Got my SE DGT! Couple questions…

P

Proctorvt

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First off, I got my SE DGT yesterday and it is an absolute killer. I was won over to PRS when I picked up a Silver Sky SE and was blown away by its playability as opposed to pretty much every other strat I’ve ever played (and certainly within that price range).

I’m happy to field questions about my SE DGT but first, my question… I opened up the back to change the strings and adjust trem springs and noticed that there is no ground wire attached to the block. There is a hole drilled to the other compartment but no wire. Is this proper? I know my strats are grounded and I thought it was a little interesting that there’s a hole but no wire.

Maybe a silly question but it’s very early in the production line so I know weird flukes can happen.

Thanks in advance!
 
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@Proctorvt,

You'll need to post 10 times before you have full forum privileges (includes posting images). There likely is a ground wire. The way to check is to plug the SE DGT into an amp at normal volume, and listen for any hum or static. If no, the wire may be connected to the underside of the trem block where you can't see it. It's likely there, but I'd not go looking for it unless there's hum or static.
 
When your amp and guitar are turned up and you put your hands on the strings do you notice a little less hum or static or background noise?

If so, it's grounded.

If not, then they missed something in the production of the guitar.

It's odd that the hole for a ground wire is there but the wire is not.
 
That was also my intuition. It’s a very quiet guitar (as one would expect from humbuckers). I just thought it a little odd that there was a hole drilled for a ground wire but no wire (at least there, anyhow).

Thanks for your help. I’d be curious if any other SE or Core DGT owners would chime in to see if theirs has a similar thing going on.

Cheers!
 
Proctorvt said:
That was also my intuition. It’s a very quiet guitar (as one would expect from humbuckers). I just thought it a little odd that there was a hole drilled for a ground wire but no wire (at least there, anyhow).

Thanks for your help. I’d be curious if any other SE or Core DGT owners would chime in to see if theirs has a similar thing going on.

Cheers!
Click to expand...

Also, in case it needs to be said — holy cow, what a guitar! I cannot stop raving about it. My other 7 guitars are going to collect a lot of dust. Like Grissom, I’ve been feeling the urge to get back to basics and have a “go-to” guitar. This is the one, for sure. Thanks Paul, David and everyone else who was associated with this project.

I’ll probably pick up a gold top to go along with my tobacco burst and carry these (along with a Silver Sky, perhaps) to most gigs going forward.
 
How are you liking the coil split sounds? They sound great in the video reviews I've seen.

From watching reviews of the SE DGT it seems to be a partial coil split with one coil fully on and one partially off, but not completely off.

If you don't mind, could you check something for me?

When the coil split is engaged, could you tap on the pickups and see which coil is fully on?

I'm curious if it's the screw coil that's fully on or not.

You'll need to tap lightly with something metal, like a screwdriver tip or a perhaps a coin.
 
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Lewguitar said:
How are you liking the coil split sounds? They sound great in the video reviews I've seen.

From watching reviews of the SE DGT it seems to be a partial coil split with one coil fully on and one partially off, but not completely off.

If you don't mind, could you check something for me?

When the coil split is engaged, could you tap on the pickups and see which coil is fully on?

I'm curious if it's the screw coil that's fully on or not.

You'll need to tap lightly with something metal, like a screwdriver tip or a perhaps a coin.
Click to expand...
I’m loving the split sounds. It’s a little spanky and a little P90-y. Very useable for clean and dirt. It loses a little thickness but in a highly useable and intentional way.

It sounds like both are engaged when I split, but it may just be the cover transmitting things from one side to another. I’m only moderately technically inclined so I may be missing something.

I can say that I measured and there is about a 4 dB drop off when coil split and I’m playing at moderate rehearsal volume. It’s noticeable but in a highly useable way — it almost operates as a clean boost. I plan to untap and rip into some lead lines during some tunes.

As David and other have said, it’s just such a versatile instrument. In the past, I haven’t fooled much with my guitar knobs. I’ll clean up with volume a tad but that’s it. This one, though, will have me tweaking on stage quite a bit because it gives you so many tonal options at the tip of your fingers without pedals or toggling amp settings.
 
Proctorvt said:
It sounds like both are engaged when you split them but it’s got a cover on so it might just be that appearing to engage both coils.

It sounds like both are engaged when I split, but it may just be the cover transmitting things from one side to another. I’m only moderately technically inclined so I may be missing something.

I can say that I measured and there is about a 4 dB drop off when coil split and I’m playing at moderate rehearsal volume. It’s noticeable but in a highly useable way — it almost operates as a clean boost. I plan to untap and rip into some lead lines during some tunes.

As David and other have said, it’s just such a versatile instrument. In the past, I haven’t fooled much with my guitar knobs. I’ll clean up with volume a tad but that’s it. This one, though, will have me tweaking on stage quite a bit because it gives you so many tonal options at the tip of your fingers without pedals or toggling amp settings.
Click to expand...
Yes, both coils would be engaged. From what I've seen it's a partial split so one is full on and the other is turned down but still on.

Thanks!
 
Lewguitar said:
Yes, both coils would be engaged. From what I've seen it's a partial split so one is full on and the other is turned down but still on.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

I’ve always viewed coil splitting like putting a knob on a B3 Organ that turns it into a toddler’s toy piano. Why would I want my fat buckers to suddenly sound like they’re transmitting a weak AM signal through a crappy radio that you can barely hear at the end of a long hallway?

I’ve always viewed coil splitting as largely a gimmick. BUT this coil split just maintains the punch of the sound in a highly useable way. Bravo to PRS.
 
Proctorvt said:
I’ve always viewed coil splitting like putting a knob on a B3 Organ that turns it into a toddler’s toy piano. Why would I want my fat buckers to suddenly sound like they’re transmitting a weak AM signal through a crappy radio that you can barely hear at the end of a long hallway?

I’ve always viewed coil splitting as largely a gimmick. BUT this coil split just maintains the punch of the sound in a highly useable way. Bravo to PRS.
Click to expand...

I agree. There's a mod some guys who are really into pickup mods do called a spin-a-split.

Instead of a switch that shunts one coil to ground and turns it completely off but leaves the other one on, they put a volume pot in place of the off/on switch.

So one coil can be turned down but left partially on.

Then you adjust it to taste and when you find the setting you like, you measure the resistance that the pot is set to and replace it with a resistor of that value.

That appears to be what PRS has done.

But I'm only guessing.
 
Update: I still can’t post photos because I’m a newbie account but Phillip McKnight’s breakdown of the SE DGT on YouTube shows a brief corner of an exposed trem cavity and you can distinctly see a ground wire sticking up as you might expect for a brief second. He is looking at the pots and doesn’t show the trem cavity, which is a little curious given how thorough the rest of the video is. Why not show it?? Ah well.

Looks like mine is missing a ground wire, after all? But as far as I can tell it’s not buzzing excessively… I’ve reached out to PRS so the saga continues. It’d be nice to hear from a rep on this forum or someone else who can open the back of their SE DGT for reference (but I know they’re scarce right now)
 
Proctorvt said:
Update: I still can’t post photos because I’m a newbie account but Phillip McKnight’s breakdown of the SE DGT on YouTube shows a brief corner of an exposed trem cavity and you can distinctly see a ground wire sticking up as you might expect for a brief second. He is looking at the pots and doesn’t show the trem cavity, which is a little curious given how thorough the rest of the video is. Why not show it?? Ah well.

Looks like mine is missing a ground wire, after all? But as far as I can tell it’s not buzzing excessively… I’ve reached out to PRS so the saga continues. It’d be nice to hear from a rep on this forum or someone else who can open the back of their SE DGT for reference (but I know they’re scarce right now)
Click to expand...
I you have a multimeter, put it onto continuity mode, put one probe on a string and the other probe to the rim of the output jack, if you get a nice beep, your guitar is grounded.
 
The springs are conductive. The grounded claw transfers to the trem block with the springs, which transfers to the bridge, then to the saddles, then the strings and finally the tuners. All nicely grounded.
 
Getting mixed responses on the size of the frets. Are they jumbo? Any larger than what is normally used in other PRS guitars? I own core, S2 and SE. All fret sizes are very similar if not the same.
 
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