Switcheroo: BoM and Build Guide

Bill of Materials

• 1 x panel from fricko
• 1 x Super Switch – 5 position 4 pole guitar pickup selector switch
  • Use the 4 pole (24 lug) version, not the 2 pole (12 lug)
  • Do not use a standard guitar switch
  • fricko does not stock these, but can get them by special order if desired
• 24 x PJ301BM 3.5mm mono sockets (or same foot print)
  • If you only require 3 channels, buy 18 instead
• 6 wires of different colours, each cut to 4 lengths:
  • 4 in, 3.5 in, 3 in, 2.5 in, 2 in, 1.5 in (cut generously)
  • i.e. 4 x blue 4 in lengths, 4 x yellow 3.5 in lengths, 4 x green 3 in lengths, etc
  • I recommend “solid core” wire, rather than stranded wire, as it is stiffer and less prone to splitting out.
• Wire to connect socket 0Vs together.
  • The offcut legs of resistors are useful.

Build Guide

The example build only uses three of the 4 possible channels, for visual clarity.

Step 1: Mount the switch and the sockets

• The metal plate of the switch goes up
  • Do not over-tighten the screws of the switch, as this can strip the thread: if this happens, you can just superglue the switch to the panel.
  • You can see that the switch has 4 sets of 5 lugs, plus 4 single lugs on the outside position.
• Mount the sockets so they all face the same direction as shown. Tighten your nuts firmly.
  • Because the sockets are panel-mounted, you might consider using spring washers. Or use nuts such as the “Befalco” style, which have a tightening tool available.
  • Consider using different coloured nuts, to make the distinction between the bottom row (the switched signal) and the other rows.

Step 2: Initial Soldering

• Solder the 0V of each column together. Use the centre lugs (which have no hole). A convenient way is to use offcut resistor legs: see the right-most column in the pic below. Avoid getting burned, if you are positioning the legs by hand!
  • Minimally check the connections by, for each column, plugging in cables to the top and bottom sockets, and confirming with a voltmeter across both the sleeves (i.e. not the tip) of the two cables show 0 ohms.
• Cut the wires to the lengths and install them in the same position for each set of lugs on the switch. The outermost lugs use the longest wire (they will go to the bottom row.) The leftmost free lugs in each set gets the shortest wire, them each successive lug gets the next longest.
  • A good way to solder to the lugs on the switch is to first half fill them with solder. Then stick the wire in (from the underside, which avoids shorts) and re-melt the solder to join them. Trim sticking-out wire ends.
  • Check that there are no solder drip shorting neighbouring lugs.

Step 3: Solder the wires to the sockets

• Solder the smallest wires to the row of sockets closet to the switch. The wire should go from the outside in, but be careful to avoid the 0V wires. Trim sticking-out wire ends.
• Repeat for each row. The longest wires (on the outside lugs) go to the very bottom of each column.
  • What is critical is that
    1. the wires for any row will each be the same length and colour
    2. the wires for any column come from the same set of lugs.
• Tidy the cables so that they keep in the boundaries. Some string to gently gather them may be useful. However,

If you have a stable system and want to reduce the external cabling, the (unconnected) switched lugs can be used for normalized connections. These will be overridden when a cable is plugged in.