Prs SE Custom

[Ted 'N' Leo]

A friend and I were in edinburgh the other day and he tried out the aforementioned Prs (the trem version).

I'm just asking on his behalf, if anyone owns this guitar, what do they think of it? We both had a go and he liked it as did I. But neither of us have any experience of Prs and it would be nice to hear some opinions.

[avdekan]

I played one at a store about a year ago. I didn't like it that much considering the price tag.
the neck was too chunky for my taste and the sound was too nice (kind of the ultimate tone in between all the archetypes). not my thing.
the build quality was good (better than the average factory assembled guitar) but not exceptional.   
I think they are a bit overpriced and the second hand rout will be truer to their value.

anyway, don't let me discourage you as there are plenty of PRS fans out there who will swear to the exact opposite of what I just said.

[dave_mc]

^ yeah, i wasn't fussed on the couple i tried recently either (i don't think it was the se custom, it was the p90 one and the singlecut). though they weren't in great nick, which is probably as much the shop's fault as prs'.

personally i'd rather have a washburn x50pro, which can be picked up for around £300 on gak, and which has nicer stock pickups too. no trem, though, if that's a necessity.

[_tom_]

I've only played the Santana SE II which I LOVED. It was just so comfy and easy to play. Still havent got round to buying one though :roll:

[Twinfan]

I find the necks are too chunky for me, but they're very well built and look great.

I really liked the semi-acoustic SE I played a while back, except for the neck of course.

If you can get on with the big neck, I think they'd be really great with a pickup upgrade  ;)

[Ted 'N' Leo]

The neck was so something we both liked actually. He's got self proclaimed "midget digits" but seemed to get on with it. Thanks for the tip on the santana _tom_, that might be a good shout. And that I'd for the rest of your comments too.

[_tom_]

Are the necks on other SEs different to the older santana se's then? I didnt think it was that chunky at all, probably about the same as my epiphones.

[Simon D]

I've got an SE Singlecut, which I've had since December 06. I tried several before buying it, to get a decent idea about build quality etc. They are very well made guitars. The construction is as good as some guitars I've seen costing twice the price, and the finishing is decent. The wiring was very neat too, accurate soldering and the wires tied with a cable tie. The major weak point, in my opinion, is the tuners - they aren't really up to much if you like to go for the big bends. I changed mine for a set of Sperzels. Pickups are pretty decent for the price point too. I swapped mine for Holy Divers, cos I wanted that specific sound.

I also tried several Customs when I was hunting around. I liked the hardtail versions, but the trem on the trem variant felt very cheap and insubstantial, particularly the arm, which felt like a pipe cleaner. Now, having had experience of the genuine PRS trem (on my US Tremonti), I think my initial impressions on the SE trem were about right.

However, for the money I still think they are excellent guitars, particularly with some of the deals that can be had on them at the moment.

Hope that helps.

[Ted 'N' Leo]

Are the necks on other SEs different to the older santana se's then? I didnt think it was that chunky at all, probably about the same as my epiphones.

I can't speak for the santana, but the one on this was quite wide, and fairly flat.

Thank you for your comment Simon, would it be possible to replace the trem if it's not that great?

[Will]

Not that impressed personally. Tried the hollowbody and soapbar one I think, can't explain, but was missing something, maybe character? Tuning was definately an issue, just wasn't quite comfortable.
Neck is too small!.... you people are weird! :? :D

[noodleplugerine]

The original Soapbar SE, the purple singlecut with 2 soapbars - Was a PHENOMENAL guitar, I would love to get my hands on one infact.

[Simon D]

Are the necks on other SEs different to the older santana se's then? I didnt think it was that chunky at all, probably about the same as my epiphones.

I can't speak for the santana, but the one on this was quite wide, and fairly flat.

Thank you for your comment Simon, would it be possible to replace the trem if it's not that great?

As far as I know, the dimensions are the same as the USA PRS unit, but it'd be worth checking. As for the unit itself, I have seen them for sale here : http://www.thomann.de/gb/prs_tremolo_acc4007.htm?sid=1ba1758181e1051eee83c85d95f1ee4a but be warned, they are expensive!

[Sifu Ben]

This is one of the problems with the SE customs, while they're nice guitars, competition at that price point is FIERCE. For £450 there are any number of gorgeous, great playing guitars that you could confidently gig with, many of them with branded hardware and electronics. You shouldn't really be having to worry about swapping hardware on a guitar at that price point (obviously you may wish to upgrade, but NEEDING to swap it is another matter). If you opt to upgrade to the PRS trem then you're talking about £650, and there's some major heavy hitters at that point. Disregarding the USA Fenders and Gibsons you could get for that money, there a numerous pro spec guitars from Ibanez, ESP etc for that money. Second hand you could get something REALLY tasty.
 I don't know if the SEs will take a Wilkinson trem, it would be cheap but would change the look. Hipshot do a PRSish bridge, but I'm not sure of the fit.

[Philly Q]

I liked the hardtail versions, but the trem on the trem variant felt very cheap and insubstantial, particularly the arm, which felt like a pipe cleaner.

I think that's partly down to the fact that the SE tremolo arm doesn't have a plastic cap on the end like the US one - it may seem like a small detail but it totally changes the way the bar feels in the hand.

I put a Fender cap on mine and it feels much better.  Worth trying before you spend £200 on a US unit!!  :)

[dave_mc]

^ ^ I'm with sifu... :)