Elwray Two-Tones Passive pre-wired kit ?

[Guest Marcoelwray]

Hi chaps,

There's nothing really fixed yet, but I'm working on a two-tone (simple, two differents capcitors) circuit in passive action. I mounted the very first one on my Sire, and I found that really interesting. It gives a nice opportnuity to mix tones in a passive action. As I see that Emerson sells awfully expensive pre-wired sets (like 150£ for a JB set), and for now I simply don't have time to build basses because of the house, I'm thinking about doing the same thing, pre-wired passive circuit with quality components at an affordable price.

As I speak the current prototype is 100% working, and I thought about only one wiring possibility for now; Volume, Blend, Tone 1 & Tone 2. Of course I can stack the 2 tones !

Question is, who is interested in such a system? Or simply pre-wired sets? I have some connections in metal buisness too so MAYBE I will be able to offer custom-colored plates (gold, black, others materials like copper, brass... whatever)

I didn't really think about pricing but I have nothing to hide... Let's do some maths with higher prices:

A good CTS/quality potentiometer is about 2€ times 4 (for 4 knobs version, about the same for stacked), let's say max 10€
Cable is nothing but buisness is buisness, let's say 2€ of cable a set.
Capacitors can be expensive, I am currently trying different types; let's say 10€ for both capa.
Can't decently work for free as I have a company, so 20€ of handwork seems really honest!

OK, 42€ plus VAT (21% in Belgium), plus a gain for the company (20% is ok),  I would say I can sell a kit, pre-wired with 2 years warranty, between 60 - 80€. (53 - 71£).

Again, I really think I can put that price down, that's a quick math. I think about selling it on a cardboard, custom plates and knobs in option.

I will be happy to give the schematics to anyone wants it, the goal is here to sell a product at a good price for players who don't want to weld or tweak their instruments.

Here's a video totally improvised (sorry about that) where I demonstrate the product (video was not meant for that in the first place) : https://youtu.be/Ih1tZ-BYtPw

Let me know your thoughts about that ! Thank you very much!

Cheers

 

[andruca]

Don't want to disapoint you but just look at the internet my friend. I've had a hard time finding a prewired Jazz plate for over 15€ on eBay. Fender seems to sell some for around 70-80€ (and any "custom" electronics guy can charge you whatever sum they want), but they're outrageously out of reality. IDK, I would never pay that much (not even half). The potentiometer and cap costs you state are already pretty inflated. You defintely CAN put the price down. I wouldn't pay more then 30€. Anything over that I'd do it myself for some 10-15€ and 15min of my time, and would definitely include the S1 wiring too (swapping the volume pot for a DPDT push-pull one). BTW, you should consider the S1 in your project, good added value (a virtual bass boost for the all open Jazz Bass tone) and really cheap and easy to do. Still probably not a too viable business for the street prices you're foreseeing, IMHO.

[Guest Marcoelwray]

Truth is I didn't check what is really existing. 

But please tell me where you can find a good potentiometer (I mean kind of pot during trough ages) for less than 2€.

For the capa yes it might be inflated, but I said it, it's higher prices. We are still far from Emerson Custom kits.

You found a Jazz plate on eBay for 15€ ? Good for you, but I don't think it's made with quality materials. For some it doesn't matter, OK, but if you don't want your pot to crackle after 1 year or you want quality parts on quality instrument, I wouldn't recommand a plate at this price. 

And as you said, you can do it yourself. A lot of people can't. Do you know how many cap's I tried before finding good ones? And in these I had to find 2 others that match together.

Did I mention "my" kit will be solderless? Ah, nope. It will be. And in the maximum prices I've mentioned, it's a custom job.

But thank you for your opinion, I just disagree with you on prices. If I can create a quality kit for 50€ that's REALLY cheap for a custom handmade job IMHO. I don't want to put S1 wiring into that, I want to keep it simple & vintage if I can say... Again, goal is not buisness and making money, but doing a activity I like to do and offer my services to people.

 

PS: Chinese Kits on Ali Seems to be expensive for chinese material... 8$ a kit? Not solderless, one cap, shitty jack, 4 weeks delay, DIY,  crappy nasty wire (just aestethics, OK)...

 

Edited October 31, 2018 by Marcoelwray

[Manton Customs]

Where are you buying your CTS pots for 2 Euros? 

[Guest Marcoelwray]

21 minutes ago, Manton Customs said:

Where are you buying your CTS pots for 2 Euros? 

It's a guess... I buy them 4 or 4.5 euros, as a person, so without Vat and in bigger quantity directly at distributor I can expect about 2 euros the pot... 

[andruca]

There's pots other than CTS that are equally as good. Still, if AliExpress sells them around 2.50€ a piece I'm sure they could cost 1-1.50€ if ordering enough qualtity. My point here is it's just passive VVTT wiring, I don't see many people buying that for such high prices. I've had some very cheap basses and never had a pot crackle on me, zero times really, so not buying into the CTS hype, they're good, as good as many others that simply don't exploit the hype associated with musical gear. Manufacturing standards get better and I don't even contemplate crackling as a potential problem with pots, just buy anything when DIYing stuff (guess I've been lucky none ever crackled). The Fender plate could have CTS pots and super expensive (say 1€?) caps. And that's all that separates it from a 15€ prewired plate (and there's much cheaper than 15€), so even if it costs about 25-50% more to manufacture, it's sold for an abusive 400-600% more to the public. I don't see how just wired pots (and 2 caps) on a plate could cost what a decent onboard preamp costs. It's not negativity, sorry, it'd cost me 15€ to make that plate (even solderless), wouldn't pay more than double that to buy it ready made. A non-DIY seasoned guy could pay more, of course. I don't know how scientific your research on caps is, but there's tables all around the internet, if you tried more than a dozen caps (and probably less) you're doing no research but blind trial and error, that's not efficient and you cannot charge the customer with your inefficient processes, that's no value added. BTW, cheap chinese jazz bass plates are also "handmade" (somebody solders it, 'cause that's the way to do it), handmade is unfairly overrated, some things are better done by machines, so not buying into the "handmade" argument either, unless you manufactured any of the individual components yourself (IDK, a decorated plate i.e.).

Edited October 31, 2018 by andruca

[Guest Marcoelwray]

Ok let's say you're right.