Dear PRS Guitars....We Need to Talk About This

PRS Guitars Deep dive.

Favorite Gear

0:00 initial thoughts
1:25 what makes prs special
3:28 buying advice
4:55 New Prs se guitars
6:32 Issue 1
8:30 No Mojo
10:55 Quality Control
12:20 My Favorites
15:05 idea 1
16:16 idea 2
17:20 idea 3
19:05 idea 4
19:55 my signature guitar
23:10 other thoughts

[kentGrey]

I have really appreciated your PRS Series. I’ve enjoyed AND learned a lot (and not just about PRS guitars). I’ve been watching a TON of guitar gear reviews. Your channel and a half dozen others, have led me to buy three different PRS guitars. Over 30% of guitar sales are done online. Detailed (nit-picky (not a bad thing)) reviews like yours provide a very important services to those who can’t get to a store.

I too have noticed the unwarranted negativity towards PRS Guitars. I call it unwarranted because negative reviews that I’ve come across have a very distinct theme…. The reviewer does not WANT to like the PRS guitar. One reviewer left me so perplexed because with each point he was acknowledging looks, feel, appointments, playability, sound quality and even price, yet ended with with a thumbs down. When I commented that I was confused, his reply was “I just don’t like it.” I have a couple of favored brands and PRS is probably top of my list because of the thought (engineering) put into every model. The attention to detail and quality control, makes PRS my first go to If I’m looking for a specific type of guitar. For ME PRS is the “Lexus” of guitar makers. Like Lexus PRS elbowed its way into the High End market. You have lists of top luxury cars, some approaching a century of existing and one an upstart from the 80’s. Likewise, you have various lists of the top guitars, with PRS (started in 85) consistently being in the top 5 along with other famous brands that have been around forever (having enjoyed their cult following for decades. The PRS hate is emotional.

Thank you for this series! But I'm kind of glad it’s ending…. I’m running out of cash! :-). Looking forward to you next challenge.

[brandonbryson]

Excellent take on the “no mojo” comments.

[tacdoc]

Rhett's subjective feelings about guitar brands with poor quality control and wild variability from one year to another, one model to another, or one guitar to another, being why certain guitars they produce have "mojo" is one of the most absurd takes i've ever heard expressed on Youtube.... and there are a lot of really dumb things said and written here. I have some great Gibson and Fender guitars, but i've played some really bad ones, including guitars that cost over 3K. Gibson QC has gotten better, but the demo shop is all the proof you need of issues that still get sent out the door on an average work day. Fender QC really tanked a few years ago because they let 300 of their most experienced Corona luthiers and craftsmen go, and also moved most signature line production to Ensenada without adding personnel or equipment to handle the capacity or increased expectations for those instruments. The average PRS SE has objectively better QC than the average MIA Gibson or Fender guitar. The S2 and Core models create even more separation from the competition. The difference between the average Indonesian or MIC PRS SE and a MIC Epiphone, or MIC Squier, is a veritable chasm. Folks can like what they like. It's any musician's prerogative to prefer a particular brand or model. That doesn't mean there aren't objective differences in the quality, fit, finish, and design, between different brands. Ultimately if "mojo" is picking up one guitar from an assembly line of bad guitars, i'll be just fine never having a guitar with mojo in my collection.

[HighZ]

Good point on consistency and QC. Very important for a brand to be consistent in the age of ordering guitars online sight unseen

[torontofenderjunkie]

Your point about PRS QC and the "magic guitar" phenomenon is absolutely on-point. Kudos to you for putting that idea out there.

[avocadoenjoyer]

I have a PRS 277 and my take on "no mojo" is:

1. Primarily fueled by Rhett's hive mind.
2. The pickups are very distinct. I REALLY don't like them. I also don't really like Ibanez pickups. I just did a pup swap.
3. The flawless QC makes them feel precision manufactured rather than like an instrument. If you have ever picked up a relic'd or heavily used guitar, you know that there's inherently a HUGE difference in feel. If you like the weathered wood feel over the plastic manufactured feel, your brain will tell you "nope" when you pick up a PRS.

At the end of the day, only #2 is a real issue IMO, and if it's a big issue to you, just swap pickups. PRS pickups are ideal for some music, but not everyone has to like that. Sometimes the muddiness of a LP, or extra articulation of an Ibanez are desirable. Personally, I'm more a fan of SD and Schecter pickups. To each their own.

[theharlequin]

Thank you! That whole 'No Mojo' section is something I've been ranting on about for years.

It's always been baffling to me that Gibson always gets away with the whole 'looking for the one' mentality - when all guitars of the same product line should be equally good.
Especially at the premium price point they are at. If you charge several thousand dollars, you need to deliver every single time.

[Brizchrisguitar]

Yes! I’m about 20 live shows into using the DGT SE. Can confirm it’s just brilliant, does everything I need and does it very very well effortlessly. And that’s live, in the heat of battle. Would recommend one to anyone, and full of inspiration and mojo when you need it in a solo.

[VesiustheBoneCruncher]

I build electric guitars and traditional violins. My take on mojo runs like this - I think on solid bodies and even most semi-hollow bodies, you are completely right. Hitting the production spec properly makes way more difference than anything else here. In the case of acoustic instruments, individual instruments *absolutely* do have mojo. At the point where the individual pieces of wood really, really start affecting tone, then yes, individual instruments, even ones made with the utmost care will be wildly different.

As an example, If you think of a Stradivarius violin, there are several with very similar measurements, and safe to say no quality issues - but the difference in tone between these instruments is profound. The same is true on acoustic guitars. There is a video here on the tube where a world class violinist gets to compare multiple Stradivari - even if you don’t like violin it is interesting to watch.

But yeah, in guitars like you are showing here, you are absolutely right. Attention to detail and a really good design which is consistently delivered is honestly 99%, if not higher, of the battle.

[jonathancalhoun]

I have the new SE Swamp Ash Special. After playing it for a few days I can confirm it lives up to the high PRS level of qualify. I have an S2 Standard 24 and an SE McCarty 594 and is every bit as great as them while being a truly unique guitar.

[andrew-pc]

Mojo is also related to the feeling that people get when they hold the instrument they saw in the hands of their idols as a kid. But if music is about doing something interesting now - using what the world is like today, then this isn’t a problem. Jimi never played a PRS but if he was alive today, he probably would have.

[brianrobison]

Thanks for sharing your expert observations and judgements! Always a pleasure to hear your takes on current instruments.

[georgemoore]

What an intelligent and comprehensive assessment of PRS guitars. While I’m primarily a Fender and Gibson guy, I never bought into the no mojo thing for PRS guitars. I have one PRS guitar and that is the original Zach Meyers signature guitar. The tone that comes out of that guitar is incredible. I will never part with it. In fact it’s my belief that one of the distinguishing characteristics of PRS guitars, besides their great build quality, is the clarity and tone of their pickups.

[onionheadguy]

Given that Paul is notorious for obsessing over tiny details, this partnership seems like a match made in heaven!

[zihjnez]

My first guitar search after seriously starting playing led me to buy a PRs se custom 24 08 early this year. I was watching all these videos about factories for Gibson, fender, and PRS. The PRS ones stood out. Specifically, because they gave credit to the international builders on the headstock, and they actually were showing off their foreign facilities in addition to their USA facilities.

For the price, quality control was incredible (except for a cracked/slightly burned binding that was next to the neck humbucker in a pretty hidden spot. I did get credit back from sweetwater for that, because it slipped through both PRS QC and Sweetwater). It was set up perfect out of the box. I only lowered the action, after putting in a set of 10s instead of 9s.

Beautiful blue quilted top, and the neck and body have Birds Eye and flame in it. Even with the neck/body being 3 pieces.

If you have the money and like the sound of PRS pickups, and a wide/thin neck I think it’s a great purchase. They even do all the SE demos on their youtube channel as well. The SE pickups are meant to be 'import equivalents' to the core/s2 models, and still have that signature PRS sound (i know its not for everyone, but I like that sound)

I would love to by the new quilted violet se custom 24, but they have the same pickups as my current one. All of those new models look amazing. I'll have to keep an eye out for holiday sales this year.

[Mr.Goldbar]

Wouldn't say mojo relates to QC.
QC to me is more about the guitar's craftmanship, attention to detail, correct installation of the parts and to what degree you can set it up to the most desired results. Specifically the frets (leveling, crowning, sprout, polishing), nut (how well it's cut) and bridge (if the saddles are sharp and cause string breaking, correct installation and placement) and neck pocket (any gaps, correct neck angle).

The whole "trying a few of the same guitar in order to find the one" is a totally different thing, and it's not entirely what mojo is. To me personally mojo is how the guitar makes you feel when you play it and what it makes me play. I definitely agree that they don't lake mojo but have the same amount of it, and I'll add that it's different than anything else.
It's the whole jack of all trades mojo that PRS has, that if you're looking for it then PRS is the guitar for you and if not then don't even consider one. I'd never consider a Mccarthy if I'm looking for a Les Paul, I'd never consider a Custom 24, a DGT or their derivatives if I'm looking for a Suhr kinda Superstrat, I'd never consider a Hollowbody 2 if I'm looking for a 335, I'd never consider a Mira or a Santana if I'm looking for an SG, I wouldn't even consider a Silver Sky if I'm looking for a Strat. But if I'm looking for the thing PRS does I'll never look elsewhere :)

[kevinjenner]

The quality of the Indonesian crafted SE guitars is a tribute to.chief operating officer Jack Higginbotham and manufacturer CorTek.

[nsp]

The earliest example of the "mojo" misconception that I can think of is the PAF pickups.

The original Gibson PAF humbucker pickups were wound up in a machine that did not count the number of turns, so the operator had to eyeball it. This lead to each Les Paul having a slightly different character.

While this is touted by many as a source of "mojo" (mojo = uniqueness?), by modern manufacturing standards
it was simply an issue of quality control.

[jimwoodard]

8:31 as someone who has been doing the comparison thing since the 70's, I can say your mojo theory may be a bit flawed. I've been that guy who played hundreds of Teles, Strats, Les Pauls, ES-335's, SG's, Rickenbackers, etc.. to find "the one" in each batch; but not because the others sucked (although, when you pick up that many over nearly 50 years, there's bound to be a turd in the punchbowl along the way). The reason I would land on "the one" was because it fit ME best. The way I play, the way I pick, the fact that I'm short, my love of fatter necks and flatter fretboards, my ear for tone... And when it comes to PRS SE's, I can say that the experience, the hunt if you will, is just "Yeah, I'll take that one, I like the way the grains are on the top." That's because they are alike.

Nothing wrong with that, but there's no "this guitar is mine, there are many like it, but this one is mine." That's fine and is generally what we look for in most products, but the experience is like buying a new iPhone, a Dyson vacuum, or a McD burger (anywhere in the US). They will all be the same, and that's exactly what many people want, and some people want that in a guitar. Why get surprised that the neck is slightly slimmer or has a quirky tone in the pickups or something like that? You know that if you tried on at Guitar Center, you can buy one at Sweetwater, they will be nearly identical (weights do fluctuate, even if by a few ounces), and your experience should be the same. Just as there's a thrill opening that new pedal, iPhone, or Super Soaker 5000; there's a thrill with that new PRS SE.

I love the SE and S2 lines, and I've owned cores as well, and I even have a PRS birds tattoo. That said, my main guitar for years on stage was an American Standard Strat and recently for several years, a Les Paul Standard. I played a core PRS SC and CU 22 as well as a CE24 for a while in between. I've been to the factory and done the "Experience". I've met Paul and the team. I can say, unequivocally, that they make a fine product. I look at them like a BMW motorcycle. They are incredible feats of engineering, but it's the Harley Davidson that people deck out, customize, and turn into a work of art that reflects their persona. It might leave an oil stain wherever it goes, but it truly has but one owner who blings it out for the world to see.

[thStreetMort]

Finally someone said it. Mojo is the feeling that you found something special. PRS QC robs you of that quest and delivers consistent excellence.