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How to Guide - Fitting a 4-way Pre-Wired Harness to a Telecaster!

How to Guide - Fitting a 4-way Pre-Wired Harness to a Telecaster!

A very long overdue 'how to guide' post here today looking at the step by step process of installing one of our Signature Series 4 way Telecaster wiring harnesses along with a fresh set of pickups! The 4 way harness takes your traditional 3 pickup positions of neck only, neck and bridge parallel and bridge only, but adds a 4th position where the neck and bridge are in series providing a beefier tone. It requires a little more work than a standard 3 way, but the results are great! 
01 February, 2020 by James P Gascoigne
Tags: 4 way Tele install 4 way telecaster Fitting a pre-wired guitar harness Home of Tone Blog Home of Tone harness Home of Tone Harnesses Home of Tone pre-Wired Home of Tone Pre-Wired Harness How do I fit a pre-wired harness how to fit tele harness How to guide How to install 4 way wiring installing 4 way wiring Mcnellt T-bar McNelly T-Bar pickups Pre-Wired Pre-Wired Guitar harnesses tele tele wiring telecaster telecaster wiring
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Home of Tone Record of the week - Minus The Bear, Highly Refined Pirates

Home of Tone Record of the week - Minus The Bear, Highly Refined Pirates

There are certainly albums that seem to freeze moments in your life and preserve the memories perfectly everytime you play it. This is one of those albums for me, Minus the bear's 2002 album, Highly Refined Pirates. I was 17 and I'd just learnt to drive, that stage in life where all you seem to want to do is go on road trips and spend copious amounts of time in this newly found freedom. I was at a friends house talking music and going through his record collection when he said 'you really should check these out'. One of the albums he passed to me was this amazing thing! We listened to it then and there, but it remained on repeat in my car for so long afterwards. I was absolutely captivated by it, and remain to be to this day. Catchy melodies, amazing guitar parts and interesting time structures and rhythms. It sat so well with me, and remains one of my all time favourite albums.
03 August, 2018 by James P Gascoigne
Tags: home of tone blog Minus the bear Minus the bear highly refined pirates Record of the week
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Meet the maker - Florian Bouyou of Millimetric Instruments.

Meet the maker - Florian Bouyou of Millimetric Instruments.

The work of Florian Bouyou first came to the attention by the tip off from a friend via the visual social world of Instagram. I wanted to note this in particular as the visual aspect of that media platform is reflective of what perhaps demands your attention when first gazing upon a Millimetric Instrument. Handbuilt in Canada by Florian, A hypnotically simplistic style and design greets you, and it is clear that there are so many more influences than just the guitar world behind these instruments and the Millimetric brand aesthetic.. I was really keen to learn more about that. I've personally been infatuated ever since, keen to see more of his work and to learn more of the brand, so I knew at some point I had to get Florian involved in my Meet the maker interview series. Luckily for me, Florian was happy to speak with me! So let's delve in, as I'm itching to learn more!
02 March, 2018 by James P Gascoigne
Tags: Florian Schneider Florian Schneider interview guitar maker home of tone home of tone blog luthier luthier interview meet the maker meet the maker interviews millimetric millimetric guitars Millimetric instruments millimetric interview
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I'm importing a guitar from the USA, where do I even begin?!

I'm importing a guitar from the USA, where do I even begin?!

Over the years since beginning the shop, the sometimes baffling language of importing goods from over the pond has become almost like a first language to me. Due to the nature of what I do here, working with other small businesses like guitar, pedal, string etc makers, means there are no big distributors to provide a UK price. The calculator has to come out a hell of a lot to figure out what everything will cost to my door and whether it will be affordable to do so. It's a tightrope walk at the best of times. But because of this I very often get asked by followers of the Home of Tone for a little advice with players looking to import a guitar themselves. As I do totally understand that it can be scary doing this yourself, making sure there are no nasty unexpected bills from HMRC etc, then I'm always happy to help the best I can! So here's a handy little reference guide I've put together which may perhaps help you if you're planning on buying a guitar from the USA!
14 September, 2017 by James P Gascoigne
Tags: Guitar importing guide Home of Tone Blog Import guide Importing a guitar Importing a Guitar from the USA Importing a Guitar to UK Importing guitar form USA Importing guitar from US Importing guitar guide
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Meet the player - An interview with R.J.Ronquillo

Meet the player - An interview with R.J.Ronquillo

The last few years has seen the rise of YouTube as a incredibly immersive, influential, and powerful tool in the guitar world (among others too of course!). From providing viewers with what is essentially quality weekly TV programming revolving around our gear obsessions like the brilliant 'That Pedal Show' or 'Andertons TV', to in depth lessons and incredibly vast selections of demo, almost taking away the need to get your hands on the gear to try in a store for yourself, (almost!). This strong following on a versatile platform has resulted in a large number of talented players to get the spotlight their hard work deserves, perhaps where they otherwise may have gone unnoticed. One thing YouTube has certainly done is broaden your knowledge of talented players further than the odd guy tearing it up at the local gig venue or guitar showroom on any given weekend. YouTube has firmly made it's stamp on the guitar industry.
23 August, 2017 by James P Gascoigne
Tags: guitarist interview Home of Tone Home of Tone Blog Meet the Player R.J.Ronquillo RJ RJ Ronquillo Session Guitarist Session musician
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McNelly Charlie Christian Soapbar Pickup demo!

McNelly Charlie Christian Soapbar Pickup demo!

Using traditional components, true to the original CC Pickup design but of course in typical McNelly fashion, trying to further improve on it too. This pickup is beautifully clear and very transparent, whilst also being incredibly responsive to touch and tone/volume settings. I recorded this clean demo (which also shows it mixed with a T-Bar bridge pickup for example purposes) to hopefully show what a beautiful sounding and versatile pickup this is. Charlie Christian by name and design, but a whole lot more than just a swing/jazz sound!
20 April, 2017 by James P Gascoigne
Tags: Charlie Christian Pickup Charlie Christian Pickup Demo Charlie Christian Pickup UK Charlie Christian Pickups UK Guitar Pickups Guitar Pickups UK Handmade Pickups Home of Tone Blog McNelly McNelly Charlie Christian McNelly Charlie Christian Pickup McNelly Charlie Christian Pickup demo McNelly Charlie Christian Soapbar McNelly Pickups McNelly Pickups for sale McNelly Pickups UK McNelly UK Partscaster Partscaster for sale Partscaster for sale UK Telecaster Telecaster demo
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Thinking of swapping your pickups? - A handy guide for new tone hunters!

Thinking of swapping your pickups? - A handy guide for new tone hunters!

Changing your guitar's pickups can prove to be a brilliantly cost effective way of transforming the sound of your guitar, and also a way of bringing out the best in your instrument. For so many it has been the first port of call in modifying their guitar and changing their sound. Perhaps you're planning on tweaking a more entry level Squier for example, chances are that you love how the guitar feels and plays but it's low quality pickups just don't quite do the job. This can sometimes even be the case with higher value instruments and it's existing pickups just simply don't fit the bill for you, be it personal tastes etc.
06 March, 2017 by James P Gascoigne
Tags: Beginners guide to guitar pickups Blog filterton Pickups UK Fitting Guide gearnerds Geartalk gearwire Gold Foil Guitar Blog Guitar magazine Guitar Pickup Guitar Pickups handmade Handmade Filterton Pickups Handmade pickups Home of Tone Blog Humbucker Humbuckers James' Home of Tone James' Home of Tone Blog McNelly McNelly Bass Pickups McNelly Pickups McNelly Pickups Review McNelly Pickups UK McNelly UK P90 P90 Pickups PAF Single Coil Single Coils Soapbar Pickups Upgrading my guitar pickups Upgrading pickups
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I want to replace my guitar's wiring, would it make a difference?

I want to replace my guitar's wiring, would it make a difference?

Replacing, or in some cases, upgrading your guitar's wiring may be a matter of necessity if there are niggling faults like faulty switches or noisy pots where no amount of cleaning has brought them back to life. But you may also have considered replacing it as a way of improving or modifying the guitar too. So the big question is of course, would it make any difference and would I see any improvement? That's ultimately what I'm hoping to address in this post! I'm looking to touch on the various aspects of guitar wiring components, what to look for and why it would, or wouldn't positively help the guitar in question sound it's best.
15 February, 2017 by James P Gascoigne
Tags: 335 harness 335 wiring harness choosing guitar pots choosing the right guitar pot choosing the right guitar pots ES335 harness Firebird Harness Gibson Firebird Harness Guitar wiring Guitar wiring boards Guitar Wiring Harness Guitar Wiring Harness UK Guitar Wiring Harnesses Guitar Wiring Harnesses UK Guitar wiring loom guitar wiring mods Handwired Harness Home of Tone Home of Tone Blog Home of Tone harness Home of Tone Harnesses Home of Tone pre-Wired Is it worth upgrading my guitar wiring Les Paul Harness Les Paul Harnesses paper in oil paper in oil capacitors Pre-Wire Harness Pre-Wired Guitar harnesses Pre-Wired Harness Pre-Wired harness UK Pre-Wired Harnesses Pre-Wired Home of Tone harnesses Sg Harness should I fit a new harness to my guitar should I fit a new loom to my guitar Should I upgrade my guitar wiring Strat Harness Stratocaster Harness Stratocaster Harnesses Tele Harness telecaster Harness
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Project Offset Phase four! - Headstock refin and bone nut install

Project Offset Phase four! - Headstock refin and bone nut install

Well, it's safe to say that the Squier 'Vintage Modified' Jazzmaster project guitar has fully stolen my heart. I've really enjoyed working on it, and making it into a truly great guitar. I'm hooked!
13 January, 2017 by James P Gascoigne
Tags: Feature fender Fender AVRI Fender Jazzmaster Fender Jazzmaster Parts UK Gabriel Strings Gabriel Tenorio String Co Gabriel Tenorio String company Gabriel Tenorio Strings gabriel Tenorio strings UK Gabriel Tenorio Strings UK Dealer Handwound Handwound Strings Home of Tone Home of Tone Blog Home of Tone Jazzmaster James' Home of Tone James' Home of Tone Blog Jazzmaster Jazzmaster Parts UK Jazzmaster Project Squier Jazzmaster Squier Vintage Modified Squier Vintage Modified Jazzmaster The Guitar Show 2016
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Vintage Guitar Feature - Ben's 'Birth Year' Prized Jazzmaster

In chatting to a few players and fellow gear heads like myself over the years, the idea of owning 'birth year' guitars has cropped up a few times. Finding a guitar made the same year as yourself has a pretty cool appeal, especially if it's still affordable to do so (Sorry to those born in 1958/59!! Not so cheap for yourselves!). But for friend and customer of ours, Ben, something cropped up for sale which simply had to come home with him. 
15 October, 2016 by James P Gascoigne
Tags: 1970s Fender Jazzmaster 1970s Jazzmaster 1977 Fender 1977 Fender Jazzmaster Fender Fender Jazzmaster Fender Jazzmaster Parts UK Guitar blog Guitar Magazine Guitar Restoration Guitarists Anonymous Home of Tone Home of Tone Blog Home of Tone Jazzmaster Jazzmaster Jazzmaster Parts UK Jensen Capacitors Offset Corner Offset Fender Offset Guitars Round Core Strings Stay Trem Vintage Jazzmaster
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