PRS McCarty opinions please.

DefaultM

Recently got my PRS CE22 with trem which is awesome for lead stuff and cleans, but tuned to drop D for distorted chords etc it's a bit underwhelming really. It could be to do with the 9 gauge strings so I'll be moving to 10s, but would a McCarty excel in this style or am I looking in the wrong place?
This will be an additional purchase, not replacement.

photek

I love both the McCarty and the CE22's. I don't think there is enough difference between the 2 to be worth the money. 10's will make a big difference as will changing pickups. I never really liked the stock pickups in the CE's plus if you have a 5 way rotary it seems to rob quite a bit of tone, swap to a 3 way plus coil tap!

octatonic

McCarty's are vintage voiced- think of it as a double-cut Les Paul.

It isn't my first choice for drop D- although I use a Les Paul in drop D quite a lot.

I've had a couple of McCarty's- they are great guitars but they don't nail the LP thing quite as well as they could.

[Deleted User]

The McCarty is my favourite PRS - a really musical, vintage voiced guitar. Probably not the ideal choice for down-tuning, though the thicker body and mahogany set-neck will give it more low end than a CE. The (now discontinued) Single-cut 250 was the guitar PRS developed for the whole dropped tuning/metal thing. Second hand prices are through the floor low on this kind of thing. If you can deal with the radically different feel, one of these may well be the way to go.

Whatever the guitar, 9 s are too light to give any weight to your tone in a dropped tuning.

crunchman

Agree singlecut would be better than McCarty for this.  Because of string tension you would want Singlecut 250 (25"scale) not the 245 (24.5" scale), or one of the early ones when it was just the Singlecut without the number - these have the 25" scale as well.

DefaultM

Ah damn I was set on the McCarty but then I heard about the les paul tone thing and I worried. Would there be no point getting one and changing to some more suited pickups because I could do the same with the CE22 and get similar results?

I'd love a single cut, but I already have an epiphone les Paul which I love but wanted to replace because of the whole neck dive when sitting down thing. Do the PRS single cuts do exactly the same thing?
Playing a les paul sat down seriously hurts my back.

ICBM

Put 11s on it and feel the power .

I actually think the trem models are more resonant than the stoptails, so I wouldn't go from a CE to a McCarty if you want more chunk. Also Standards are more so than either CEs, Customs or McCartys. I would go for a Standard 22 with trem, if you can find one. (And no mine is not for sale!)

I would also think about replacing the stock pickups though, the PRS ones are compressed and midrangy. I have Duncans ('59 and Custom Custom) in my Standard, and the difference in low-end thump was very noticeable.

[Deleted User]

DefaultM;22661" said:

Playing a les paul sat down seriously hurts my back.

If find Les Pauls really uncomfortable; the amount of neck pitch (the amount by which it is angled back from the body) is a significant factor in this for me. Also, the position of the bridge places my picking had further to the right and my gut makes get up the dusty end somewhat difficult... I don't like where the control lie either.

The geometry of the Single-cut is more to my liking; less neck pitch and easier top-end access, more ergonomic control layout, etc. That said, I find double-cut PRS guitars much better still.

You need to give one a try.

Jalapeno

I found that the McCartys I've tried felt more lively, less clinical than the Custom 22s.  Still kicking myself at letting the Honey Blonde one I had my eye on slip past me - but then I'd probably never have got my Tom Anderson, os karma and all that ......

guitarfishbay

What amp / cab / pedals are you using, and what previous guitar were you using before switching to the CE22?

RE: PRSs, I have two:  a stock Singlecut with #7s, and a CU22 hardtail with HFS/VB.  Amp wise I use either a Mesa Roadster or a Laney Ironheart into 2x12/4x12 V30 cabs, boosted as and when necessary by some kind of TS variant (Boss GT 8 sim / Visual Sound 808/ SD1)

I play drop D high gain rock and I find I get a thicker sound from the Singlecut despite the lower output pickups.  I feel like low output pickups snarl whereas high output pickups tend to sound smoother and more compressed under high gain, which can sound nice in isolation but I prefer something a bit grittier with a band.  Ironically I think the HFS is a fairly dull sounding pickup, it is hot and arguably fatter than some high output pickups (but still compressed) but I definitely feel I get more scream from my Singlecut with #7s.

Edit: I should add that I think the construction has something to do with the tone and it isn't all the pickups.  I find the chunkiest high gain tones often come from thick bodied guitars on the heavier side.  I think heavier (or at least denser) bodies lead to a harder, more immediate attack to notes which can help get a chunky sound for low notes and palm mutes.  Sometimes lighter (or less dense) guitars get a bit spongy with a heavy pick attack and they don't sound as punchy.  A real YMMV though.

I've got a heavy pick attack though when I'm playing chunky stuff, most people who try out my rig don't think I dial in enough gain.  The first time our other guitarist got put through my Rectifier at a recording session we had to increase the gain, despite the fact his guitar had hotter pickups and thicker strings.

DefaultM

The single cuts do look awesome and I'd love one, it's just if I can play it sat down or not. I play through an axe fx 2 and Adam a7x monitors at home, but live I use the axe and power amp and cab.

My original plan was to get one with a trem for lead stuff, and a nice chunky sounding fixed bridge one. If the single cut is going to be better than a McCarty then I might have to change my mind on them.

I was looking at the standard 22 with trem cos I can pick one up for £900, but thought it might be too similar to the CE22?

guitarfishbay

If you live near any PRS dealers you might be able to try a Tremonti.  It is just a Singlecut with a trem, wide thin profile only, and hot signature pickups.  They're fantastic rock guitars actually, if I wanted a trem and hot pickups it would be on my list.  I think some of the early ones had the stoptail but they also had a massive 'Mark Tremonti' inlay at the 12th fret which has been removed from recent models.

There are two singlecut models, the Singlecut which has #7 pickups (PAF-ish) and a non adjustable stoptail, and the SC250 which had hotter pickups and an adjustable stoptail.  IIRC they're dicontinued but both are worth a look, as is the Tremonti which is still in production if you don't mind a signature model.

IMO the mahogany set neck PRSs sound smoother than the maple bolt on CEs.  The CEs sound closer to a Superstrat than a Gibson type IME.

ICBM

DefaultM said:

I was looking at the standard 22 with trem cos I can pick one up for £900, but thought it might be too similar to the CE22?

No, very different - the maple cap and bolt-on maple neck make the CE much brighter and snappier. The all-mahogany Standard is much deeper and bigger-sounding, with a 'slow' attack and softer sustain.

£900 is a good price for one too. They're relatively rare, they're something of the 'sleeper' model in the PRS range because they look very plain, even compared to a CE, but were nearly the price of a Custom new.

Adam_MD

From memory when I bought my ce 22 I think the custom was £300 more than the ce and the standard was £150 or £200 more than the ce. That was back in '99

ICBM

Yes. When I bought my Standard in 2002 it was £100 less than a Custom. (Well, mine was a lot cheaper than that because someone unknown did me the great favour of dinging it rather noticeably in the shop!)

geepers0677

Are you set on a PRS for drop tuning? ESP Eclipse is a good choice IMO...

Adam_MD

ICBM;23251" said:

Yes. When I bought my Standard in 2002 it was £100 less than a Custom. (Well, mine was a lot cheaper than that because someone unknown did me the great favour of dinging it rather noticeably in the shop!)

I got mine cheaper too as it came direct from the factory, undinged though.

dindude

Not sure a McCarty would be my first choice for what you described. I don't do dropped D but on a general note, I owned one last year and whilst an undoubtedly good guitar, I just couldn't bond with it. It neither sounded Full and fat enough like a good Gibbo, or articulate and powerful enough on the other hand, just occupied a meh inbetween. I think it was me wanting it to be a one guitar does all my humbucker duties type affair, so not the guitars fault. For the same money I now have two guitars, a Midtown for more vintage voiced Gibbo tones and a Charvel pro mod for razor sharp, much happier.

fretfinder

I love the feel, neck, weight etc of my McCarty but I never really liked the sound, until I changed the pickups for BKP Mules - it now sounds fabulous and is a great, versatile guitar. No idea what it would sound like in dropped tuning as that's not my bag but you'd have to use 10s or 11s strings for that I'm sure. And in my experience, nothing sounds quite like a Les Paul except, yep you guessed it... Gibbo's finest!

DefaultM

Its only one string down a tone, but I'm going to heed the advice and go with something different. I'd obviously got the wrong idea on the type of guitar it was. I thought it was just a custom 22 with different wiring and a thicker body.

[Deleted User]

DefaultM;23751" said:

I'd obviously got the wrong idea on the type of guitar it was. I thought it was just a custom 22 with different wiring and a thicker body.

On essence it is; output is lower - a 'sweeter' sounding guitar. They just don't have the 'thump' you get from a Les Paul or a PRS Singlecut. As I said earlier, I love them but my style and tonal requirements are very different from yours.