How to Install the Roland GK-Kit-GT3 Divided Pickup Kit

Aug 19, 2013 | Blog

One weekend I spent a day  capturing on video my adventure…..

in modifying my brand new Fender Modern Player Marauder to install the Roland GK-KIT-GT3 permanently, internally in the guitar.  Last year I wrote about my first venture into GK land and how I installed the Roland GK-3 external pickup on an Epiphone Dot semi-hollowbody guitar.

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Per Roland’s product description:

This kit includes all parts for permanent installation of a GK-3 Divided Pickup into an electric guitar: a GK-3 Divided Pickup, circuit board, switches, power indicator LED, 13-pin connector, wiring and hardware. Professional installation is required.

  • Divided guitar pickup for use with Roland V-Guitar System, GR-20 Guitar Synthesizer, or BOSS GK Effect Pedals
  • 3-position switching between divided pickup, natural bass pickup, or mix of both
  • Mounts on any electric or steel-stringed acoustic guitar

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UPDATE:  Since the above picture was taken the S1 and S2 buttons have been recessed so they are below the surface of the guitar to avoid accidentally making a change mid performance!

First here is my video….wow, I surprised myself….I am actually getting a little better at camcorder action and iMovie editing….and then I have transcribed below my 40 steps from my spiral notebook to install this unit.  Due to YouTube’s rules, I had to split this into two parts to stay under their “10 minute rule”:

Part 1

Part 2

Since this is what I did specifically for my Fender Modern Player Marauder all of the steps might not apply to your guitar if it is not a Marauder or you decide to wire things differently than I did.  By the way, there is a great resource on all things related to V-guitar and DIY guitar projects at the V-guitar user forums site at www.vguitarforums.com.

  1. Plan the layout.
  2. Disassemble guitar. (be careful not to scratch or damage anything!)
  3. Mask the guitar as needed to protect it while you are working on it.
  4. Mark the locations for the GK components.
  5. Remove the volume and tone pots and guitar cord jack from the metal face plate.
  6. Drill test holes in scrap material.
  7. Verify the fit of all GK parts in the scrap material.
  8. Adjust hole sizes if necessary.
  9. Drill the metal face plate per your planned hole locations.
  10. Drill the S1 and S2 switch holes.
  11. Countersink the S1/S2 holes.
  12. Drill and route the GK 13 pin connector opening.
  13. Drill an opening from the GK 13 pin connector opening over to the existing guitar control cavity.
  14. Make final routing adjustments to fit the opening to the GK 13 pin connector.
  15. Route a groove in the existing guitar control cavity to all the GK preamp board to fit installed on its side.
  16. Do a test fit of all the GK parts. Make any needed adjustments.
  17. Solder the wires (per the Roland wiring diagram) to the GK select switch and the S1/S2 switches.  Be sure to route the wires through the holes you have drilled prior to soldering.
  18. Solder the wires to the GK volume pot. (per the Roland wiring diagram)
  19. Solder the guitar signal wires. (per the Roland wiring diagram)
  20. Attach the connectors to the GK 13 pin connector.  Route the harness through the tunnel and into the control cavity.
  21. Drill pilot holes for and install the GK 13 pin connector into the guitar.
  22. Install the S1/S2 switches into the 5/8″ holes.
  23. Reinstall the original guitar pots and jack.
  24. Install the GK LED.
  25. Install the GK volume pot.
  26. Install the GK select switch.
  27. Drill or route an opening for the GK divided pickup cable near the bridge pickup.  You will need to make a notch also in the guitar’s pickup ring.
  28. Temporarily mount the GK divided pickup and route the cable over to the guitar’s control cavity.
  29. Tuck all wires into their final locations and secure them as needed with tie-wraps.
  30. Attach all connectors to the GK preamp board.
  31. Place the preamp board into the control cavity.
  32. Reattach the metal plate to the guitar body with screws.
  33. Reattach the pick guard to the guitar body with screws.
  34. Install strings.
  35. Tune and set intonation.
  36. Determine proper location for GK pickup according to the string location.  Note:  Maximum distance from bridge to the pickup is 20 mm.
  37. Mark pickup screw hole locations and drill pilot holes.  Install pickup screws.
  38. Use springs or spacers as needed to obtain a 1 mm clearance between the GK pickups and the strings.
  39. Adjust the GK pickup settings on the GR-55 according to the Roland instructions.
  40. Have fun playing your GK equipped guitar.

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Finally, here is a tune I recorded using the Roland GR-55 for the cello portion and along with a mic’d ukulele.  Or Click here to check out my music!

 

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I am Free

Aug 12, 2013 | Christopher J Music

OK, this song is done.  If you have any friends who need relaxing music for their clinic, office or business, feel free to pass this piece on to them.

Here’s the story:

I recently became interested in making use of MIT’s “Open Courseware” program and I have been doing a little self-paced study of the Introduction to Music Composition course up there. (MIT Course Number 21M.065) After reading John Cage, Experimental Music and listening to some of James Tenny’s works, in the album, Postal Pieces, it inspired me to work on some new music in an entirely different way from what I had in the past, which either consisted of lyric writing and working things out on an acoustic guitar. One of the class assignments for the MIT course consisted of the following. Have you ever tried something like this. It’s amazing how tuned out both aurally and visually to much of what is going on around us every second in the world in which we live.

Choose one day (24 hours) between now and the next class. During this time, you should not intentionally initiate any sound producing event that involves music in some way. This means, no iPods, no CDs, no iTunes, no TV, no video games, etc. Please set your cell phone ringers to something generic. In other words, do not initiate passive music consumption.

At the end of the 24 hour period please write the following:

  1. How this change affected your life? (1 page)
  2. Observe the sounds around you. Observe how our sonic landscape is shaped. Is it possible to escape music in our contemporary environment? (1 page)
  3. Feel free to address anything else that came up as you did this assignment.

Anyway, I created most of what I have in I Am Free on my iPad (that was after the MIT assignment above was complete!). It is essentially an exploration of a C major chord arpeggiated in various ways and on various instruments including a Chinese ciao flute, a Steinway grand piano, a synth pad called “Deep Meditation” and an orchestral bass section.

This piece has no other purpose than to explore different sounds and free you from your tension and stress, and help you let go and become free.  So, sit back, relax and “Let go and let God”.  This is a 9 minute, 20 second track.  You can replay if you need more time to relax fully.  Here’s the song: I Am Free

 

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The Ramp

Aug 10, 2013 | Blog

A warm Saturday in August seems like the best time to build a ramp for that new storage shed so I don’t break anything trying to get in or out.

In the beginning there was The Plan….

 

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Getting Ready….

 

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Base layer….

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The Ramp….

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Next Song

Aug 8, 2013 | Christopher J Music

I am working on a new composition.  Calling it “I Am Free”.  I’m not sure what genre to classify this one under…..it sounds kind of new agey….but for some reason the phrase New Age bugs me.  I think I’ll call it Ambient.  I think it will be a good piece of music to play in the background at a massage therapy clinic or acupuncturist’s office or something.  Come to think of it I bet a lot of those folks buy New Age music….but I still don’t want to call it new age.  I suppose I could claim it as “experimental”…..Naw, I’ll stick with “Ambient”.  There are no lyrics.  But if you did want lyrics you could sing in your head, “I am Free”.

Here’s the song: I Am Free demo

You may also listen with this audio player button: I Am Free [yendifplayer type = audio mp3=https://christopher-j.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/I-Am-Free-demo.mp3]

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