PRS for under £600

Ant1981 · #1 02-21-2006, 01:25 PM

Hey guys,

Can someone reccomend me a PRS with a fixed bridge for under £600?

PRS are usually thousands, but I was looking at the SE Custom.

I don't know much about PRS, but I would like one. Where are they made? Is the SE Custom still a good model, as in say Ibanez do the good RG's which are Japanese made and the not so good which are Korean made?

Thanx

jaxadam · #2 02-21-2006, 01:37 PM

I wouldn't even waste your money.

The only PRS worth getting is going to cost you, and these days they are so hit or miss, it still might not even be worth it.

Ant1981 · #3 02-21-2006, 02:22 PM

Oh

Well I'm not spending thousands on a PRS.

The SE Custom is still mahogany and maple and stuff and its about £480 with a stop tail. The spec looks good.

jaxadam · #4 02-21-2006, 02:33 PM

Maple veneer. Who wants a fake top?

At least consider the standard or CE models.

Ant1981 · #5 02-21-2006, 02:38 PM

Couldn't find a CE with a stop tail.

jaxadam · #6 02-21-2006, 02:39 PM

PRS are very hit or miss. I would suggest playing as many of them as you can, and then settling on the one you like the most.

wallopwallop · #7 02-21-2006, 02:55 PM

Chances of finding a CE or a standard within budget are so slim you couldn't even fit a Rizla in the gap!!

The soapbar double cut SE got a shining review in this month's issue of Guitarist though. It's supposed to be a great guitar for the money.

Go out and try a few. If you like the feel and the sound then that's the main thing!!

If you're looking for a PRS style guitar on a budget keep a close eye on evil bay. Occasionally the Tokai replicas come up and they are supposed to be very good.

Gresh · #8 02-21-2006, 04:17 PM

I used to have a soapbar SE and it was a phenomenal guitar for the money. Good quality fit and finish, great pickups, cheap price. I'd recommend them to anyone looking for a different sound. I currently have a multi-thousand dollar PRS and it is of higher quality all around, as it should be, but in the bang for the buck category, the SE's are hard to beat.

Ant1981 · #9 02-21-2006, 05:10 PM

I was looking at the SE Custom again, and the Maple top which is veneer that someone said is fake, well arent all maple tops veneer? Veneer is still real maple tho, so its not fake. Even on les pauls its topped.

I'd go for one of those, cos I'm not gonna spend over a grand on one, it isnt worth it. I've got RG's that cost £500 and play like my £1500+ Jems and they are all set up well.

An SE standard is about £440, so well within budget and £480 for the SE custom.

Rotti · #10 02-21-2006, 05:26 PM

It is real maple, but a veneer implies it is paper thin. On a Les Paul the top is fairly thick. Anyway theres nothing wrong with veneers and the SE's are supposed to be good for the money.

Ant1981 · #11 02-21-2006, 05:37 PM

Hmm I see what you mean, but still, the tops are asthetic, and the mahogany body is what counts. I may go for it, as other wise its either this for £480 or £1,500 for the same kind of thing as a Standard or CE model.

My way of looking at it is my £500 Ibanez RG's fitted with DiMarzio's dont really sound or play any better than my £1,500+ Jems. But you love a Jem in the way you would a Standard or CE i guess.

Chud · #12 02-23-2006, 08:07 PM

I really wouldn't bother with the SE's.

Someone oin my class at college has one and it sounds/looks and feels terrible. Just the biggest waste of money IMHO. It looks like something he bought from Gamleys (for Americans - that's a toy shop in Britain

)

It's up to you i guess, but i really wouldn't

ChopTart · #13 02-23-2006, 08:30 PM

I'm sure it's like anything else one would consider buying - get an opportunity to try before you buy. If you like the tone and feel, then it really shouldn't matter if it's an SE or not, and like Korean Ibanezes, there are good ones. Either way, the soapbars do look quite nice...

gu1tar · #14 02-23-2006, 11:39 PM

I'm not a fan of PRS but I was in GC the other day checking out amps with a JEM7VWH and a salesguy I've bought from before wanted my opinion on the fingerboard on the SE Custom. Well it was awesome actually. I didn't like the monster heel that PRS still uses and the cutaway isn't done to my liking but the feel of the fretboard and frets was better than $2000-$5000 PRS I've tried. I considered throwing away $550 to buy it and taking it home and carving off most of the heel and expanding the cutaway to see if I liked it but then I came to my senses. The big question in my mind was if this guitar was a fluke or are all the SE Customs this sweet. And the other models of SE are surfboards by the way. Oh, and the one I played was made in Korea.

Ant1981 · #15 02-23-2006, 11:47 PM

I'm not after one with soapbars, I want humbuckers. I didnt know they were made in Korea, but I had a suspicion that it may have been made elsewhere being the cheaper model. If thats the case, then that would put me off, but I'm glad to hear it felt well.

Having 9 Japenese made Ibanez's, I wouldn't want to get a Korean one, so I wouldn't fancy a Korean PRS either.