Hollowbody SE vs CORE

[Oscar]

^—+1 to that. The best guitar is the one that makes you want to play it.

About the hollowbodies: for me those are like a fine wine or whiskey. It takes a while for my senses to develop to the point where they can discern and appreciate all those delicate details and nuances. Six months back I got a core 2007 Hollowbody I with a pair of stock 245 pickups and a solid maple top. The more I play it, the more I discover in it. But it’s not like throwing back a cold beer on a hot day to quench my thirst, it’s more like tasting an old whiskey for the sake of tasting it. And it’s exquisite! However, a cold beer on a hot day… That’s not too bad either. Can’t say I like one more than the other. Now getting to the point: to me the SE Hollowbodies are like that cold beer. Instant gratification, every time I pick one up and it never goes away and never disappoints. The Cores are more like that fine whiskey. At first I might wonder why that cold beer felt better. But then, as my senses catch up, all that magic comes out.

 

[Mozzi]

Guitars are tools and if they 'work' for you, then it doesn't matter how much they cost, where they are made or whatever name is on the headstock.

Guitar Maintenance tools for example can be 'budget' and virtually disposable, or you can buy some high quality tools that will last a lifetime. Take fret files for example - you could buy some 'cheap' from Amazon or pay a LOT and buy from StewMac and probably various options in between - but at some point, you go from potentially 'useless' to adequate, to decent, to high end and going to last you a Lifetime.

A car is a 'tool' too but there is a reason Mercedes cost a lot more than a Kia for example in the same 'class'. Each has an engine and will get you from A to B and back so what does that 'extra' get you? Better materials that won't wear as quickly, better reliability and comfort, better 'sound', better fit/finish etc but both 'tools' will get you from A to B.

A guitar isn't that different either - yes you can save 'some' labour costs depending on where its made, but that's not the only way they save money. A flat top can save a LOT of money, because it saves time on sanding. If it takes say 5minutes to sand a Flat top with a machine belt sander, but 45minutes to sand a carved top - 1 person is doing 9 guitars to another's 1 - so affects the 'cost' of the build. Whether that 'matters' to the sound, playability etc or not, it does affect the end cost. Not all Nickel frets are created equal either so you may need to do more 'fret-work' to keep them level.

A Helix Stomp is a 'fantastic' tool too - maybe the 'perfect' tool for some situations, better than a boutique valve amp costing 10x the price...

At the end of the day, Guitars are 'tools'. Its the most 'Diverse' instrument with so many different styles, colours, specs, price points etc to suit every budget and personal preference. Finding the 'right' tool doesn't always require the most 'expensive' or highest Quality option - a cheaper option may well be the 'better' option for that person. As someone with Cores, I don't know that I'd buy a 'Core' 12-string for that once in a blue moon time I want to add a 12 String 'sound' - it makes much more sense to get a 'cheaper' option to me.

Its the same with any 'tool' - I don't buy 'hand made' Japanese professional Chef knives for my Kitchen as its a 'waste' of my money for the amount of use they'll get and a decent knife block costs less than an individual paring knife that's still 'high enough' quality for my needs. Its the right tools for me but a Professional Chef may opt for much higher 'priced' options as they are using them all the time, making 'hundreds' of meals a week...

I couldn't care less if PRS do offer their customers an 'overseas' made under licence product. They are still some of the 'best in class' guitars and I think that having a 'dedicated' workforce, whether 'employed' by PRS or CorTek, that ONLY make 'PRS' models is a 'benefit' to the Brand. The workforce knows 'exactly' what is 'expected' as its consistent -not making some guitars for Chapman, Solar, Ibanez etc each with their own preferences and expectations. That will 'help' deliver a more 'consistent' product to the customer. It may well not have the exact tonal quality or have the same reliability/durability, but can still be the 'perfect' tool.

If it works for you, even if its Squire, Epiphone, PRS SE etc that's all that matters. I love my Core guitars but I'd happily play SE's too and in the 'situation', could be a 'better' tool for me than my cores. I'd be too 'concerned' taking a £5k HBii guitar gigging in a rough bar for example but an SE HBii wouldn't be anywhere near as concerning so the SE would be a better tool in that situation.

 

[Uncle Bob]

If PRSH is willing to put his name on it, it's a PRS.

If he read this BS about SE guitars not being PRS he’d be having a good old laugh, that’s for sure!

 

[Robertkoa]

If I were still gigging Jazz, the SE Standard would be my choice. I also prefer the standard to any 335 I ever touched, and I used to own one. The core is a better guitar, but it doesn’t have that plywood jazzbox sound that some of us love. I sold my Standard and got an SE Hollowbody piezo because I could one guitar it when playing musical theatre, if that ever happens again. Nothing ever made sounds like a core hollowbody, and nothing ever will. It just doesn’t have that 50’s -60’s plywood sound.

You mean the kind of dark in a good way that the plywood can sound ?

 

[Robertkoa]

I'm so familiar with all the opinions around place of manufacture and branding, having dealt with and thought about them myself since the 80s, that there's just nothing left for me to take offense over.

Em7 says some factually true things and mixes them with both inaccuracies and subjective mystical opinion.

Did my post say I have only SEs? In fact, I have both Core and S2. (And forgive me if I doubt the sincerity of your sorrow.)

I've been familiar with Cort-manufactured guitars since the 80s. I don't like the name (which strikes my ear as unpleasant) nor their brand logo, so try to avoid them (I'm fastidious about some tiny irrelevant things). But I've never played a bad Cort, and proudly own a Cort Sunset baritone. The fact that some SEs are built by Cort is a good thing in my book.

I'm sure you have! I get that SEs are built to a price point. (Guitars don't have hearts or souls. People do.)

True!

Half-true. I submit that SEs are built to the same standard. They're just built differently, in a different place, to sell for a different price. At least in my experience, the build quality, fit and finish, consistency, and QC are as extraordinary as Stevensville's.

Yep, all good. The necks on Cores are extremely stable; I would agree that they're more stable than those on the SEs.

But we're not discussing "reality". We're discussing its interpretation and our attitudes toward it.

Hundreds of thousands of guitars made outside the US wear the Fender - not Squier - logo. And who will argue that Gibson's home-grown product is built to a better standard, with more consistency and more thorough QC, than their Epiphone brethren?

... but you invest the time and effort to "hurt someone's feelings" online? (Not to worry, mine aren't hurt.)

Do Core and S2 guitars contain any components not made by PRS employees? Do those components dilute the pure blood of guitars built by people drawing a Stevensville paycheck?

I understand the difference! I know what I'm getting in every case, taking each on its own terms, and I've opted for all three. What's wrong with me?

Given that the SEs are built, not just under license but under the directions and supervision of - and collaboration with - Paul's company, I'm pretty sure Paul considers them to be PRS guitars.

It matters less to me where the guitars are built than how they're built - and how well. Those things are publicly acknowledged and documented (as is not the case with, oh, say, Duesenberg). The exhaustively accurate pedigree on the backs of SE headstocks makes the source clear. It can be taken as a disclaimer or mark of dishonor (for those inclined to see it that way). I like that it's there, because I have as much respect and gratitude for the people who build the guitars in Korea, China, and Indonesia as those who build the S2s, CEs, and Cores in Maryland. If anything, it's more impressive that they're building so much guitar, so well, at the SE price points than that the Marylanders build the others at their price point.
______

And happy us, it's all good.

I am here on this forum because I noticed in the demos of the Hollowbody SE 2 Piezo that the guitar was sounding extremely good punching above it's weight and learning more about it / to possibly get one for myself .
I am used to 14" radius fingerboards but I love the hollow except the block resonance 7/8ths hollow - you can hear it . And sounding that good for about $1000 is great . Paul Reed Smith deserves a lot of credit for this .

 

[dogrocketp]

You mean the kind of dark in a good way that the plywood can sound ?

Yes, I’m thinking 50’s-60’s Jazz box, ES-175 type of sound, but with clearer treble response. The sound still has that midrange feeling. I was able to move my Guild X170 because the PRS sounded so well.

 

[László]

There's no 'better', there's only 'different'.

The SE is a great value if for whatever reason you like it, and you're gonna play it. It's a waste of money if you buy it to save a buck, but don't bond with it/play it.

Same is true for the Core!

 

[Nice F Holes]

The differences in quality between the SE and Core models are things that may never be noticed - and on a stage even less distinguishable - but they do exist and to some people they really matter.

I love my SE HB II, but it's probably the last guitar I buy that's imported or not from a company owned factory. But I play for the experience, not to make money, so the synergy that comes from all those little details really matters to me.

 

[wesnjazz]

Finally I got a Core HB ii Piezo, and I have to admit that I was wrong.
Core Hollowbody ii is amazing. It is worth to pay thousands of more dollars (!!!).
Amazingly clean, resonant, and ... just beautiful to play. It's just a pure happiness to feel the ringing sound from the guitar body.

I couldn't feel the difference between SE and Core before because I tried a core HB ii in a local guitar center with an amp that I am not used to, and in a bit noisy environment. The difference is absolutely clear at my home, with my own speakers and also can compare directly with my SEs and other guitars as well.

I'm not a good player yet but I've posted one video using my first Core PRS!!!

âï¸ PRS Core HB ii Piezo

44 seconds · Clipped by DPark NOTE · Original video "Daniel Caesar - Japanese Denim [Melody Cover]" by DPark NOTE

youtube.com

âï¸ Octave Melody

39 seconds · Clipped by DPark NOTE · Original video "Daniel Caesar - Japanese Denim [Melody Cover]" by DPark NOTE

youtube.com

Wow. PRS did a really good job. I want to come back home everyday as soon as possible to play this beauty.

 

[Greywolf]

While I don't have an SE ( and never will, no offense) I do have 3 Gibby's with ply bodies , and love them . They do not however touch the HBII Artist that I have. I also have 2 other custom shop carved HB's (Gibson and Heritage) that also don't beat the HBII . I think the SE's are great values and certainly recommend them for a reasonably priced solution .

 

[bodia]

Finally I got a Core HB ii Piezo, and I have to admit that I was wrong.
Core Hollowbody ii is amazing. It is worth to pay thousands of more dollars (!!!).
Amazingly clean, resonant, and ... just beautiful to play. It's just a pure happiness to feel the ringing sound from the guitar body.

I couldn't feel the difference between SE and Core before because I tried a core HB ii in a local guitar center with an amp that I am not used to, and in a bit noisy environment. The difference is absolutely clear at my home, with my own speakers and also can compare directly with my SEs and other guitars as well.

I'm not a good player yet but I've posted one video using my first Core PRS!!!

âï¸ PRS Core HB ii Piezo

44 seconds · Clipped by DPark NOTE · Original video "Daniel Caesar - Japanese Denim [Melody Cover]" by DPark NOTE

youtube.com

âï¸ Octave Melody

39 seconds · Clipped by DPark NOTE · Original video "Daniel Caesar - Japanese Denim [Melody Cover]" by DPark NOTE

youtube.com

Wow. PRS did a really good job. I want to come back home everyday as soon as possible to play this beauty.

Nice!

 

[henryjurstin13]

I own a core McCarty Archtop II, which is almost double the thickness of a SE Hollowbody. As someone who owns a core archtop, that SE Hollowbody is really, really nice.... I've recommended friends to the SE hollowbody several times.

 

[DougGuitar]

If I were still gigging Jazz, the SE Standard would be my choice. I also prefer the standard to any 335 I ever touched, and I used to own one. The core is a better guitar, but it doesn’t have that plywood jazzbox sound that some of us love. I sold my Standard and got an SE Hollowbody piezo because I could one guitar it when playing musical theatre, if that ever happens again. Nothing ever made sounds like a core hollowbody, and nothing ever will. It just doesn’t have that 50’s -60’s plywood sound.

The SE Standard is all mahogany; which might partially account for that Jazz sound. I think the Core Hollowbody is mahogany with a maple cap.

 

[DougGuitar]

A new nut, pickup swap, fret dressing, and you'll be about there while saving three Grand.

The SE Hollowbody Standard ships with a bone nut. Since you aren't going to be able to use a whammy bar, there is no need to change the bone nut. It would be different if the nut was plastic.

Doug

 

[Bogner]

It Is A Glorious Thing To Find A Guitar That Truly Does It For You In A Magical Way That Is Meaningful To You (No Matter The Price Point). When You Find That Guitar, And If You Can Afford It, Then Always Buy It. You Will Never Regret It.

 

[spawnofthesith]

Isn't the actual physical construction of the SE quite a bit different than the core?

 

[DougGuitar]

Isn't the actual physical construction of the SE quite a bit different than the core?

In what ways?

 

[tdroid]

In what ways?

The SE is made of 5-ply laminate top and bottom, while the core is a carved top and bottom. Also, the neck is multi-ply on the SE while the Core's neck is a single piece of wood