I want to get an SE Santana or Custom 24, can't play either before I buy

[SwissMade]

So this is a tough one, I've watched hours worth of videos, read reviews etc, and I've decided I want to buy either a Yellow Custom 24, or Santana SE. I know ultimately it's only me that decide which is best, but I'd like your informed opinion so I don't have to waste money on returning a guitar I don't like.

I do know that I should play them in person, but no shop nearby (in my country as far as I can tell) stocks them.

This will be my first "real" guitar, currently I have an old Yamaha ERG 121 HSH with a 25 1/2" scale length, and a narrow, flat neck which I've grown to be pretty comfortable with.

Here's some thoughts I've come up with so far:

Custom 24:
Pros:
- Thin neck is similar to what I have now
- Coil split w/ push pull switch out of the box
- Longer scale length?
Cons:
- I don't love the red/yellow contrast

Santana:
Pros:
- Looks absolutely beautiful
Cons:
- Shorter scale length? (is this really a negative?)
- Fat neck (I've never tried one, maybe not a negative?)
- Fat body (Beautiful, maybe awkward to hold?)

It would seem the Custom 24 has more going for it, however only because there's so many unknowns for me with the Santana.
Does anyone have anything to add that might help me? If someone familiar with the Santana could address the cons I've listed that'd be super helpful.

 

[CoreyT]

I have both, 2012 models.
I like both, but I prefer the thinner neck and longer scale of the Custom 24.
Both are excellent guitars though.

The Custom will get you more sounds with the push/pull knob for the pickups.

 

[DHW]

The shorter scale length will result in less tension in the strings. This is good for standard tuning making 10's feel like 9's and so on. The wide fat neck feels considerably chunkier in the hand. Not uncomfortable by any means. The santana has the se 245 pickups which are probably the best stock se pickups you can get. They are lower output than the se hfs in the cu24 so if you intend on playing high gain the amp/pedals will have to do more of the heavy lifting. Most modern amps this is not an issue.