Prs SE upgrades questions

[Philly Q]

I don't think the USA and Korean parts are interchangeable.  I think from memory the trem can't be swapped.  I would imagine the bridges are metric (SE) and imperial (USA) so they won't fit.

They're not. I swapped out the bridge on mine for a Tonepros (recommended) and they were different parts as the SE was metric. Mini Grovers were a straight swap for the tuners. Don't bother with the Grover lockers, theyr'e a pain in the arse.

But was that just the studs, or the actual bridge itself?

[juansolo]

Dunno as I didn't have an imperial one to compare. But the threads of the locking studs were the same as the receivers (can't think of a better word for them) that the PRS bridge used so I didn't bother swapping those.

[Twinfan]

I reckon the spacing is different between the USA and Korean ones...

[Philly Q]

I reckon the spacing is different between the USA and Korean ones...

I don't!  :P


The only critical measurement is the distance between the studs, and I reckon that's 82mm, exactly the same as a typical stop tailpiece.

This doesn't actually prove anything, but TonePros only include one AVT2 specs diagram on their website.

http://www.tonepros.com/images/AVT2%20Specs.pdf

[EffigyForgotten]

So I could swap the bridge for the tonepros and the tuners for grover minis?

[EffigyForgotten]

And my bad, the bridge is the tremolo not the fixed bridge.

[Philly Q]

So I could swap the bridge for the tonepros and the tuners for grover minis?

Tuners definitely.

Trem bridge, no-one seems to know for sure.  I've got an SE with a tremolo and a couple of USA PRS hardtails, but I haven't got both versions of either type of bridge!

[EffigyForgotten]

So I could swap the bridge for the tonepros and the tuners for grover minis?

Tuners definitely.

Trem bridge, no-one seems to know for sure.  I've got an SE with a tremolo and a couple of USA PRS hardtails, but I haven't got both versions of either type of bridge!

The guitar has problems staying in tune, what direct replacement tuners would you recommend?

[Philly Q]

Any of the brands mentioned will be an upgrade on the PRS tuners, they're not very good.  Personally I'm a fan of Gotohs, but lots of people like Grover.

But have you considered replacing the nut?  The nut they use on SE models is made of some cheap plastic, it may be contributing to your tuning problems.

[EffigyForgotten]

Would a stainless steel nut be better? And I have a guitar with the grover minis and it stays in tune amazingly.

[Philly Q]

Never tried (or even heard of!) a stainless steel nut - I'd imagine metal-on-metal would cause some friction, especially using a trem. 

If I ever get round to fixing up my SE EG, I'm going to put a Graph Tech nut on it.

[EffigyForgotten]

Okay so i'm swapping the tuners for sure, I like the way the PRS usa knobs look (can I buy the same style ones for cheaper than the ones on the site?), Since the guitar is old I would like to get it re fretted with stainless steel med jumbos but I don't know where this could be done or where I would buy/find the frets, same goes with the nut i'm not sure which nuts would fit the guitar ( they are cheap though )

I am also changing the horrible EMGs but i'm a little skeptical about the aftermath, its powered by 3 ceramic mags but many say it isn't that high output, I love the duncan distortions amount of output but I hate the guitar its in and I don't think it sounds that great in the all mahogany les paul. I would like similarly high output as the distortion but tighter, clearer, punchier and more organic. The EMGs to me are so tight that the pickup sounds thin and obviously lacks character and I DESPISE the clean sound.

[EffigyForgotten]

Also I would like to know if I can order the aftermath/cold sweat set with the poles instead of screws (looks cooler but does it change the tone in any way?) and have the poles purple with the pickups uncovered/black.

[Sifu Ben]

Very much doubt you'll be able to get purple pole-pieces as they would need to be plated with a purple metal, and I don't know of anywhere doing that as an off the shelf product. You'd probably have to get them bespoke made and then supply them to Tim, which is going to be expensive. I believe the hex-head screws improve bass response, but that could be snake oil.
If you want ridiculously high output then just go for a ceramic Warpig, but seriously if you're looking at this kind of pickup I'd imagine you're relying on your amp for your distortion anyway, so how the pickup performs at gain is more important than the inherent output of the pickup.

[EffigyForgotten]

I'm not looking for a high output monster. The music I try to write is more like dream theater crossed with opeths heaviness and progression combined. I do play almost all types of metal that I can though.

I personally think the EMGs have to much output and sound tight and all but I doesn't sound very good if I playing open chords and slower stuff + the clean sound like I said SUCKS.

I have saw many bare knuckles here http://www.axepalace.com/proddetail.asp?prod=abx6s-wh&cat=100 with colored pole pieces but there's only the gold one on the site right now, I have seen them in purple, green, red, yellow and white.