Modders, why so much change?

[pac90]

Level 2: routers tequila and core models

 

[Mozzi]

I tend to buy guitars on the way they feel and sound. As such, I haven't modded any guitar as they performed and sounded exactly as I wanted - hence I bought them. I guess if I was buying a 'cheap' guitar, I may have a different opinion - buy it as a 'starting' point, a base on which to build upon.

That being said, I would 'Mod' my 509 by putting a push/pull switch in to go between the middle Pick-up and the outer two 'Humbuckers' (although they could be SC's) when in Position 3. If I owned a PRS Special 22, I would like to mod that in the opposite way to allow 'just' the narrowfield as an option. Its a 'small' mod really and shouldn't change the tones - just add to the variety of options they already offer.

Things may change in the future - it does depend on the guitars I acquire. I am looking at getting a Hollowbody 2 (and/or maybe a P245?) and possibly would consider adding a push/pull to split the coils (if they can be) just to add more tonal options. Unless I buy a 'cheap' guitar that doesn't offer the tone, quality etc that I think I could get by 'modding' - switching out the PU's, changing the nut/bridge/tuners etc, then I doubt I will do any mods - other than perhaps expanding on the options the guitar has by replacing a pot with a Push/pull option.

As I said, I bought the guitars I own because I loved the way they sound and played so have no desire to mod them...

 

[Parralax view]

I started playing, and playing in bands and such when just a young kid. In that time, no body even thought or possibly even knew of modding instruments. You bought them, you played them warts and all and when you made more money, you traded, sold or got something better. It's how I am today with the exception that I don't trade or sell, or mod. I'm in a small camp in that I try to wring out what I want from an instrument, learn it's quirks and possibly use them . That requires a bit of close inspection and playing when buying. If it doesn't feel good, it stays on the rack. I wouldn't think of modding my McCarty, even though many find them dark or uninspiring, I just don't. In any case, no body is banging down my door for my stellar tone output. Only I seem interested at all in what it sounds like. I know around my house, "Quack" is not appreciated, only full throated and mellow tone, not me, but the other ears in the hovel.... I just play them, enjoy them and do virtually nothing to them except constant maintenance and upkeep, past that, they sound like they do and it's good enough for me.

 

[danktat]

I tend to buy guitars on the way they feel and sound. As such, I haven't modded any guitar as they performed and sounded exactly as I wanted - hence I bought them. I guess if I was buying a 'cheap' guitar, I may have a different opinion - buy it as a 'starting' point, a base on which to build upon.

That being said, I would 'Mod' my 509 by putting a push/pull switch in to go between the middle Pick-up and the outer two 'Humbuckers' (although they could be SC's) when in Position 3. If I owned a PRS Special 22, I would like to mod that in the opposite way to allow 'just' the narrowfield as an option. Its a 'small' mod really and shouldn't change the tones - just add to the variety of options they already offer.

Things may change in the future - it does depend on the guitars I acquire. I am looking at getting a Hollowbody 2 (and/or maybe a P245?) and possibly would consider adding a push/pull to split the coils (if they can be) just to add more tonal options. Unless I buy a 'cheap' guitar that doesn't offer the tone, quality etc that I think I could get by 'modding' - switching out the PU's, changing the nut/bridge/tuners etc, then I doubt I will do any mods - other than perhaps expanding on the options the guitar has by replacing a pot with a Push/pull option.

As I said, I bought the guitars I own because I loved the way they sound and played so have no desire to mod them...

This is my exact mentality on it....which is the reason for the original post. But, I do have a LOT of friends who will be thinking about the mods LONG before they ever purchase a guitar. I never got it.

 

[eclecticsynergy]

I choose guitars based on liveness and feel. So many of mine have at least had the pickups swapped, and some are modded way beyond that.

But my favorite PRS is exactly the same as it was when I brought it home in 1987, other than having some serious fret wear. I wouldn't change a thing. In fact I've avoided getting the frets dressed because I dread making any changes. But she needs some attention now.

 

[Mozzi]

This is my exact mentality on it....which is the reason for the original post. But, I do have a LOT of friends who will be thinking about the mods LONG before they ever purchase a guitar. I never got it.

I don't get it either. I can understand to a degree if you are starting with a cheap guitar but once you get to a certain value, I don't understand it. I have seen people that dislike certain guitars (513, 509, 408) just because they can't easily change the PU's and tell people not to buy for that reason. It doesn't matter to them how 'good' the guitar sounds or feels, just the fact its much more difficult to mod...

If you are starting with a cheap guitar, I can understand wanting locking tuners, better nut, better electronics etc but with expensive PRS guitars the only 'mod' I do is change strings to my preferred brand/gauge....

 

[Lister]

I was going to say that I don't mod my guitars, but then I realized that yeah, actually I guess I do now. I don't do a ton of mods, it's mostly knobs and pickguards for the electrics and bone nuts and saddles for the acoustics. My SG, however, will soon be getting a new harness to replace that supid PCB piece of crap that has caused me grief ever since I bought it, but that's more of a mod for functionality as was the tuners that replaced the dying g-force. My Mira, even though I love the guitar itself, I'm considering changing the neck pup because even after multiple adjustments, I find it still a tad dark and muddy for my tastes. This mod seems more frivolous than the harness mod and something I wouldn't have thought about back in the day. Could I live with a dark neck pup on the Mira? Sure, but with so many options these days, why? I really don't want to sell her, so a pup upgrade seems like an obvious solution.

I started playing, and playing in bands and such when just a young kid. In that time, no body even thought or possibly even knew of modding instruments. You bought them, you played them warts and all and when you made more money, you traded, sold or got something better.

^^^^This. There wasn't a luthier in my small town even if I knew about or wanted to mod a guitar. It wasn't until internet forums that I started wondering about bone nuts, bridge saddles, new pups, wiring harnesses and such. Want new knobs and pickguard? Hop on the internet. Wondering if that boutique pickup really sounds as good as the forum says? Youtube for sound clips. It's truly opened a whole world for modding guitars...good and bad.

 

[danktat]

I know of a couple of people that literally spend [just about] as much time switching stuff out on their guitars as they do playing them. But, I know people who spend just as much time under the hood of their cars as they do driving them too. So I guess, modding is a hobby unto itself that just happens to overlap other hobbies.

 

[TRJC24PRS]

I know of a couple of people that literally spend [just about] as much time switching stuff out on their guitars as they do playing them. But, I know people who spend just as much time under the hood of their cars as they do driving them too. So I guess, modding is a hobby unto itself that just happens to overlap other hobbies.

Breaking car parts is worse than breaking guitar parts

 

[Antmax]

Both of mine have minor mods, mostly cosmetic like a different truss rod cover or knobs. I did swap pickups and went back to the originals. In the end if I decide on a model and play a few, some guitars just feel right and play really well, you find one that is better than the others available to you but you don't like the pickups then it's no big deal to simply swap them out. 15 minutes at the most. So long as you keep the originals you can always switch them back. If you don't know how and have to pay someone then I guess it might get more complicated.

I don't see many people modding their PRS guitars outside of the basics like aftermarket pickups and reversible cosmetics like I have done.

 

[Lister]

Breaking car parts is worse than breaking guitar parts

Yep. JEEP is the acronym for Just Empty Every Pocket...and it's true, oh god is it true.

 

[bodia]

Yep. JEEP is the acronym for Just Empty Every Pocket...and it's true, oh god is it true.

I can attest to that! I just dropped what could have been a Core in my wife's!

 

[Alnus Rubra]

I can attest to that! I just dropped what could have been a Core in my wife's!

Or even a good way toward an HB 594!

 

[TRJC24PRS]

Yep. JEEP is the acronym for Just Empty Every Pocket...and it's true, oh god is it true.

*cough* 1973 Porsche Targa *cough*

 

[Mozzi]

Just had another thought about what 'mods' I would consider... Pick-up Rings!!! Purely cosmetic as I think the 'white' PU rings on both my 594 and Cu24 look somewhat odd against the 'black/red' body. I guess they do compliment the birds to a degree but I think the rings stand-out far too much and to a degree, detract from the body. If they were black, they would drop into the background more and compliment the 'black' in the body as well as co-ordinate with the black knobs too.

Looking at my triplet of PRS guitars, the white rings stand out so much - more so than the black PU's of the 509. I would also change the white tip of the 3-way on my 594.

White rings I think go well with lighter guitars as the contrast between the light body and light rings isn't so drastic as it is here. That's one thing I wish PRS did as Standard would be to use white on light coloured guitars as standard and black on the dark bodied guitars. Surely the cost would be the same - after all, it costs the same to buy replacement rings in either Black or White...

 

[Lister]

I can attest to that! I just dropped what could have been a Core in my wife's!

I've got 4 of them...the oldest is a 1947 CJ2A that I'd love to finally restore, but someone decided college for our kids was a bigger priority. For some reason, "they can work their way through college like we did, so I can have that cash to restore the '47," wasn't the answer she was looking for...

*cough* 1973 Porsche Targa *cough*

And I thought parts for my junk was expensive...

 

[Coop]

Yep. JEEP is the acronym for Just Empty Every Pocket...and it's true, oh god is it true.

Truth. I do miss my TJ though.

 

[TRJC24PRS]

I've got 4 of them...the oldest is a 1947 CJ2A that I'd love to finally restore, but someone decided college for our kids was a bigger priority. For some reason, "they can work their way through college like we did, so I can have that cash to restore the '47," wasn't the answer she was looking for...



And I thought parts for my junk was expensive...

Same here, 70's Porsche parts will either be hard to find or expensive

 

[Steve Allison]

I've only modded one PRS but that was to add a Ghostronics Piezo to my Custom 24. I've modded Teles to sound like better Teles by changing the Pups to Joe Bardons from stock. And I will mod up guitars when I want to trip people out. I have an Ibanez Prestige I rarely play but put PRS Dragon !!s in it along with the 5 way switch, but left the 5 way blade in the guitar (it does nothing). Those guys with folded arms in the back of the room (you know the guys) would come up talking about how awesome my tone was even when the blade switch was on the neck position. I never told them.

 

[CandidPicker]

Most folks have preferences to what their ears like to hear, and anything outside of that may not be actually pleasing to them. Case in point, at several times in my life I, like many others, once owned a single-coil Strat-style guitar. My problem was that no matter how much I liked the esthetics, the feel, the vibe, the quiet single-coils, I just could never quite get used to the sound of single-coils. Did that cause me to mod my guitar? No. The guitar was sold as-is at a loss for something that was more pleasing to my ear.

Apparently, my personal preference is for warmer, fuller sounding humbucker pickups. And my most recent acquisition was a PRS S2 SC with #7 pickups.

The original owner said to give the #7 pickups a try, because they might not need replacing. Nevertheless, while researching other pickup upgrades, my thought was towards investing in pickups that would have more of a PAF style tone. The replacement pickups were ordered. When the guitar arrived, sure enough, the #7 pickups, with only a pickup height adjustment, were pleasing to my ear. The PAF pickups, that arrived a day before the guitar did, are no longer necessary.

My dilemma is that the replacement pickups were not special ordered and technically, were not what was requested from my order (different bobbin color), save for the same DC resistance values. My hope is that the pickup builder will allow return/refund of my order given the stipulations described from my previous words.

Now, the wait begins as the pickup builder himself returns from NAMM and will be on the job Tuesday. My hope is that he might be in a good mood so that it will be possible to ask him politely if he'll allow the return/refund of the replacement pickups. (In all honesty, it would be preferable for me to try this route instead of undercutting his business by selling the pickups online, which would also need to be sold at a loss instead of the full refund that might be possible).

Regards modifying stock guitars, my feeling is that if it ain't broke, don't fix it. If the condition, tone, sound, feel, and vibe of your existing guitar is pleasing to you, don't eff' with it. You'll be more content with what you have, than with what you think you want.

Too often, the advertisers of this world bombard you with things you think you might wish to have, but can't afford or don't need. Do you r-e-a-l-l-y need that new sports car with the fancy powered ashtrays? Exactly. Lesson learned regards the replacement pickups.