£859 for a PRS SE......?

Nunogilberto

thegummy said:

Nunogilberto said:

thegummy said:

Don't know how anyone can say 859 is crazy, what can you get for that price that's better?

I’ve played a Chris Robertson SE and it was a nice guitar, but what stopped me from pulling the trigger was that it was nearly a grand for what is basically a Korean guitar. 

I’ve nothing against Korean guitars - they’re usually well made, but no way on God’s earth would I ever pay Gibson money for one.

Why do you care about the country it was made?

When you boil it down to that, it’s not the country it was made - it’s the range the guitar is from. I wouldn’t pay more for an Epiphone if I could get a Gibson for the same money. Same with the SEs - good guitars, but if I shopped around I could get a good Gibson LP for £900.

rivercider

I bought a blue one (mail order) a few months ago (not from Andertons) and confirmed via email with PRS that ALL blue models should have the US built pickup.  The red ones will have the US pup IF they are the old batch (slightly different red finish, pre-headstock change), whilst the 2018 models (new red finish) have the Korean version of the pickup.  
I paid 599 and prefer the guitar to either my Les Paul Studio or the two Bernie Marsdens I've owned previously.
I'd be concerned indeed if PRS let any blue ones get out of the factory with the new Korean pickup in them, so not really sure what the guy meant when he said that - probably best to seek clarity on it before buying.   

1se7en

Thanks rivercider, I have looked at many sources that the Blue was only made with the American one so the shop dude was wrong. I have one on order now, getting it Saturday so pretty excited. 

I heard the tuning knobs/pegs (whatever they called) are not the greatest on SE models. Would anyone recommend changing them or anything else on the guitar worth changing? I usually dont change anything but if there is better out there then im all ears

Ben

1se7en said:

Thanks rivercider, I have looked at many sources that the Blue was only made with the American one so the shop dude was wrong. I have one on order now, getting it Saturday so pretty excited. 

I heard the tuning knobs/pegs (whatever they called) are not the greatest on SE models. Would anyone recommend changing them or anything else on the guitar worth changing? I usually dont change anything but if there is better out there then im all ears

The only 2 upgrades I'd suggest for that SE Chris Robertson (and the Mark Holcomb SE as well) is a new nut (GraphTech Tusq XL PT-6643-00 to be precise, around £9) and some locking tuners if you are enthusiastic with your string bending like I am. Direct replacements are Grover 406c for example, or AxesRus do a compatible set 18:1 ratio for around £28 that are a direct drop-in replacement!

thegummy

Nunogilberto said:

thegummy said:

Nunogilberto said:

thegummy said:

Don't know how anyone can say 859 is crazy, what can you get for that price that's better?

I’ve played a Chris Robertson SE and it was a nice guitar, but what stopped me from pulling the trigger was that it was nearly a grand for what is basically a Korean guitar. 

I’ve nothing against Korean guitars - they’re usually well made, but no way on God’s earth would I ever pay Gibson money for one.

Why do you care about the country it was made?

When you boil it down to that, it’s not the country it was made - it’s the range the guitar is from. I wouldn’t pay more for an Epiphone if I could get a Gibson for the same money. Same with the SEs - good guitars, but if I shopped around I could get a good Gibson LP for £900.

Having both, I don't see a Gibson LP as any better quality than the PRS SE.

If anyone does, I'd be interested to hear in which way.

I've actually changed more on the LP than on the SE where I've kept the stock pickups.

guitarfishbay

I’d rather have the PRS SE as I prefer the design.

I’ve not played my Gibson Les Paul in weeks, I’ve been playing a Korean LTD instead. Very different instrument but I prefer it for what I need right now.

I don’t really buy the whole country of origin thing anymore as representative of the quality if I’m honest. It comes down to whether the spec of the instrument suits me and if I like it. 

rivercider

The country of origin thing is partly what made me fickle enough to buy the LP Studio in the first place...well, the romance of the Gibson name, I guess. 
 It certainly smells nice (that nitro - ha!) and has a beefy bridge pickup (498 in my 2016 model), but I prefer the Robertson overall. The Studio will be sold in the near future.  Just my opinion of course, and I'm no expert, but the 599 price is a steal for the blue PRS. I wouldn't pay full retail for it, and certainly not for the new 2018 version (even if the pickup sounds as good, it kinda feels naughty that they haven't discounted it a little to make clearer the use of cheaper parts for the uninformed buyer who may believe they're getting the American pup).  I can't remember now, but does the new Korean pickup have coil tap?  If not, there's another good thing about the blue one - it coil taps (or splits, whichever it is I forget) really well, far more useable tones than my LP Studio coil tapped.  

SimpleSimon

All CR models have the coil tap

thegummy

Lol the smell thing is so true, never had a guitar with a scent before

MagicPigDetective

Then there is this S2 Standard 24 Satin at GAK for £849....very nice.

https://www.gak.co.uk/en/prs-s2-standard-24-satin-ltd-vintage-sunburst/908018

Bluebeard

PRS had a range of lower priced guitars called SE Standard which were released around 2015. They were made in Indonesia and didn't have flamed maple tops. I picked up the Tremonti one for something like £300 in a black friday christmas sale. Great guitar for the money and they seemed to be successful from what I gather. They discontinued them.
A year or so later they have re-released the same range for 2018 but they are priced at £475. There are probably some minor differences but they look pretty similar.

darthed1981

Bluebeard said:

A year or so later they have re-released the same range for 2018 but they are priced at £475. There are probably some minor differences but they look pretty similar.

I think they look pretty awesome, I'm thinking of getting one.

Bluebeard

Well I would say when I bought my Tremonti I felt that the SE Standard range more than stood up to similar guitars I tested at around the £500 budget I had at the time. I am not an expert though.