Flaws with new guitar

L

llyod1

New Member
Joined
Feb 2, 2022
Messages
2
To celebrate having played for a year, I purchased an SE Standard. I know it's the cheapest PRS guitar, but it was a big purchase for me.

It seems to play fine, but while changing the strings, I noticed a few things that concern me:

The nut slots are very sloppy and one looks like a gash
There's a divot in the 7th fret
There's what appears to be corrosion on the saddles

I have photos but don't see an attachment option here.

Can anyone please tell me if this is what passes for quality control at this price point, and if any of these flaws warrant repair?

Yes, I have contacted my B&M shop, where my loyalty seems to be unappreciated. (I wish I had bought from Sweetwater).

Perhaps worse of all, my numerous requests for assistance at the PRS 'zen desk' have never been responded to. I first emailed them 2/22/22

Thank you in advance,

Scott
 
Sorry about your experience....the excitement of a new guitar being dulled by it not meeting your personal expectations sucks big time.

In my experience, everything I have received has been "about" flawless. I say "about" because I can find a flaw in just about anything, it's just a matter of how much that flaw impacts the products intended use...be it visual or mechanical.

Poorly cut nut slots aren't unheard of, but relatively rare. The divots on the frets is something I'd have issue with and would probably seek resolution, as well. Corrosion on the saddles...I have seen that as it can happen during shipping if the weather sucks. Usually a good polish will clean them up.

In terms of resolution, I'd recommend staying vigilant and patient. Usually stuff like this would all be handled through your retailer....but it sounds like you've hit a wall with them. The PRS help desk has been pretty hit and miss lately, from my understanding. Personally, I have always received prompt and efficient help from PRS, but it's been a couple years since I have had to reach out. I've heard they've had some staff changes so getting through to somebody is more difficult these days.

Again, I'd say stay vigilant and patient. Keep trying to get through to both the retailer and PRS and something will eventually get resolved.

Congrats on your new guitar and I hope it all ends up being smoothed over for you!
 
llyod1 said:
To celebrate having played for a year, I purchased an SE Standard. I know it's the cheapest PRS guitar, but it was a big purchase for me.

It seems to play fine, but while changing the strings, I noticed a few things that concern me:

The nut slots are very sloppy and one looks like a gash
There's a divot in the 7th fret
There's what appears to be corrosion on the saddles

I have photos but don't see an attachment option here.

Can anyone please tell me if this is what passes for quality control at this price point, and if any of these flaws warrant repair?

Yes, I have contacted my B&M shop, where my loyalty seems to be unappreciated. (I wish I had bought from Sweetwater).

Perhaps worse of all, my numerous requests for assistance at the PRS 'zen desk' have never been responded to. I first emailed them 2/22/22

Thank you in advance,

Scott
Click to expand...
Couple more things:
- you need several posts before you are able to post pictures. But maybe you can still posts the actually http link to the Imgur pictures as workaround.
- PRS customer service will likely tell you to reach out to the dealer for warranty concerns once they get back to you. I hope the dealer is able to answer your concerns and offer a resolution. Call instead of email if you haven't done so.
Hard to gauge your case w/o attachments, but if the divot is bad and the nut is indeed subpar I'd be sending it back with refund.
In any case, however frustrating it is keep it cool with the dealer and PRS.

- PRS customer service is indeed overloaded. My recent request 1+ week old request was only replied to today. If you are sending multiple (and individual) requests, you're just making the wait for everyone longer (yourself included).
 
Last edited:
I have said it once and I will say it again. Since the introduction of the S2 line, there is no need to purchase an SE (which are not a real PRS guitars). An S2 does not cost that much more than an SE. To the untrained eye, the S2s appear to be more stripped down than many SEs, but the cosmetics on SEs are fake. For example, the figure on S2 tops goes all the way through the top, which can be seen on the masked binding on the sides of the guitar (that is an easy way to tell if a manufacturer is covering a plain maple top with a figured veneer). Cort uses a very thin figured maple veneer over a plain maple top. That is like a woman wearing fake eyelashes versus one with naturally long eyelashes. Sooner or later, one is going to wake up and feel deceived. The S2s have Stevensville quality, which makes them buy once, cry once purchases. The SEs have Cort quality, which is okay, but not the same thing.
 
Em7 said:
I have said it once and I will say it again. Since the introduction of the S2 line, there is no need to purchase an SE (which are not a real PRS guitars). An S2 does not cost that much more than an SE. To the untrained eye, the S2s appear to be more stripped down than many SEs, but the cosmetics on SEs are fake. For example, the figure on S2 tops goes all the way through the top, which can be seen on the masked binding on the sides of the guitar (that is an easy way to tell if a manufacturer is covering a plain maple top with a figured veneer). Cort uses a very thin figured maple veneer over a plain maple top. That is like a woman wearing fake eyelashes versus one with naturally long eyelashes. Sooner or later, one is going to wake up and feel deceived. The S2s have Stevensville quality, which makes them buy once, cry once purchases. The SEs have Cort quality, which is okay, but not the same thing.
Click to expand...
People play what they like and can afford.
Stop being so bougie.
 
ElrytNamrogo said:
Sorry about your experience....the excitement of a new guitar being dulled by it not meeting your personal expectations sucks big time.

In my experience, everything I have received has been "about" flawless. I say "about" because I can find a flaw in just about anything, it's just a matter of how much that flaw impacts the products intended use...be it visual or mechanical.

Poorly cut nut slots aren't unheard of, but relatively rare. The divots on the frets is something I'd have issue with and would probably seek resolution, as well. Corrosion on the saddles...I have seen that as it can happen during shipping if the weather sucks. Usually a good polish will clean them up.

In terms of resolution, I'd recommend staying vigilant and patient. Usually stuff like this would all be handled through your retailer....but it sounds like you've hit a wall with them. The PRS help desk has been pretty hit and miss lately, from my understanding. Personally, I have always received prompt and efficient help from PRS, but it's been a couple years since I have had to reach out. I've heard they've had some staff changes so getting through to somebody is more difficult these days.

Again, I'd say stay vigilant and patient. Keep trying to get through to both the retailer and PRS and something will eventually get resolved.

Congrats on your new guitar and I hope it all ends up being smoothed over for you
Click to expand...
ElrytNamrogo said:
Sorry about your experience....the excitement of a new guitar being dulled by it not meeting your personal expectations sucks big time.

In my experience, everything I have received has been "about" flawless. I say "about" because I can find a flaw in just about anything, it's just a matter of how much that flaw impacts the products intended use...be it visual or mechanical.

Poorly cut nut slots aren't unheard of, but relatively rare. The divots on the frets is something I'd have issue with and would probably seek resolution, as well. Corrosion on the saddles...I have seen that as it can happen during shipping if the weather sucks. Usually a good polish will clean them up.

In terms of resolution, I'd recommend staying vigilant and patient. Usually stuff like this would all be handled through your retailer....but it sounds like you've hit a wall with them. The PRS help desk has been pretty hit and miss lately, from my understanding. Personally, I have always received prompt and efficient help from PRS, but it's been a couple years since I have had to reach out. I've heard they've had some staff changes so getting through to somebody is more difficult these days.

Again, I'd say stay vigilant and patient. Keep trying to get through to both the retailer and PRS and something will eventually get resolved.

Congrats on your new guitar and I hope it all ends up being smoothed over for you!
Click to expand...
Thank you for your helpful and succinct reply, I was only expecting the type of replies that followed ( I should have spent twice the money and bought a "real PRS")etc.
 
llyod1 said:
Thank you for your helpful and succinct reply, I was only expecting the type of replies that followed ( I should have spent twice the money and bought a "real PRS")etc.
Click to expand...

Of course, always happy to help!

Like I said, the excitement of getting a new guitar is something I think everybody can agree is a tremendous feeling. Having that be blunted by a product not meeting our expectations can be a sinking feeling.

It sounds like it's great guitar aside from the issues you've noted....I sincerely hope you can get something resolved quickly and to your satisfaction.

And lastly, it's your money, you earned it....spend it on what you want. Regardless of Private Stock, Wood Library, Core, S2, or SE, we're all just trying to find that inspiring guitar that helps us create the music that moves us and I feel that PRS (as do many other brands) makes great guitars to do just that, in all their product lines.
 
It took about 3 weeks for PTC to respond to my request. Give them some time I'm sure this is a result of everyone making Covid PRS guitar purchases.
 
Given the flaws you describe, i’d return it and not take no for an answer. Get the shop owner on the phone.
Frets on a new guitar should not have divots.
 
Em7 said:
I have said it once and I will say it again. Since the introduction of the S2 line, there is no need to purchase an SE (which are not a real PRS guitars). An S2 does not cost that much more than an SE. To the untrained eye, the S2s appear to be more stripped down than many SEs, but the cosmetics on SEs are fake. For example, the figure on S2 tops goes all the way through the top, which can be seen on the masked binding on the sides of the guitar (that is an easy way to tell if a manufacturer is covering a plain maple top with a figured veneer). Cort uses a very thin figured maple veneer over a plain maple top. That is like a woman wearing fake eyelashes versus one with naturally long eyelashes. Sooner or later, one is going to wake up and feel deceived. The S2s have Stevensville quality, which makes them buy once, cry once purchases. The SEs have Cort quality, which is okay, but not the same thing.
Click to expand...
It may be snotty/bourgeois/elitist/whatever-the-f#ck adjective you like of me to say, but I agree with this.

The S2s are real PRS'. The SEs are whatever they are, but they're contract instruments. PRS is the customer, not the manufacturer.

Is this a bad thing? No. SEs help fund the continuation of PRS as a company. But they ain't the real deal. And yes, I realize I'm a terrible person for saying so. I belong in hell and will surely go there if it exists, but not for this reason. ;)
 
Last edited:
The nut on my SE C24 looks pretty bad, like it was slotted by somebody on their first day, but it plays fine and is really stable, so on that subject I wouldn’t say it’s unusual.

The fret thing though, well that’s like taking delivery of a car with a flat tyre. It just won’t work properly. It’s kind of a deal breaker.
 
On the S2 thing, personally I don’t consider them to be superior to the SE in any way. None that I’ve played were noticeably better than my own SE. Perhaps I’ve just been lucky? Or perhaps it was the familiarity of all the same (imported) components they both have?

But, I’m not going down this rabbit hole again.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Faded
The Long Term Relationship Project - An early New Years Resolution
Replies
12
Views
362
dogrocketp
dogrocketp
K
New PRS Studio arrived today with a poor setup is this normal?
2
Replies
23
Views
955
L6dist
L
D
New here, but hope to find a group to visit with.
Replies
12
Views
336
Underachiever
U
M
Help!!!
Replies
15
Views
329
Matty509
M
direwolf08
N(2Me)GD: Vela S-H Satin
2
Replies
30
Views
1K
Glide-bpm
Glide-bpm
Back
Top