Prs 509 question

[Mozzi]

Personally I like the 509. I am not a 'Fender' fan and really don't like telecasters either although I do like some of the tones these can deliver. I have always been more of a Humbucker/Les Paul fan. I know you can get coil splits on double humbuckers but generally these seem a bit more like thin humbuckers rather than a 'true' single coil and you also don't get that middle coil sound - unless you go for a Superstrat. Most superstrats and the 513 for that matter, will have a single switch/pot that splits both humbuckers which means you may have to move two things to go from a single coil neck to a humbucker bridge but with the 509, you can just flick the 5-way to the bridge position. I think a lot of guitarists prefer that option to have 1 set as a humbucker and the other as a single coil rather than have to have both split or both as humbuckers.

I would have liked a push/pull pot that changed the middle selection from the Single coil to using both humbuckers. That addition would instantly give the 509 4 more options and, in my opinion, be more usable than the 513. I guess this can be done by an after market mod. With say the Volume pot down, you get the standard single coil in position 3 of the 5 way, but up could give you the two humbuckers. With the switching, you have the option of (B-N) H-H, H-S, S-S or S-H - thus giving it another 4 options and therefore 13 overall.

In my opinion though, the 509 as it is can deliver those Strat/tele tones - maybe not 'exactly' the same but close enough - plus you get the gorgeous PRS style and quality too...

This is mine...

Not a 10-top but I still think its a beautiful looking guitar top.

I also have a 594 so I think I have I have the two most 'extreme' ends of PRS guitars - without going for the Silver Sky

 

[Johan Allard]

Personally I like the 509. I am not a 'Fender' fan and really don't like telecasters either although I do like some of the tones these can deliver. I have always been more of a Humbucker/Les Paul fan. I know you can get coil splits on double humbuckers but generally these seem a bit more like thin humbuckers rather than a 'true' single coil and you also don't get that middle coil sound - unless you go for a Superstrat. Most superstrats and the 513 for that matter, will have a single switch/pot that splits both humbuckers which means you may have to move two things to go from a single coil neck to a humbucker bridge but with the 509, you can just flick the 5-way to the bridge position. I think a lot of guitarists prefer that option to have 1 set as a humbucker and the other as a single coil rather than have to have both split or both as humbuckers.

I would have liked a push/pull pot that changed the middle selection from the Single coil to using both humbuckers. That addition would instantly give the 509 4 more options and, in my opinion, be more usable than the 513. I guess this can be done by an after market mod. With say the Volume pot down, you get the standard single coil in position 3 of the 5 way, but up could give you the two humbuckers. With the switching, you have the option of (B-N) H-H, H-S, S-S or S-H - thus giving it another 4 options and therefore 13 overall.

In my opinion though, the 509 as it is can deliver those Strat/tele tones - maybe not 'exactly' the same but close enough - plus you get the gorgeous PRS style and quality too...

This is mine...

Not a 10-top but I still think its a beautiful looking guitar top.

I also have a 594 so I think I have I have the two most 'extreme' ends of PRS guitars - without going for the Silver Sky

Interesting, I really enjoy my 509 as well. I also do enjoy piezo bridges and was thinking of adding piezo to my 509. The way I was thinking of doing it was to add a push-pull and switch out the middle pickup for the piezo. That way it would be possible to run the piezo on its own, in the middle position with tone pot pulled, or combined with either the neck or bridge pickup for a piezo/magnetic blend.

 

[Mozzi]

Interesting, I really enjoy my 509 as well. I also do enjoy piezo bridges and was thinking of adding piezo to my 509. The way I was thinking of doing it was to add a push-pull and switch out the middle pickup for the piezo. That way it would be possible to run the piezo on its own, in the middle position with tone pot pulled, or combined with either the neck or bridge pickup for a piezo/magnetic blend.

I like the Piezo sound too - in fact I was considering the HB2 with Piezo as my 'next' PRS but for my 509, the added option of using the 2 humbuckers together would be far more useful to me. I think it would be a lot easy a mod too - just replace the volume pot with a PRS push/pull pot and a little bit of a rewire so that the middle position on the switch works to either select the single - as it does now regardless or to select the two humbuckers - which obviously can be split independently any way. That 'simple' mod effectively adds 4 more tones and more custom 24-08 functionality on top of the 509 options - albeit at a longer scale length (a whole quarter of an inch) and without the extra 2 frets of course.

 

[shinksma]

For a piezo to be added to a 509, I wonder whether it would be "easier", and result in more functionality, if you could swap out the trem bridge for the one used in a P24 (Custom 24 Piezo)? That, combined with the push-pull volume knob, and maybe some other switchology, might make it into a true "P509".

 

[Mozzi]

For a piezo to be added to a 509, I wonder whether it would be "easier", and result in more functionality, if you could swap out the trem bridge for the one used in a P24 (Custom 24 Piezo)? That, combined with the push-pull volume knob, and maybe some other switchology, might make it into a true "P509".

I don't know if it would be easier or whether you would need to do to much to the body to fit in any additional things that maybe required. I see most Piezo guitars have an extra cable output as well as a battery compartment

As you can see on this P24, you have a battery and 2 output jacks so even if you could swap the Trem bridge easily, even make the switching in the pots quite easy by using push/pulls instead - if you wanted this, it would be a far more complex job than just a 'simple' trem bridge swap and some rewiring. Compared to changing what the middle option does with a push/pull pot - ie swapping from just the middle pick-up to the two Humbuckers, is a much more complicated and potentially more versatile option. That simple pot swap and small rewiring job will give 4 tones based on whether you have them set to on full humbucker or split. Its giving you all the options you would have with a Custom 24-08, plus 5 it can't offer thanks to the middle single coil - essentially the 'best' of both the double humbucker set-up and super strat/strat/tele set up too. Maybe just not as 'unique' as a Piezo but to get the best out of it, I think it will be a much bigger task.

 

[Dancing Frog]

For a piezo to be added to a 509, I wonder whether it would be "easier", and result in more functionality, if you could swap out the trem bridge for the one used in a P24 (Custom 24 Piezo)? That, combined with the push-pull volume knob, and maybe some other switchology, might make it into a true "P509".

Other than the saddles, the P24 trem bridge is the same as any other PRS trem bridge.

That being said, I think that you'll run into to the same problem that I ran into with my P515 build. When I inquired into whether the LR Baggs system could be made compatible with 513 electronics, I was told that it couldn't be. It seems that the LR Baggs system requires that all pick ups be reverse wound compared to the regular Cu24 apparently for noise cancellation. The 513 electronics are of mixed winding directions due to the center pick up, and that can't be overcome. The 509 electronics have the same issue. So, if you want a piezo, it's a Graphtech Ghost system or an equivalent.

Provided that you could find room in the current cavity for a small electronics board and a 9V battery, you wouldn't have to route out the jack, because the Graphtech Ghost uses a smart jack. When a regular cable is plugged in, you get mixed mags and piezo. With a stereo cable, the channels are separated.

On my P515, the installation is kind of a mess. The extra space routed is required for the knobs and switches, but you can get the idea of the sizes of the boards. Without the MIDI, there is no piggy backed board, and the large ribbon cable at the bottom goes away.

This is the 509's cavity which has a lot more room without the super-switch.