

[cruisinon2]

On 7/25/2024 at 8:42 PM, urlordfu said:

Ah ok.  I have seen all of the diagrams already and it is useful but it seems if I want to replace the switch, I will need to disassemble the one I have.  And it does look like a custom print on top of a normal enclosed 5 position fender-style switch.  I could PCBWAY myself a new board on a modern switch.  But, from what you are saying regarding I.P. I should not post my findings.  Am I picking up what you are putting down?  Also thank you!  I've seen a lot of very helpful posts and so many have your signature in them.  

 

Yeah that about sums it up. They'll send you a copy of the report from the CEO's last colonoscopy before letting go of any IP...;)

[urlordfu]

I think it is the Parent Company that is keeping this held so close.  The U.S. patents have a ton of information and diagrams.  So there is enough out there that is legitimately available but I would rather just buy parts.  Nobody has parts in stock for JTV-90F and I don't want to just ship it off as there are no shops in 200+ miles of me up in San Francisco, CA.  Money everywhere and no parts to buy.  I like projects but ... I would rather just pay for parts and use my time to play.  And TBH my JTV-89F is flawless with my fixes(hacks).  The truss rod issue is legitimately resolved but still is a bit stripped where I had to use a StewMac 4mm truss rod tool (which is slightly tapered to grab the inside walls of the nut). I think the person I bought it from may have thought it was broken (because it was in neutral position (loose) when I received it from Reverb.com, but it was not broken at all, just VERY stripped on the 4mm nut.  And the switch selector was annoying but replacing the tension of the switch with some outside pressure (zip tie) works great.  I would like a brighter LED on my selectors but buffing the clear plastic on the underside of the knob MAY help.  I can't even find a replacement selector knob for this guitar.  I was thinking a new replacement for the POTS, Switch, and selectors would do the trick since the LED is on that assembly but it may be wishful thinking that the LEDs will be any brighter on the same exact assembly that is already installed.  My JTV serial indicates 2020 but it did seem to get a lot of play.  More likely the knobs on the bottom being polished from normal wear will improve things.   

[psarkissian]

Log a Support ticket in your account, they can tell you what your option are.

 

"My JTV serial indicates 2020,... ", close,... early 2019.

 

Stripped rod nut,... option-1, I would pull up the fret board and replaced the rod. 

By typically, they would have me do option-2,... just swap out the neck for another one,

as it doesn't take as long waiting for the glue to dry on the fret board, for a rod replacement.

 

 

[urlordfu]

Oh 2019 right.  Wishful memory I suppose.  So it's about 5 1/2 years old now.  Yeah we did that in our shop in Lynwood, WA back in my repair days; pulling the fretboard.  I never got to a point I needed to do that though and we had a great tech back then who took care of that kind of replacement and refinish.  Double action truss rods are great, but they do have that one draw-back if they get stripped out to the point you can't adjust them.  So necks for the JTV-89 are in stock still?  I guess the thing is that I would be without the guitar for a while.  Your shop is at least in the same state as me.  I'm trying to estimate shipping my guitar back and forth with parts and labor to compare to just using my StewMac tool since it is so infrequently needed for adjustments since I stick to the same string gauges and don't travel with it.  If it were a warranty repair I would do it without thinking further, but I don't have the original receipt and at 5 1/2 years old it would be OOW anyway.  If I sent it I may get that switch assembly replaced too, though.  Interesting.

[urlordfu]

I opened a ticket, listed my issues.  Then in response Bbowen asked me if there were any issues with my guitar.  I listed the truss rod, the switch, the knob.  

[urlordfu]

Ok check ticket 472371.  The responses there are not instilling me with confidence because he said my request had a lot of 'letters and words and stuff'.  I hope he is just very clever and just fishing for 'Karen/Kevin' responses LOL.  THAT would actually impress me ha.  I eat that up.  But ... I don't think he was kidding.  I work in support for medical IT as a tier 3 network and systems engineer so I may take service responses more seriously than I should.  Anyway, the impression I had from you is that you may actually be doing the work, Psarkissian.  You seem to know volumes and I have only barely scratched the service on your prolific forum responses.  You would be 'the guy' I want working on my guitar, if I do send it.  I asked for a budgetary estimate, not a quote.  Just an 'idea' of where things could go, based on what I am asking.

[urlordfu]

Udate regarding the 5 position switch in the JTV-89F: The issue was beyond needing some compression on the switch to remain steady.  In the end, I had to rebuild the switch itself.  Once I had it all apart I saw that someone had either sprayed something with residue into it or maybe it just got some kind of soda or something.  It was sticky.  So I cleaned it all off with IPA (not beer, and don't drink Isopropyl Alcohol LOL!) and re-dressed the wipers.  I also modified alignment of the wiper for the Variax side because that is such a small tolerance and it was the Variax models that were slipping on position 2.  Reset the tension very slightly and ensured all were in alignment and re-assembled switch housing after taking pictures of inside and out.  Noting that the Alpha switch case and wipers are standard, but the circuit board for the switch pads is not and does have an extra pad for talking to the Variax side which is why there are 9 pins connected and not 8 or 7.  
Now, all back together after bench testing and perfect tension between the 5 positions and no matter how I move the switch laterally (i.e. left-right versus different positions of up/down, simulating a bump on the switch knob etc.), it does not flip the models in WorkbechHD, as it was doing before.  So it's cleaned, very lightly silicon greased on the bearing and nylon pivot of the metal shielding, and I am super happy!  I don't think this is something most guitarists are going to want to do to their Variax guitars though so while it worked for me, I have been working on guitars for 30 years, some of those earlier years were as a trained professional luthier and guitar tech and I can't recommend this to anyone unless you are out of warranty and like to break your expensive things and/or make them worse than when you started.  (new scratches and dings count as a partial fail too  :(  ).  I am certain that a certified Variax tech will do everything right the first time.  I did everything wrong (i.e. I had no spare parts because they are not available for purchase as of July of 2024, and I used an imperfect guitar workbench).  I was just lucky that I could lean on some distant-past experience and come out on top of the issue.

[silverhead]

Glad you got it sorted out. Thanks for the update.

[urlordfu]

I am coming back to this post to say everything is still working great as of August 17, 2024 for the switch. I am working with FullCompass.com for a Neck replacement as my truss rod adjustment nut is badly stripped out.  The action is great right now, and I'm not in a humid climate where I live but I will eventually need to tweak the action from time to time. 

So ok, my switch is working in Variax but looking at my Magnetic pickups I have a question. For anyone interested, check your free downloadable manuals, but here is what is in there in ascii format:

 

(Neck 1)                     (Neck 1)

(Neck 2)   (Neck 2)   (Neck 2)

       |                 |                |

       |                 |         (Bridge 1)   (Bridge 1)  (Bridge 1)

       |                 |         (Bridge 2)         |          (Bridge 2)

       |                 |                |                  |                  |

  (Pos 5)       (Pos 4)     (Pos 3)        (Pos 2)     (Pos 1)

 

           (JTV-89/F pickup selector for magnetics)

 

What is strange is that I am having a hard time hearing the difference between Pos 1 and Pos 2 or Pos 5 and Pos 4.  That should be an audible difference between humbucker and single coil. Is that normal audible behavior for all you JTV-89(F) owners? What do you think PSarkissian? I appreciate your helpfulness and depth of knowledge, PSarkissian.

 

 

[psarkissian]

Chances are a neck replacement would come to me to do, as we don't sell those retail anymore.

I would have to check my spare necks here. We have sold spare necks through FC in some time.

 

The 'split coil' difference I hear it fine, but then, I have a reputation for having bat hearing.