new prs prices

[Twinfan]

I agree with you Bob.  Marketing and brand image are a big factor in pricing, as are exchange rates.  I feel the same about Matchless amps if it's any consolation!  :lol:

If the customer will pay the price, that's the market rate......

[jpfamps]

Re Matchless amps, I can't think of any production amp that uses a more expensive construction method.....

Also their pricing policy hasn't stopped them going bust on several occasions.

[ToneMonkey]

Ive been saving up for a prs for a while. the new price increases are massive. the DGT i liked was £2200 now £2900.mental.  :(

Think I'd rather have 6 second hand Partick Eggles instead  :D

[horsehead]

Re Matchless amps, I can't think of any production amp that uses a more expensive construction method.....

Also their pricing policy hasn't stopped them going bust on several occasions.

~Did they, I didn't hear about this! Any info on this anywhere please?

[blue]

 I know because we're planning to do just that this year with a brand new Legra PG600 but in this case the savings will be passed on to the customer.

really? sounds interesting! tell us more...

[jpfamps]

Matchless went bust in the late 1990s and were out of production for a while.

They started up again without one of the original founders, Mark Sampson. As a result there is now some BS regarding having a "Sampson Era" Matchless!

Talking to a couple of amp manufactures from the US, is sounds like they expanded to service the burgeoning Japanese market, which collapsed, and that they had warrantee issues with their early production amps due to the filter caps overheating (not surprising seeing as they were using 65°C rated Sprague Atoms).

I really like to sound of all the Matchless amps I've played through, however they can be a real pig to work on.

The method they use for construction must be the hardest to implement correctly of any current amp manufacturer, and I would personally not chose this method regardless of price consideration.

[Bob Johnson]

 I know because we're planning to do just that this year with a brand new Legra PG600 but in this case the savings will be passed on to the customer.

really? sounds interesting! tell us more...

It's a new body style, a little more RG-ish than the current one but the body and neck will be machined rather than hand made. Standard equipment will be a Kahler Pro series trem, Gotoh 381 tuners and BKP's. We'll still offer a limited range of options like fret profile, finger board radius and material on the base model; of course fully customised variants will also be available at additional cost.

[HairyChris]

Buy second hand... seriously...

Absolutely. Go and lurk on birdsandmoons as there are always interesting instruments being passed around there! It's where I got my CuRo AP. There are also good deals to be had in the UK as the used PRS market has absolutely tanked recently.

The only thing is that the £/$ rate isn't as good as it used to be... :(

As for the production/luthier argument, yeah, getting a local (UK) build would be nice but it isn't a PRS, and if it's PRS specifically that floats the OP's boat.... Take that whatever way you like! :D

[dave_mc]

that's very interesting, bob. when you say "machined" do you mean totally machined, or started off with machines and finished off by hand? what kind of options do you mean- can you choose the type of neck joint style, pickup layout etc.? and most importantly, what kind of prices (if you don't mind my asking, and if you've even decided on price yet!)? :lol:

I agree with you Bob.  Marketing and brand image are a big factor in pricing, as are exchange rates.  I feel the same about Matchless amps if it's any consolation!  :lol:

If the customer will pay the price, that's the market rate......

agreed. what really annoys me with a lot of customers, though, is that instead of banding together and saying, "that's too dear, we won't pay that", there are always sufficient numbers of eejits (not talking about you personally, dave, i mean in general) willing to pay the price.

was a similar thing with the housing boom- look what's happening now. Granted that's an enforced cut in demand (i.e. no jobs and credit), but it does somewhat make a mockery of the "that's what things cost, you'll just have to pay it" argument put forward by all the big companies a lot of the time...

Think I'd rather have 6 second hand Partick Eggles instead  :D

+1, exactly. and you can get ebony fretboards with eggles too, if that floats your boat... :lol:

[nfe]

Duh, there are a number of contributors to this forum who could and would build you something a bloody sight better than a PRS for a bloody sight less :)

Better how?  It's all subjective isn't it?  One man's meat is another's poison etc  :)

You have a point Twinfan and I'll apologise to all the PRS fans out there; sorry.
I guess I'm a bit biased toward hand builts and guitars that are made for individuals rather than mass markets. The original post was about price and it's that, that really erks me. This is not confined to PRS as you all know; guitars that are mass produced being pedaled for hand made prices; they're just a cash cow for everyone in the chain from factory to high street. Take away that chain and you can put a lot more into a guitar for the same price or reduce the price.
I know that as soon as you start machining parts and painting guitars in batches the cost of production plummets. I know because we're planning to do just that this year with a brand new Legra PG600 but in this case the savings will be passed on to the customer.

The shops aren't really making much on PRS, their markup is extremely low, when I was checking up on proces when I worked at Soundcontrol,  I could have imported any PRS from the states, getting hit with maximum tax and a hefty shipping bill, cheaper than Soundcontrol could buy the same one at trade.

Incidentally, the first time I slagged PRS on this forum, i was over the "hand made prices for machine made guitars" and I got nothing but derision.  :lol:

[Bob Johnson]

that's very interesting, bob. when you say "machined" do you mean totally machined, or started off with machines and finished off by hand? what kind of options do you mean- can you choose the type of neck joint style, pickup layout etc.? and most importantly, what kind of prices (if you don't mind my asking, and if you've even decided on price yet!)? :lol:

Hi Dave, I really don't want to turn this thread into a marketing exercise so I'm not going to talk about prices here.  The parts are chopped out on a CNC machine and finished by hand. To keep the price down the options have to be limited. We're gonna kick off with a rear routed HH layout and offer a front/rear routed HSH or HSS layout later. The neck will be a bolt on. I'll email you more info if you like.

[Bob Johnson]

The shops aren't really making much on PRS, their markup is extremely low, when I was checking up on proces when I worked at Soundcontrol,  I could have imported any PRS from the states, getting hit with maximum tax and a hefty shipping bill, cheaper than Soundcontrol could buy the same one at trade.

The owners of PMT were quoted in the MI News last year as saying "you can't operate a retail business on 25%". This was in connection with the Gibson distribution deal but was a general comment about the fragmented grey import situation and internet shops. They wanted to see 33% between trade and RRP. Do you think they make an exception for PRS then?  :D

[jpfamps]

The shops aren't really making much on PRS, their markup is extremely low, when I was checking up on proces when I worked at Soundcontrol,  I could have imported any PRS from the states, getting hit with maximum tax and a hefty shipping bill, cheaper than Soundcontrol could buy the same one at trade.

The owners of PMT were quoted in the MI News last year as saying "you can't operate a retail business on 25%". This was in connection with the Gibson distribution deal but was a general comment about the fragmented grey import situation and internet shops. They wanted to see 33% between trade and RRP. Do you think they make an exception for PRS then?  :D

And look what happened to Soundcontrol.........

[nfe]

The shops aren't really making much on PRS, their markup is extremely low, when I was checking up on proces when I worked at Soundcontrol,  I could have imported any PRS from the states, getting hit with maximum tax and a hefty shipping bill, cheaper than Soundcontrol could buy the same one at trade.

The owners of PMT were quoted in the MI News last year as saying "you can't operate a retail business on 25%". This was in connection with the Gibson distribution deal but was a general comment about the fragmented grey import situation and internet shops. They wanted to see 33% between trade and RRP. Do you think they make an exception for PRS then?  :D

There's still a markup obviously, which on guitars above the £1000 mark usually sat around 25% in my experience, PRS were particularly low markup, Gibson too. Far, far smaller than Fender, for instance.

I just think the bulk of the markup over US prices is at the hands of the distributor rather than dealer.

[MrBump]

Bob - when do you expect to have the new Legras up on your site?

Mark.