Anyone have a 408?

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Very nice!!
 
I picked up my 408 a few hours ago from UPS and just opened it up. Wow, absolutely gorgeous guitar! The top looks great as does the birds. At 1st I thought maybe the fingerboard was Brazilian as it has a really nice wood grain but it's Honduran Rosewood.
It's definitely the guitar that was on the Amazon page. It's in very good condition. Top is very clean, no dings or scratches that I can see, The back has a few light scratches but nothing bad at all. One very small mark on the headstock. It's missing the trem bar so I'll have to order one asap. May have to also get black pickup rings as WeFixFlats suggested.
I can't wait to get home and play it.

MODCAT

Model: 408 Maple/Std Model
Top Wood: Maple
Frets: 22
Top Spec: Figured Maple
Top Grade: Ten Top
Neck Wood: Mahogany
Neck Carve: Pattern/Thin (Wide/Thin)
Fingerboard Wood: Honduran Rosewood
Inlay: 2011 Birds
Bridge: Tremolo or 2-Piece Bridge
Color: Scarlet Smokeburst
Hardware: Nickel
Treble Pickup: 408 or Bass
Middle Pickup: none
Bass Pickup: 408 or Bass
Electronics: 408

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that's a great score! looks hot!
 
I love my 408. Of all the coil splitting PRS i own, it has the best and most single coil-ey effect. A hugely versatile instrument. I got one with a rosewood neck and ebony fretboard. Also has the best quilted maple top i own.
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I love my 408. Of all the coil splitting PRS i own, it has the best and most single coil-ey effect. A hugely versatile instrument. I got one with a rosewood neck and ebony fretboard. Also has the best quilted maple top i own.
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BzLLj7H.jpg

What a stunning looking guitar!
 
I bought my first PRS guitar (CU22 10 top Trem birds) in 1998. Since then I’ve been through 20+ PRS and other guitars. I ordered a Signature Ltd/408 as soon as they were announced. The sinker mahogany crap gave the model a bad name. After financial issues forced me to sell a bunch of gear, I kept the Siggy Ltd. The two new additions in my avatar are taking playing time away from it, but I have zero plans to sell it, or my other two for that matter. I’m fortunate to have what I do. The Siggy Ltd/408 is a seriously under rated and under valued guitar.

I was just telling JD/Guitar Maverick, my Silver Sky and Siggy are losing playing time to my PS SC Ted McCarty 245. But that’s a nice problem to have. Did I mention I’m fortunate?
 
I'm loving my 408 so far :) but I did notice the trem is not level. The back of the trem is sitting up quite a bit higher than the front. Is there a way to fix that? Will that affect anything?
 
I'm loving my 408 so far :) but I did notice the trem is not level. The back of the trem is sitting up quite a bit higher than the front. Is there a way to fix that? Will that affect anything?

Sounds like someone put heavier strings on it and didn't make any adjustments. First put on your favored strings and see how it looks. If it isn't level, take the back plate off and adjust the claw screws and retune until it is level.
 
The 408 pickups split differently from standard humbuckers.

In HB mode, the slug coil is tapped to make a balanced humbucker.
In split mode, the screw coil is disengaged and you get the full wind of the slug coil.

The result is a fuller, more natural single coil sound with very little volume drop.

I haven't played a 408, but I've played a Paul's. The narrow 408 pickup is one of the best I've heard. Strong output but with fantastic clarity. I found myself wondering if it might not have enough difference between split and full.

Depending on the configuration of your CU22, they could be two very different beasts.
That's not quite right.

From Sweetwater Sound:
"The Paul Reed Smith 408 pickups use a unique design. In humbucking mode, both coils are on, as you would expect. In single-coil mode, one coil is taken completely out of action — it isn’t just grounded as in many other designs. Plus, 1,500 turns are added to the remaining coil, which maintains the volume and beefs the sound up to give you a true single-coil tone. It’s an amazing system that results in a phenomenally versatile pickup and guitar."

From PRSh in an interview with MusicRadar:
"The way it's wired," says Smith, "is that when you hit the [split] switches, it disconnects one coil and adds 1,500 turns to the other coil. What happens is that there's a 'no volume loss' single-coil sound."
 
That's not quite right.

From Sweetwater Sound:
"The Paul Reed Smith 408 pickups use a unique design. In humbucking mode, both coils are on, as you would expect. In single-coil mode, one coil is taken completely out of action — it isn’t just grounded as in many other designs. Plus, 1,500 turns are added to the remaining coil, which maintains the volume and beefs the sound up to give you a true single-coil tone. It’s an amazing system that results in a phenomenally versatile pickup and guitar."

From PRSh in an interview with MusicRadar:
"The way it's wired," says Smith, "is that when you hit the [split] switches, it disconnects one coil and adds 1,500 turns to the other coil. What happens is that there's a 'no volume loss' single-coil sound."

That is what I understood from Garretts message too. In single coil mode, you are getting the full wind - the extra 1500turns and in Humbucker, that is tapped out to balance with the other coil as Garrett and you are both saying...
 
That's not quite right.

From Sweetwater Sound:
"The Paul Reed Smith 408 pickups use a unique design. In humbucking mode, both coils are on, as you would expect. In single-coil mode, one coil is taken completely out of action — it isn’t just grounded as in many other designs. Plus, 1,500 turns are added to the remaining coil, which maintains the volume and beefs the sound up to give you a true single-coil tone. It’s an amazing system that results in a phenomenally versatile pickup and guitar."

From PRSh in an interview with MusicRadar:
"The way it's wired," says Smith, "is that when you hit the [split] switches, it disconnects one coil and adds 1,500 turns to the other coil. What happens is that there's a 'no volume loss' single-coil sound."

That is what I understood from Garretts message too. In single coil mode, you are getting the full wind - the extra 1500turns and in Humbucker, that is tapped out to balance with the other coil as Garrett and you are both saying...

Yes, we are all saying the same thing. Here's what happens electrically, personally verified by me with a spare Paul's Treble pickup:

Humbucker mode: tapped slug coil in series with screw coil
Single coil mode: untapped slug coil

I have all the measurements written down, but not with me. Here is a more wordy explanation: It starts a lot like any other PRS pickup; you have hot, ground, and split wires (plus bare shield). The special sauce is the extra 1500 winds Paul talks about. Those winds are on the slug coil and activated via a fourth wire. The slug coil has a lot more wire on it than the screw coil, so that fourth wire taps the coil so that it balances with the screw coil.
 
I love my 408. Of all the coil splitting PRS i own, it has the best and most single coil-ey effect. A hugely versatile instrument. I got one with a rosewood neck and ebony fretboard. Also has the best quilted maple top i own.
ZML0awn.jpg

0nbm7kT.jpg

BzLLj7H.jpg

I. AM. IN. LOVE.
 
I'm loving my 408 so far :) but I did notice the trem is not level. The back of the trem is sitting up quite a bit higher than the front. Is there a way to fix that? Will that affect anything?
When you make adjustments, to the screws in the back, don't go overboard. Adjust by quarter turns, retune (properly), let sit and repeat if needed.
 
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