FTP - Fender Fishman Tripleplay Strat - install an internal GK Kit

Started by hired gun, August 24, 2015, 03:33:50 PM

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Vade

I just picked up one as well. Gumbo's been kind enough to send me the design specs on his splitter connector which I'll be picking up from him. I'm still mulling over whether I want to go with the modified 13 pin connectors as I've never had a noise issue and it seems a relatively easy retrofit should the need arise. So let's see... Electric's going for a Triple Crown and you just declared for a Triple Crown lefty. It's like a high stakes poker game where the pots just keep growing. "I'll see your FTP GK-3 Antares ATG-1 and raise you a lefty..." I think I'll just mosey on over to the low stakes table and stand pat with my FTP GK-3.

Specialty 13 pin connectors.
https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=8888.0

Edit: 5/7/17

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.

2nd edit 1-25-18:

People are reporting that they still find this thread confusing and it's even worse since Snapagogo broke all the links to the pics I posted. Instead of trying to replace all the broken links I'm just going to try to create a simple guide for anyone wishing to do this mod. Feel free to ask if anything remains unclear. See post #128 of this thread for the guide.
Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

Vade

Post deleted after pictures lost. Not needed.

Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

admin

Remove the rear Fishman Controller plate and there is more room for GK-KIT-GT3 PC board there.

(Normal External GK-3 PCB in pic below)

Vade

@"Remove the rear Fishman Controller plate and there is more room for GK-KIT-GT3 PC board there."


That's good news. I'll take a look as soon as I can get that FTP unit out. It was not budging for me this morning and so I took a break for lunch. It does look like a convenient spot in that pic and it might be a better place to route the 13 pin output and splitter cable to as well. As to my last post, I just was taking pics and measurements as I went along and thought they might help someone else who was considering doing a mod.
Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

Vade

FTP hex pick up routing.

Bridge-> control cavity-> 1/4" jack cavity-> FTP cavity
Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

Vade

1. From reply #2 of this thread. @"it works  this is too cool you can plug a a gk-3 wort board straight into a fishman triple play oem and share the fishman pickup between the the roland and the ftp how cool is that i had a 4 inch long male to male 8 pin plug cable from a g5 pickguard that i bought with pickup and wiring that was too easy" .

Now that I've seen the Fender FTP more closely I'm thinking there's no need for a splitter cable. Just connect a female 8 pin to the open connector slot on the FTP board and run it straight to the internal GK-3?

2. My GK-3 internal kit should be here in a few days and I'll see if it tucks in nicely under that FTP board. I'd love to avoid applying a router to this guitar for the GK-3 board but it looks pretty tight in there. (Especially since I don't own a router;)
Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

Vade

1. It's interesting that the wires soldered to the FTP board are not in the same order as the GK-3 hex pickup and connector. I also tried for a few minutes to get that GK-3 pcb to fit under the FTP pcb and it seems like there's not enough space for them both in a stock configuration.

2. Just for general interest the usb/headphones pcb is located beneath the volume pots and is attached with a sticky pad. The cords are rather short and need to be disconnected to pull the output plate off.

3. I've changed my mind about the controls and will likely install the S1/S2 switches and the GK/mix/guitar switch as they are installed on the Roland Strats. As to the GK volume I may look into using a push/pull pot to replace the Headphone volume and combine the two volume functions. No idea if that's actually doable but I've not had a chance to research it yet.
Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

Elantric

On the "stock" Fender Fishman Tripleplay Strat, the controls are very different compared to a stock Strat.

The three knobs are :

* Guitar Passive PU Master Volume (250K audio taper) 

* Fishman Synth Volume  (25K linear taper)

* USB Audio return Volume  (25K linear taper)

Most complain there is no passive Tone control and there is no "Guitar / mix / Synth switch"
QuoteIt's interesting that the wires soldered to the FTP board are not in the same order as the GK-3 hex pickup and connector.

it appears the Fender Fishman Strat has these in reverse order (compared to the normal FTP PU)






Vade

Exactly, and it's that USB Audio Return Volume that I was thinking it might be possible to replace with the push/pull pot so that it would change the USB volume when "pulled" and change the GK-3 volume when "pushed". I haven't looked at the wiring at all though so it's more brainstorming than presenting a completed plan.
Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

Elantric

I found a benefit of ordering the control assembly for a JTV-69 from Full compass $34

this provides a dual pot for a master volume and other parts & switches of use

http://www.fullcompass.com/prod/240928-Line-6-50-02-0321


Vade

Not a bad idea on that JTV-69. If I decide to go forward with a GK volume on the guitar I'll look into to that so thanks.

I'll need to take a closer look as that Roland hex pinout that just arrived today seems more than just reversed but perhaps I'm not understanding you yet. I'm not too worried as Hired Gun reported that he got FTP to GK working but it does strike me as odd. I'll try to wrap my head around it after dinner...
Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

Elantric

EXTERNAL FTP PU WIRING




When comparing the  the 8 pin connector wiring sequence for External FTP PU vs  Internal (Fender) FTP PU, it appears the 6 colored PU wires (one per string) occupy the first 6 pin positions, but are "swaped pin sequence", while pin #7 (Black Ground) and pin #8 (Large Black Earth coax Shield) remain right next to each other


INTERNAL (FENDER) FTP PU WIRING






Vade

Yes, FTP external vs. internal did reverse the six wires associated with the strings so good catch there and thanks for diagramming that out.

Moving on to the FTP internal connector out to the GK-3 in we'll have different colored wires since FTP and GK-3 are using different color schemes but the FTP should feed the GK-3 just fine with a simple 8 wire jumper cable if I'm understanding this correctly.

FTP string 1 brown out -> GK-3 string 1 brown in
FTP string 2 blue out -> GK-3 string 2 red in
FTP string 3 green out -> GK-3 string 3 orange in
FTP string 4 red out -> GK-3 string 4 yellow in
FTP string 5 white out -> GK-3 string 5 green in
FTP string 6 yellow out -> GK-3 string 6 blue in
And the two blacks matching up as well.
Uploaded at Snapagogo.com
Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

whippinpost91850

Finally getting a chance to try the Triple Play Strat I just got,  I have 2 questions.

1) How can you tell if the guitar is fully charged
2) Is there a way to check out the Triple Play is working with out downloading any software.

Seeing as how I will be gutting this and putting It into a Lefty body, I want to make sure all functions before I start.

admin

Quote2) Is there a way to check out the Triple Play is working with out downloading any software.

1 ) Connect the Tripleplay USB Receiver to a Mac

2) Perform the PAIR procedure   

3) Launch Snoize OSX MIDI Monitor app

4) String up the Fender Fishman Tripleplay Strat and play the strings and watch for MIDI messages
http://www2.fender.com/support/articles/fender-fishman-tripleplay-stratocaster-hss-guitar-with-usb-connectivity-user-guide/

whippinpost91850

Thanks Good idea. Also wondering Is there any way to plug it into iPad using camera kit?
ALso charge questian

Elantric

QuoteAlso wondering Is there any way to plug it into iPad using camera kit?

After you "Pair" the FTP controller with USB Receiver  -yes

Vade

My Fender FTP Strat is on my workbench and disassembled so I can't check it for you. I recall that there was a red charging light that lets you know the Fender FTP is charging and on my regular FTP wart the light is green and the FTP is fully charged according to the FTP app; I'm guessing the Fender FTP acts the same way. There is supposed to be a dongle with the FTP software included and so you could just install the FTP software without loading all the other software or waiting for the software to download. I realize you asked for a way to avoid installing the software but that's the best I've got at the moment. I hope it helps.
Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

whippinpost91850


Vade

Good luck!

And moving on from there...  I hit a landmine and thought I'd give everybody a heads up. All connections to the Fender FTP PCB are soldered. So if you wish to remove the pick guard completely you'll probably end up removing the D-Pad from the pick guard if you don't wish to cut the wires or re-solder. I'll refer to the parts in the picture as 1 through 6 - left to right (edit:right to left). I'd start by unscrewing 1 from 2. Then, there is a screw inside the gold cylinder (2) and that screw passes through all the other parts upward of it and screws into the silver piece (6). Part 4 is the circular piece with four legs and the circle is at the pick guard with the legs facing down into the control cavity. It passes through the D-Pad PCB and secures into a circular piece of plastic (3) via catches on the ends of the legs of Part 4. These legs and catches are rather delicate and I broke the ends off of mine because I failed to release them properly from part 3. Fishman support says they can get me a spare part 4 and so hopefully that happens soon. Best of luck and perhaps you'll do better than I did now that you know.
Uploaded at Snapagogo.com
Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

whippinpost91850

Thanks for the run down. Sorry to here you broke a part. I've done that myself

Vade

Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

Vade

Houston... we have a problem. The male connector on the Fender FTP board does not match the female connector used by the GK-3. I suspect that the connectors are making metal to metal contact and so I could probably just secure them together with some tape but I'd rather get the matching connector. There's a handwritten "JK" on top of the FTP connector but that's the only thing I could see on the connector to try to identify it. I'll try calling Fishman if nobody here as a good suggestion.\
Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie

Elantric


Hirose or  JST 

see this thread

GK-3 Internal 8-Pin header connector sources
https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=9094.0


But i typically "trim the ears" with a tool I've used since building model cars as a kid
X-Acto knife


The small white connectors typically stays in place, but once you get things 100% working  - I advise place a drop of silicone RTV adhesive works to keep the connector in place

Vade

I was thinking about shaving down those arms as well and I'm glad to hear that's worked out for you. I'll do that, perform a quick test, and if all is well - it's time to chisel out a new cavity for my GK-3 kit. Many thanks.
Drachen; Fender FTP Strat w/internal GK-3, Godin xtSA w/FTP, Boss GP-10, VoiceLive 3, Scarlett 18i8, ZBox IQ01, On-Lap 1502i, D:fine 4088, 4E Dual Axis Exp Pedal, VoiceSolo FX-150, Yamaha DXR 10, Gem. M2 Flute, Special 20 Harmonicas. Fender Deluxe Reverb Mahogany Cane.

https://soundcloud.com/vadie