Changing pickups in an Ibanez S

[NikolajBak]

Hi.
I seek some help changing pickups in my guitar. It's an Ibanez S5570-tks.
Electric Guitars S - S5570 Prestige | Ibanez guitars
I've bought a Seymour Duncan Sentient/Nazgul set, and my goal is to make them function (switching-wise) like the stock-pickups . I know the basic soldering principles, but I'm new to this stuff. Can I just replace the wires (I'm aware of the different color-codings) with the new ones, or is there something else I should do? And last, which diagram matches my guitar? I'ts a 5-way lever switch (I think).

Best regards!

 

[xtacles]

It's pretty simple if you aren't wanting to change the switching setup or pots, etc. You've got the idea- remove the old pickups wiring (leave the pots/switch stuff) and solder in the new pickups. When you remove the old pickups, take note of where and how they are connected to the selector.
You can find wiring diagrams from SD here:
Wiring Diagrams - Seymour Duncan | Seymour Duncan
And their wire color coding here:
What Are Your Humbucker Wiring Color Codes? | Seymour Duncan

 

[NikolajBak]

It's pretty simple if you aren't wanting to change the switching setup or pots, etc. You've got the idea- remove the old pickups wiring (leave the pots/switch stuff) and solder in the new pickups. When you remove the old pickups, take note of where and how they are connected to the selector.
You can find wiring diagrams from SD here:
Wiring Diagrams - Seymour Duncan | Seymour Duncan
And their wire color coding here:
What Are Your Humbucker Wiring Color Codes? | Seymour Duncan

Thanks! It doesn't look too difficult. Is there a way to identify how the switch works and which way It should point? I've come across a lot of different diagrams, but I'm not sure how to compare them to the switch in my guitar. It looks like it's an "import" switch.

 

[Petar Bogdanov]

Thanks! It doesn't look too difficult. Is there a way to identify how the switch works and which way It should point? I've come across a lot of different diagrams, but I'm not sure how to compare them to the switch in my guitar. It looks like it's an "import" switch.

What's an "import" switch? Ibanez guitars are Japanese. They do use proprietary switches, which are designed for specific wiring combinations, as opposed to the universal switches all other companies use.

Does it have a single row of pins on the bottom of the switch, or two rows on the sides? Any lettering?

 

[Varland]

As someone who has personally retrofitted a set of pickups (BKP WP bridge, Juggernaut neck) into an Ibanez S with a 2H setup, I would make sure is that the neck pickup has a reversed magnet. Otherwise you might have issues mimicking stock (I believe stock is Neck Serial, Neck Parallel, N+B Serial, Inner Coils Serial, Bridge Serial).

Edit: My bad, should have checked the link first, my statement was true for 2H, didn't realize you were working on an HSH.

 

[Petar Bogdanov]

As someone who has personally retrofitted a set of pickups (BKP WP bridge, Juggernaut neck) into an Ibanez S with a 2H setup, I would make sure is that the neck pickup has a reversed magnet. Otherwise you might have issues mimicking stock (I believe stock is Neck Serial, Neck Parallel, N+B Serial, Inner Coils Serial, Bridge Serial).

Edit: My bad, should have checked the link first, my statement was true for 2H, didn't realize you were working on an HSH.

This doesn't relate to the thread, but you can reverse the magnet yourself, or settle for the inner coil bridge + outer coil neck setup, it sounds fine.

 

[TheKindred]

Thanks! It doesn't look too difficult. Is there a way to identify how the switch works and which way It should point? I've come across a lot of different diagrams, but I'm not sure how to compare them to the switch in my guitar. It looks like it's an "import" switch.

Most diagrams will indicate which way the switch is sitting. I.e. neck side/bridge side.