My Yamaha Pacifica 112J full upgrade
Hi everyone,
I want to share the upgrade I did on my Yamaha Pacifica 112J. I have played it for about a year. I really like the neck, but I was not happy with the sound of the stock ceramic pickups. So I decided to do a full upgrade myself -- and also learn how to set up a guitar and understand how everything works.
Here is what I did:
Pickups: Tonerider Alnico II HSS set
I wanted a warmer, more vintage tone. Alnico II magnets are softer and smoother than the stock ceramic ones.
* S4N single coil (neck)
* S4M single coil (middle, RWRP so the middle positions are hum-free)
* AC2 humbucker (bridge, 4 wires so I can coil-split it)
Electronics
* 500K push-pull volume pot (CTS) -- pull up to split the humbucker into a single coil. 500K keeps the humbucker open and bright.
* 250K no-load tone pot (CTS) -- on 10 it takes the tone pot out of the circuit, so the pickups sound more open. 250K keeps the singles smooth.
* Fender 5-way switch -- reliable replacement for the cheap stock one.
* Pure Tone multi-contact output jack -- stronger contact, won't get loose.
* 0.022uF tone cap.
* Treble bleed (1nF cap + 150K resistor) -- keeps the highs when I turn the volume down.
* Copper shielding tape in the cavities -- much less hum on the singles.
Hardware
* Graph Tech Black TUSQ XL nut -- better tuning stability and smoother tone.
* Musiclily tremolo with a solid brass block -- better sustain than the thin stock block.
For the wiring I used the Tonerider diagram as a starting point and modified it a bit to add the push-pull coil-split. It all came together.
What went wrong
First time soldering and setting up a guitar and it showed. I had to strip it down and rewire it three times. First attempt: I forgot the switch-to-volume wire, aka the main signal wire the whole sound runs through. Second attempt: mixed up the lugs, so volume and tone both worked in reverse. Third time it finally all came together. I also cooked one pot along the way, and found out the stock Yamaha knobs won't press onto US-spec CTS shafts: knobless for now until the right ones arrive.
It was my first time soldering and setting up a guitar. I made a few mistakes (I even overheated one pot), but I learned a lot. To my ears it now sounds much better — warmer, quieter, and more flexible. I feel it is now above a 112V, for a reasonable price.
Cost
Parts:
* Pickups (Tonerider Alnico II HSS set): ~€120
* Electronics (2 CTS pots, 5-way switch, output jack, cap, shielding, knobs): ~€66
* Tremolo (Musiclily, brass block): ~€41
* Nut (Graph Tech Black TUSQ XL): ~€9
* Wire, solder, treble bleed parts: ~€12
Parts total: about €250 (~€130 without the pickups)
Tools (one-time, and I keep them):
* A good soldering iron: ~€40
* Small accessories for the iron (tips, stand, etc.): ~€10
Tools total: ~€50
So the parts were about €250, plus €50 for tools. The pickups were the biggest cost. Everything else fixed all the weak points of the stock guitar.
Thanks for reading! Happy to answer any questions!
P.S. Here's my Instagram where I post my modest progress: https://www.instagram.com/andrei.just.playing/