can pot and cap be switched on tone control?

No.

-- Les Cargill

Depends where you take the signal from to the next stage.

If you have simply the series connected pot & cap shunting the signal on its way to the next stage then it doesn't matter whether the pot or cap is grounded.

Frankly I don't see the signal being taken from the junction between the pot & cap in this application.

I agree with Ian on this unless you can provide a schematic that would cause me to change my mind.

Tom

There is the difference with my configuration the output signal isn't taken out of the middle of the R/C junction:

Signal from Volume Pot --> Output Jack (Branch 1) | --> Capacitor --> Tone Pot --> Ground (Branch 2)

I should tell you that the tone control seemed to work like this.

You are right; the signal does not come out of the middle of the R/C junction. Here is a more complete description:

Signal from Volume Pot --> Output Jack (Branch 1) | --> Capacitor --> Tone Pot --> Ground (Branch 2)

I should add that the tone control seemed to work with this configuration, though I don't have the greatest ear and couldn't tell if it was optimal.

Here is what I have in my bass guitar: Sorry for repeating it so much:

Signal from Volume Pot --> Output Jack (Branch 1) | --> Capacitor --> Tone Pot --> Ground (Branch 2)

And here is a typical schematic of an electric guitar:

A lot of other sites have an identical configuration for the tone. Musicians are not Electrical Engineers, however, and I wouldn't be surprised if one person got it to work and everyone else copied it.

Note there is nothing connected to the node between R and C which makes it different from the wikipedia, RC filter.

Leif

If the pot and the cap are in series then it doesn't matter which comes first.

Tom

Probably worth adding; the only reason its that particular way round in the guitar schematic is the convenience of soldering one end of the cap to the pot body - which is clamped to the finger plate screening foil by the spindle nut.