Need opinion on an INCOMING

[markintime]

I finally found myself an ebony fretboard and it is stuck on a 30th Anniversary Limited Edition SE Custom 24 that has left Sweetwater and is enroute to me. If all goes well, I may get my hot little hands on it Saturday. I had been trying to locate one of these ever since I missed out on another one that they had. This one did not get away! I was told that it is quite possibly one of the last ones not yet sold, until now.

I've only got a couple of their photos, but here it is in black cherry glory:

Now the question I have is, since this has a maple neck under that ebony fretboard, should I just put covers over the zebras or replace them? I'm having a hard time coming up with a replacement, especially since I already have another SE 30th with 59's in it. I am leaning toward just covering them and hoping that may tame a bit of that "hot, fat, screaming" thing. I play more blues stuff than anything else, and definitely no metal.

I've re-read the thread discussing the merits of 85/15, 57/08, 53/10's, etc. And there is on eBay a bidding war on 53/10 treble and bass with each standing on bids of $155 apiece, and the seller is listing them separately. And there's over 4 days left to bid. Then another seller wants $340 for a set of 57/08's with 2 days left. That's why I'm thinking: keep what I got coming. But I'd love to hear what y'all think.

Thanks in advance for any input/thoughts. Oh yeah, better pics will come later of course.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

If you're a cheap bastid, I recommend a used DII bass and a Mira treble. Nobody wants those, they're cheap, and they played an important evolutionary role in the development of PRS pickups, that are perfectly priced for an SE.

I think you'll like the ebony board/maple neck combo, there's a huge difference That I like between my SE Orianthi (ebony) and my SE CU24 (rosewood).

 

[Dusty Chalk]

...$155 apiece...$340 for a set ...

Too rich for my blood, I'd recommend getting something else -- and if covered is your thing, then get covered pickups. I think some blingy gold DiMarzios would look great against the red. :evil:

...oh, wait a minute, you said covered...

I'd be too afraid to get aftermarket covers, but I have zero experience with them.

 

[markintime]

Thanks, Serge. Right now, I'm out of the cheap bastid mode, so I can look around a bit. I did think about the DII's, but not in combination with another type. That is an interesting combination.

Dusty, your suggestion is interesting as well. The only real reason for covered is that I just don't like the zebra look. Apologies to those who do. But the other consideration in going for the gold (heh), is that the rest of the hardware is not gold. I do wish PRS had gold buttons for the tuners, or even locking tuners for it. Heck, I even considered replacing the zebras with the all black SE pups, and at least that would keep everything in the PRS family. Although I know that the SE's are a favorite target of mods. But this could quickly be like the monkey peeing into the cash register - it would run into money. :wink:

 

[Dusty Chalk]

I'm totally with you on that. Black goes with everything! (except for a brief couple months somewhere in the mid 2030s -- you're welcome) They have a bunch of different nickel options, as do many companies.

My reasoning is very specific -- I have cats. I have taken to keeping all of my guitars in cases or in a separate, air-filtered room when not in use. There's something about magnets and the electrostatic charge of loose cat hair that...well, you know.

Mann has a variety of colors and combinations of things not available from the PRS store.

The nice thing about SE mods is that you can do it piecemeal -- as you can afford it. So it's sort of like an upgrade payment plan. Don't get anything you can't afford, but there's no reason not to improve what you can. After the pups, my next big upgrade will be the nuts. :hello::wave::flute::star:

 

[markintime]

I'm totally with you on that. Black goes with everything! (except for a brief couple months somewhere in the mid 2030s -- you're welcome) They have a bunch of different nickel options, as do many companies.

My reasoning is very specific -- I have cats. I have taken to keeping all of my guitars in cases or in a separate, air-filtered room when not in use. There's something about magnets and the electrostatic charge of loose cat hair that...well, you know.

Mann has a variety of colors and combinations of things not available from the PRS store.

The nice thing about SE mods is that you can do it piecemeal -- as you can afford it. So it's sort of like an upgrade payment plan. Don't get anything you can't afford, but there's no reason not to improve what you can. After the pups, my next big upgrade will be the nuts. :hello::wave::flute::star:

About the nuts, I'm sort of not very concerned about those on the SE's I have. The ones I've gotten from Sweetwater I have requested changing the strings to 10's and also had them do a little sanding to accommodate the change and lower the action just a little as part of their 55 checkpoint setup. They have done such a great job to the point that I have no trouble at all keeping the guitar in tune. Granted I did a tiny bit of fine tuning on one, but other than that, no problems with stock tuners or nuts. Either I'm lucky as heck, or ...

I understand completely about the cats, got two myself and the white one likes to jump up on top my head/cab and she sheds. Thank God for Swiffer and a vacuum cleaner! I keep mine out on stands in the bedroom, just because, you know.

I've done a little more digging on the pickup situation and I'm liking what I'm reading about Seymour Duncans. Got a couple jotted down, but I think that I will give what comes in the door a fair shake. I seem to remember reading, possibly on PRS's site, that the newer VB/HFS are a little more, refined? Or different than in the past? Well, I hope that proves to be the case. According to the tracking info, it is estimated delivery sometime Saturday. That's tomorrow! Anticipation is killing me. But everybody here knows what that's like.

 

[CantankerousCarl]

I really dig ebony boards...the stock pups are OK from my previous experience, they split well but lack a little of that special somethin somethin. I should have a set of DIIs coming out of my CU22 when the 53/10s go in next week. The covers are worn (it's a 2000) but I might be getting rid of them.

 

[jacenty]

I got that exact model a few months ago and it is significantly brighter than an SE CU 22 I have. It might be the ebony or newer revision of HFS/VB but it's a little too harsh for me in standard tuning.
I'm looking forward to hearing what difference pickup change makes in this model.

It would be great if you could record a comparison.

 

[László]

It would be great if you could record a comparison.

Just what everyone has time to do.

 

[John Beef]

I have a set of black round bobbin 59/09s I have been looking to get rid of.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

... I will give what comes in the door a fair shake...

Always try what's already in there first. I was pleasantly surprised by the Fidelitrons in my Fender Coronado II, despite having already been convinced that they were garbage before I gave them half a chance.

 

[garrettb]

Gotta run the stock pups through their paces first. Then if you don't like them, you can look for something that corrects whatever shortcomings you find.

Prices on PRS pups are nuts, in my opinion.

 

[dkilpatrick]

I have this same model, I kept the stock pups in it for about a month just to give them a fair try. I put Seymour Duncans in and it was an improvement to my ears.

 

[markintime]

Thanks everyone, for all the informative replies and pickup offers, they are appreciated. My thinking, from what I've read, leads me to expect a very bright tone from this maple/ebony combination. My other SE 24 has the 59/09's and I have to say that while I like it very much, at the same amp settings it is quite a bit more, how shall I say, "emphatic". I have read that some of the Seymour Duncans are specifically designed for maple/ebony necks, plus the prices are quite reasonable, IMO. So there's that.

But as dkilpatrick and Dusty indicate, a fair try is the sensible thing to do 'cause you just never know. The proof is in the pudding and all that.

And I would love to do a recording, but though I have the setup, I haven't figured out how to use my software and get the sound on the computer. I got more stuff than I can find time for, so if I even so much THINK about any more gear, somebody is gonna hafta smack me over the head to refocus my attention. The Guess Who: No time left for you...

 

[garrettb]

When I had a USA Custom, I remember the HFS had a very strong mid focus and the VB was a little dark. The maple/ebony neck might be a great match.

 

[markintime]

Well, it came yesterday right on schedule. The outer box looked like a shark had mistaken it for food, but the FedEx guy watched me open and inspect it and that's as far as anything bad went. The guitar is immaculate. And, to be honest, all I've been able to do is to go through string stretching because this a completely brand new set of 10's, and given that it was ordered on Thursday, I don't have a problem there.

But saying all that, I can't find anything wrong at all with the sound. Love that ebony fretboard, so smooth and a dream to play. Pretty sure that the zebras will have to undergo some cosmetic work, though. But other than that, I am very happy with my new SE!!! Yes! PRS does know what they are doing. Trust their judgment, that's all I have to say, except for some styling issues and that's always a subjective topic.

 

[markintime]

Ok, it's late, it's been a busy day but I got to mess around a bit using my little Blackstar Fly to keep the noise down for my wife's benefit. And, Holy Crap! I thought I'd do a little Star Spangled Banner thing, kind of Jimmi Hendrix style (posthumous apologies to him), with a little grit thrown for good measure. And this thing wouldn't shut up! I mean on this little 3 watter it sustained and it sustained and it sustained. I could slur up 3 notes and go back down, without having to pick the string again? Didn't matter whether I used the bridge or the neck pup. All I got there was a different tone, and they were all good to my ears, tinnitus and all. I put it on the big boy, 50 watts on a 2X12, and it still sounded great but it's going to take some knob messing to get it to do what it did on the little Fly, which is obviously not a tube amp. I'm a real newby and have a lot to learn on how to properly get the best out of the tubes.

Well, I know it's not much of a sound report, but all I can say at this point is that a pickup change is taking a back seat for a while. There's just too much goodness to explore right now and it's got me fascinated. I wonder if anyone else here has one of these and what they think of it. And if not and you get a chance to buy one, it won't be the biggest mistake you ever make. I know my first SE I ever got didn't wow me like this one. Don't get me wrong, there was not a thing wrong with it and it did lead me down this GAS path, so I'm grateful for that even if my wallet isn't. roud:

Love this thing.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

Nice! Always good to hear when a guitarist is satisfied with the sound of their guitar. H(B)NGD!