GK + TP

[Snarf]

I know this has been asked before but finding what I'm looking for is hard.

How do I go about squeezing in a gk3 and the tripleplay system into one guitar?

[Snarf]

Also if anyone knows if there is a internal kit for the TP and where I would get it please let me know

[gumbo]

..also have a look at (Forum member) "Vade" 's threads and posts on combining platforms..
FWIW, I also manufacture 'Parallel' (or 'Y-type') pickup cables that allow you to run two platforms from one hex pickup.

Contact me offline for more information if that is appropriate.

Kind regards,
Peter

[Spider]

@Gumbo
Write more about your Y cable here!

[Vade]

Morning Snarf;

Hired Gun started a thread about installing a Fishman Triple Play (FTP) and internal GK3 in the thread I'll link below. I followed his lead and documented my progress starting on page 3 of that thread. I checked with Fishman a year or so ago and they were not selling the internal kits at that time. If this is still the case then you'll need to start with a guitar with the internal FTP as a base and then add the GK3 using Roland's internal kit. I used a Fender FTP but those are difficult to come by these days so you might do better to try finding one of Godin's FTP models although I know of no reports where someone actually used a Godin as a base for this mod. I'd suggest you start by skimming the thread to get an overview of the project and returning later to study the diagrams if you decide to proceed.

Good luck to you!


https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=15974.0

[alexmcginness]

I put a triple play and a GK-3 on my Strat. What you have to do is reverse mount the GK and then the TP pickup will fit beside it. I also had to drop the bridge pickup on my strat to be level with the pickguard.All is good. If I knew how to post picks here Id show you>

[GuitarBuilder]

I like the idea of adding the internal GK kit and using the FTP hex pickup to feed both boards.  Gumbo has a very elegant solution for the wiring - plug and play!

[alexmcginness]

I like the idea of adding the internal GK kit and using the FTP hex pickup to feed both boards.  Gumbo has a very elegant solution for the wiring - plug and play!

where is that post? Is it new? I was directed to a thread here on the forum, a while back,  that was so confusing and in the end still left me asking, " so is it possible to use 1 hex pickup to drive the TP and VG units."

[Elantric]

where is that post? Is it new? I was directed to a thread here on the forum, a while back,  that was so confusing and in the end still left me asking, " so is it possible to use 1 hex pickup to drive the TP and VG units."

Vade did that - its a lengthy process detailed in his Tripleplay Strat Mod thread

(a bit more confusing now that all linked PhotoBucket pics can not be viewed
https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=15974.0

[alexmcginness]

Vade did that - its a lengthy process detailed in his Tripleplay Strat Mod thread

(a bit more confusing now that all linked PhotoBucket pics can not be viewed
https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=15974.0

It was completely confusing before. :-) The one thing I took away from what I read was, its not wise to even attempt this as you might melt ... "something"... if you dont know what resistors to use to bridge " whatever" ... hex pickup you decided to use to run both the GK and TP with.
   If it was easy that would be great. If there was some sort of kit with the proper electronics that you could just hook it up and go ... even better, but to attempt to do this with limited knowledge and no clear instructions is a suicide attempt Im not willing to try. More power to those that can pull it off. I just mounted both side by side on my strat and all is well.

[Vade]

Just to make things a little easier I'll repost a couple of things. Hope it helps.

Hired Gun started a thread about installing a Fishman Triple Play (FTP) and internal GK3 in the thread I'll link below. I followed his lead and documented my progress starting on page 3 of that thread. I checked with Fishman a year or so ago and they were not selling the internal kits at that time. If this is still the case then you'll need to start with a guitar with the internal FTP as a base and then add the GK3 using Roland's internal kit. I used a Fender FTP but those are difficult to come by these days so you might do better to try finding one of Godin's FTP models although I know of no reports where someone actually used a Godin as a base for this mod. I'd suggest you start by skimming the thread to get an overview of the project and returning later to study the diagrams if you decide to proceed. Good luck to you!

https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=15974.0

...and from page 3 of the thread.

As regards this thread, there are many pictures and it's a record of a work in progress; that can make it seem more complicated than it is. The bottom line is that when using a Fender FTP Stratocaster as a guitar to mod you can run a simple 8 wire jumper from the built in FTP to a Roland GK3 internal kit you buy and install. Fender's built in hex pick-up will feed both the FTP and the GK3. That's the essence of the mod and that's pretty simple. Everything else is about how you want to place the GK3 and set up the controls for the GK3; you'd have to figure that out for any guitar where you wanted to install an internal GK3. If you do decide to go this route I'd highly recommend Gumbo as a source for the 8 wire jumper and his Synth-Linx 13 pin connectors. He knows his stuff and he's a whole lot of fun to work with. (Think Mad Max Kangaroo toting a guitar) Best of luck and have fun if you decide to go this route.

This is what it sounds like live...

https://soundcloud.com/vadie/ambient-steel

[alexmcginness]

Seems simple enough in theory but like Yogi Berra once said" In theory, theres no difference between theory and practice... but... in practice, there is. "
   It was a lot less hazardous for me to mount the GK and the Triple Play pickups side by side on the same Strat than to start doing surgery on the electronics of the TP wart. I lose the bridge pickup on the Strat as it has to be lowered to pickguard height to accommodate the edge of the TP pickup but I dont use the magnetic pickups any more as Ive modeled the strat into the VG 99, so all is good. It looks like a Borg machine but since I only use the TP for studio work, no one else gets to see it.
   Hats off to the guys that worked out using one hex for both.

[Vade]

@ Seems simple enough in theory but like Yogi Berra once said" In theory, theres no difference between theory and practice... but... in practice, there is. "

I hear ya and yeah... taking a chisel to my brand new Fender Strat really caught my attention. But I went from the Strat on the left to the Strat on the right and I'd do it again. Enjoy!


Uploaded at Snapagogo.com

[Vaultnaemsae]

I did a mod to the internal GK-2A (yes, not a GK-3!) of a GC-1 to add FTP support with the help of Gumbo. It's not hard to do but will require some cutting and planning. Another issue as documented in the threads on this mod is that you need to manage the input sensitivity if you are using the GK hex strip.I saw a thread on the forum that documented the process of that. Good luck.

[alexmcginness]

@ Seems simple enough in theory but like Yogi Berra once said" In theory, theres no difference between theory and practice... but... in practice, there is. "

I hear ya and yeah... taking a chisel to my brand new Fender Strat really caught my attention. But I went from the Strat on the left to the Strat on the right and I'd do it again. Enjoy!


Uploaded at Snapagogo.com

My two pickups are mounted the same however the warts are side by side at the strap button and out of the way. The pic on the right looks great but I know "me" and my luck with twidling with modding electronics. Getting to that point would probably cost me a Triple Play and get me back to where I am now and thats with both mounted side by side the way Ive got them now. If I was using the TP live all the time then maybe Id have to give it a go, but Im only using it to record with and all my live gigs I use backing tracks and my guitar rig is a VG-99.
   Your finished job looks great.

[Snarf]

Thank you all for the great replies! I'm gonna lurk those threads for abit, I am leaning towards the internal Gk3 method.

I really like the concept of having one pickup that can function with both a gr55 and the FTP.