# Where do you buy your pot(s)?



## crann (May 10, 2014)

Looking for some nice marij....I mean guitar parts. I'm going to guess most people use stewmac, but anyone know of anywhere else to buy pots, switches, jacks etc. Especially with free shipping on small orders?


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## Lincoln (Jun 2, 2008)

Potentiometers - Canada


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## crann (May 10, 2014)

@Lincoln thanks! I've seen this site before, but the name left something to be desired. Next gen guitars? Anyways, I'm guessing you had a good experience with them?


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

The owner - Jon Beals - is a member here, and benefits from the feedback provided by members. He's also got a reputation to maintain amongst members and those whom members speak to. He's not going to carry anything that members have expressed reservations about or had bad experiences with.


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## player99 (Sep 5, 2019)

Next Gen is a great resource. I highly (pot reference) recommend shopping there.


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## greco (Jul 15, 2007)

mhammer said:


> The owner - Jon Beals - is a member here, and benefits from the feedback provided by members. He's also got a reputation to maintain amongst members and those whom members speak to. He's not going to carry anything that members have expressed reservations about or had bad experiences with.


+1000 for Next Gen and Jon!


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## knight_yyz (Mar 14, 2015)

It's cheaper to buy them from Amplified Parts, but it will take longer to get there than from Next Gen.


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## Vally (Aug 18, 2016)

Nextgen, great to deal with, fast shipping


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## greco (Jul 15, 2007)

knight_yyz said:


> It's cheaper to buy them from Amplified Parts, but it will take longer to get there than from Next Gen. .....


...and you are not supporting a fellow Canadian.


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## knight_yyz (Mar 14, 2015)

Next Gen, Bourns 250k pot is 5.39 plus tax and shipping. Amplified parts is 3.29 CDN. If I buy 20 at a time? Sorry cheaper price wins my business.


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## knight_yyz (Mar 14, 2015)

FTR I have placed many orders with Next Gen includimg the speakers in my 2x12.


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## Lincoln (Jun 2, 2008)

crann said:


> @Lincoln thanks! I've seen this site before, but the name left something to be desired. Next gen guitars? Anyways, I'm guessing you had a good experience with them?


Yes, I have ordered from "Next Gen" many times and every time the customer service has been flawless. Products are flawless too. No Junk. Ever.


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## keto (May 23, 2006)

crann said:


> @Lincoln thanks! I've seen this site before, but the name left something to be desired. Next gen guitars? Anyways, I'm guessing you had a good experience with them?


Yup, well known long term member with solid rep. Deal with confidence.


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## cboutilier (Jan 12, 2016)

Nextgen is a good business to deal with. It would have to be local pickup, or a significant saving, for me to head elsewhere.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Wherever you get your pots, make sure the collet is the appropriate length to poke through your guitar's body or pickguard. You don't want to accidentally order something too short or too long.


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## Silvertone (Oct 13, 2018)

mhammer said:


> Wherever you get your pots, make sure the collet is the appropriate length to poke through your guitar's body or pickguard. You don't want to accidentally order something too short or too long.



Isn't there only really too sizes? Short and long. Short is 3/8" and long is 3/4". I guess this is for the only pots I use for Gibson style guitars though. CTS pots. I usually make my top thickness about 3/16" - 1/4" which works well for the short pots. Also keep in mind that there are washers, nuts, and lock washers you can apply to make the necessary minor adjustments for heights. I just bought 20 of each for about $20, just to have in my tool box.










I also use Stew Max so if I keep it around $20 there will be no taxes, shipping, or duties. As long as you do not need them immediately.


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## 1SweetRide (Oct 25, 2016)

crann said:


> Looking for some nice marij....I mean guitar parts. I'm going to guess most people use stewmac, but anyone know of anywhere else to buy pots, switches, jacks etc. Especially with free shipping on small orders?


ALways NextGen.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Silvertone said:


> Isn't there only really too sizes? Short and long. Short is 3/8" and long is 3/4". I guess this is for the only pots I use for Gibson style guitars though. CTS pots. I usually make my top thickness about 3/16" - 1/4" which works well for the short pots. Also keep in mind that there are washers, nuts, and lock washers you can apply to make the necessary minor adjustments for heights. I just bought 20 of each for about $20, just to have in my tool box.


All quite correct and worth mentioning. It's just easier (and often cheaper) to pay attention and order exactly what you need.


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## Silvertone (Oct 13, 2018)

Thanks for this thread. I was actually just thinking of buying a stock of these. I've built quite a few guitars now and they have mostly been kits. If I do build a full finished guitar I usually go with a pre-wired setup. I've purchased a couple of pre-wired sets from Stew Mac and they seem to be a little pricey. When I look at building my own and using the same stuff, it does't seem to be much cheaper.

For example 

- Stew Mac pre-wired harness - Can$125 
- Stew Mac wiring kit (not soldered) - Can$95
- Stew Mac parts for the same kit / harness - Can$90

If I look at Next Gen quickly - the same parts are - Can$80 That is a substantial savings but then I do not pay for shipping with Stew Mac but it may take 4 weeks. It looks like an order of $149 or more is free shipping though. Hmmm.

Does anyone have any comments? I would like to hear from someone regarding vintage stuff. I realize that the vintage market is niche an probably not gonna save much on a LUXE Bumblebee PIO cap but would like to hear where people are getting the vintage correct stuff as well. It doesn't look like Next Gen sells those. Thanks.

Cheers Peter.


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## crann (May 10, 2014)

@mhammer @Silvertone huh, so my wife was right, shaft length does matter.


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## jbealsmusic (Feb 12, 2014)

Wow guys. Thanks for all the awesome supportive comments!



mhammer said:


> Wherever you get your pots, make sure the collet is the appropriate length to poke through your guitar's body or pickguard. You don't want to accidentally order something too short or too long.


Correct. However, one should also consider the bushing's diameter. Western standard is a 3/8" diameter bushing with 3/8"-32 thread (conveniently, the same nut size/thread used on Switchcraft and other Western open frame jacks). If your guitar was made overseas, the stock pots might have a smaller diameter bushing, requiring you to widen the holes if you buy replacements with a 3/8" diameter bushing.



Silvertone said:


> Isn't there only really too sizes? Short and long. Short is 3/8" and long is 3/4". I guess this is for the only pots I use for Gibson style guitars though. CTS pots.


1/4" (short), 3/8" (standard), and 3/4" (long) are the common bushing lengths used on guitars. 1/4" are used on guitars with pickguards. 3/8" are used on pickguards and guitars with tops that are a maximum of 1/4" thick. 3/4" long bushings are for guitars with thick tops.



> Also keep in mind that there are washers, nuts, and lock washers you can apply to make the necessary minor adjustments for heights. I just bought 20 of each for about $20, just to have in my tool box.


Every pot with a 3/8" or 3/4" long bushing should come with 2 nuts, 1 lock washer, and 1 flat washer. They are needed for proper height adjustment. Most places sell them separately if you need extra.

Best of luck with your wiring upgrades!


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## Dorian2 (Jun 9, 2015)

Another happy Nextgen customer here. Thanks jbeals


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## knight_yyz (Mar 14, 2015)

If you want vintage pots you need to look for Bourns #92 at about 13+ USD per pot. They use a copolymer for the resistance strip


Bty I sell premade harnesses cheaper than StewMac. See the classifieds


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## greco (Jul 15, 2007)

mhammer said:


> It's just easier (and often cheaper) to pay attention and order exactly what you need.











That includes paying attention to the shaft knurl type (unless you like to possibly have to mess with making the existing control knobs fit or want to buy new ones) ....
From @jbealsmusic 's Next Gen site...(see line 7.."Shaft Knurl")


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## Silvertone (Oct 13, 2018)

greco said:


> View attachment 289126
> 
> That includes paying attention to the shaft knurl type (unless you like to possibly have to mess with making the existing control knobs fit or want to buy new ones) ....
> From @jbealsmusic 's Next Gen site...(see line 7.."Shaft Knurl")
> View attachment 289124



Is this a metric vs imperial thing? I order CTS pots, usually, and they come with the imperial splines, I believe, which match with the imperial knobs. I recently was sent knobs for the Futura build and he sent me metric knobs.

Regards Peter.


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## greco (Jul 15, 2007)

Silvertone said:


> Is this a metric vs imperial thing?


I'm not sure. 

@jbealsmusic Need your help here. Thanks.


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## DaddyShred (Aug 11, 2019)

mhammer said:


> The owner - Jon Beals - is a member here, and benefits from the feedback provided by members. He's also got a reputation to maintain amongst members and those whom members speak to. He's not going to carry anything that members have expressed reservations about or had bad experiences with.


Does he have a brick and morter store? Or purely online. Been checking out his stuff because of you all recommending him and realized he's a buddy from back in the day lol. Would love to send him my business when I do my Tele build.

Sent from my SM-N960W using Tapatalk


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## jbealsmusic (Feb 12, 2014)

Silvertone said:


> Is this a metric vs imperial thing?


Yes... Insofar as that the original tooling for a 24-spline shaft was set up on machinery that used imperial measurements and the original tooling for 18-spline shafts, more common everywhere else in the world, was based on metric measurements. And, the two have commonly become known as being USA/Imperial (24-spline) and Import/Metric (18-spline).

However, both can be made using imperial and metric-based tooling. So, not really.



> I order CTS pots, usually, and they come with the imperial splines, I believe, which match with the imperial knobs.


CTS pots most commonly come with 24-splines because that is what is most commonly expected from CTS in our industry. However, they can and do make pots both ways.

*Random Thoughts About Terminology In Our Industry*
Most of the common nomenclature in our industry is based on "vintage" terminology. When we say USA vs Import, it implies there is a difference in either manufacturing origin (USA vs overseas) or measurements (Imperial vs Metric). However, both are mistaken. First, the pots used in our industry aren't made in the USA anymore (except for a select few very expensive specialty brands). They haven't been for a long time. Second, pot manufacturers all use metric based tooling. It just so happens they are accurate to within +-0.01mm, so they can make stuff to imperial measurements. For instance, a 1/4" shaft is actually a 6.35mm shaft. The only reason I know any of this is because I've spoken directly with a handful of potentiometer manufacturers about having pots made for us. I even have a number of custom made samples at the warehouse from different manufacturers I've had do up some prototypes for us.

Here's a fun fact for our consideration... CTS are considered to be "USA", but they aren't made in the USA and their split shaft pots are 6mm in diameter. So, are they actually Import/Metric? 

Note, I'm not railing on you in particular. I just field conversations and questions like this daily from people trying to make sense of all of it, when it doesn't all make clear sense. I wish our industry used standardized terminology, rather than continuing to use the classic language of USA vs Import or Imperial vs Metric. Maybe we should just be saying what the product is and what the measurements (or spline counts) are. At least, those are my random thoughts on the subject.



DaddyShred said:


> Does he have a brick and morter store? Or purely online. Been checking out his stuff because of you all recommending him and realized he's a buddy from back in the day lol. Would love to send him my business when I do my Tele build.


We have a warehouse in Nepean. Drop by some time and say hi:
Contact Us - Next Gen Musical Ltd.


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## Cardamonfrost (Dec 12, 2018)

I know I am in the minority here, but for 5$ I can buy the official Fender/Gibson pots at my LGS. I know that's double the cost, but they always seem to be highest quality. They always have them in short/long and solid/splined.

C


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## THRobinson (Jun 29, 2014)

+1 for NextGen

also Philadelphia Luthiers... although USA, they sell some stuff I can't find up here, so often to make shipping worth while, I add-on stuff like pots.

Also always sites like DigiKey.

Rotary Potentiometers, Rheostats | Potentiometers, Variable Resistors | DigiKey


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Boy am I glad I like pots with solid shafts and knobs with set-screws!  Glad almost all of my guitars have controls attached to a pickguard instead of through the body. Makes like a lot easier!


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## jbealsmusic (Feb 12, 2014)

mhammer said:


> Boy am I glad I like pots with solid shafts and knobs with set-screws!


LOL. Except you can get solid shaft pots with 6.35mm shafts and ones with 6mm shafts. Also, knobs with set screws come for either 6mm (which won't fit on a 6.35mm shaft), and/or 6.35mm (which will be slightly askew if mounted on a 6mm shaft.) You can't escape the torment completely!


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

I use set-screw knobs on spline-shaft pots! HA!!


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## tomee2 (Feb 27, 2017)

knight_yyz said:


> Next Gen, Bourns 250k pot is 5.39 plus tax and shipping. Amplified parts is 3.29 CDN. If I buy 20 at a time? Sorry cheaper price wins my business.


I'm getting $3.25us for a 250k bourns pot.


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## jbealsmusic (Feb 12, 2014)

knight_yyz said:


> Next Gen, Bourns 250k pot is 5.39 plus tax and shipping. Amplified parts is 3.29 CDN. If I buy 20 at a time? Sorry cheaper price wins my business.


I always say people should go where they get the best value for their money. Generally for most things we come in cheaper after shipping (especially with free shipping), but not always. That's why we offer to price match should you find an order cheaper delivered to your door from elsewhere:
Prices & Payment Options - Next Gen Canada


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