New or old - CE 24...

[Drew816]

Ok, I've been looking for a while at CE 24s a guitar that just "fits" me, has the right EQ balance, etc. The neck is perfect for my little 11 year old girl sized hands and I've found over time that bolt-on's tend to be more my thing (which surprised me I might add).

So, poking around there are lots of options to be had for new and old CE24s. I'm looking for a nice flametop, the color does matter to me but the bigger issue became do I want a new or old version? Playability, tone, weight, quality of construction, etc.; what are the considerations here?

I suspect the late 80's into 90's models are heavier with the more carved top. I have had and do like the HFS and Vintage flavored pickups of this era. What else leans in their favor?

I do not like the maple headstock face of most of the newer models, it just looks "wrong" to me for some reason. But there are blacked out versions so that can be mitigated. Yeah a looks issue I know, but if you have the choice get what you want, right? I've played a few recently and the quality seemed great, good tone (though not overly inspiring with the 85/15s).

What other things should I consider and if you were in my shoes, which direction you leap?

And let's keep the neck through's out of the discussion as that's not what I'm interested in.

Thanks!

 

[garrett]

The new ones are cool and very comfortable to play and 85/15 pickups rule, but the old ones are badass and cheap.

Since you're not into naked headstock faces and 85/15's, the choice is clear.

They're all within the same weight range from what I've seen.

 

[Fullmoon 1971]

I love the older CE's, the modern ones just don't seem to be on par (really don't care for the satin finished ones). The fit and feel of the older models is far superior, I love the dot inlays and the 5 way rotary switch, the HFS & Vintage sound better to me. I own a 2006 all mahogany body one (see below), I actually prefer it to my 2015 McCarty - which I bought first otherwise I might not of bothered, The CE covers everything for me. Like you mentioned there are some really nice older models up for sale at the moment.

 

[MichaelS]

Consider that new ones have Korean trems. I swapped for a MannMade NOS2000 on mine. Pickups went too.
Sounds like you should look for the old one.

 

[MichaelS]

Consider that new ones have Korean trems. I swapped for a MannMade NOS2000 on mine. Pickups went too.
Sounds like you should look for the old one, if you're ok with dots instead of birds...

 

[sergiodeblanc]

Old alder one all day.

 

[Drew816]

Moons are more better than the plastic birds, MOP birds would have been alright though I know they wanted to save a few bucks. Good points all the way around, I didn't know about the Korean Trem units...

 

[markd21]

While I HATE HFS/VB pickups, I'd say older ALL day!!!! The quality and feel is just awesome.

 

[Johnny Rigs]

To me it came down to a real fully carved top. And for that, older.

 

[Drew816]

While I HATE HFS/VB pickups, I'd say older ALL day!!!! The quality and feel is just awesome.

Explain the "hate" if you don't mind. I'm not judging, just curious about your impressions. Were they too hot for your tastes, not hot enough, sterile, no EQ depth or?

Being a pickup whore I suspect I'd swap out whatever I got eventually anyway, but reasonable enough for the time being also works. In fact I'm not sure I have a single guitar that has the original pickups now that I think about it...

All good info and your thoughts are aligning with what I expected; thanks to you all!

 

[markd21]

Sure! It comes across as being a little pretentious (lol) but this is the easiest way to explain it....

The "hate" stems from the fact that I developed a very defined tone pretty early in my "professional" career. For me, it centered around a certain mid frequency that is generated from my Rivera amps and EVM12L speakers. The guitar was/is not so much a part of that "tone" - it is almost solely created between the amp, the volume, and the recreation of the sound from the relatively neutral EV speaker. I play LOUD because the volume allows the highs to cut and the notes to sustain the way I want them to.

I use guitars like variants of a color in my tone. While I have always used medium output, slightly mid-heavy pickups, I just found the HFS to be too aggressive and unmusical when incorporated into my rig. It has been, oh probably, 12 or so years since I have used one but I just remember being miserable while using the guitar. Specifically, it was high profile warm-up slot and (while there are MANY factors involved in live sound reproduction) I just had a horrible show. The guitar sounded terrible - screechy in the upper mids - harsh...it just did not inspire me. Thank God it was a 20 minute set. The guitar, (a brand new, at the time CE24 mahogany) was returned to GC the next day.

That experience kept me away from PRS for MANY years. It wasn't until they developed the 57/08 that I became interested again. Those fit right into my rig and offer a nice sound. Shoot, even the Dragon IIs offer a nice "color variant" to MY sound.

And, just to address something that has been asked before:

"Why not tweak your rig to work with the guitar?"

(Again, slightly douchey and pretentious) At that particular time - 2006 - my band was doing pretty well regionally. We were picking up short-run tours, headlining one-nighters in parts of the SE. In late 2006 we show cased for Sony BMG for a label deal. I had an identifiable sound that I liked. I needed my guitars to fit INTO my rig, not cause me to ADJUST my rig. At the time I was mostly using Jackson/Charvel Custom Shop guitars built to my spec, so to tweak for ONE PRS wasn't gonna happen when I was mainly using the J/C's and a Hamer USA or two.

These days - because of how there are always venue-based issues with live sound, and how having a (TOTALLY) different guitar can be fun - I use a digital guitar rig live. Since going with the Line 6 Helix Rack in 2015, the issue I described above wouldn't be a big deal. I would just copy my rig over, decrease the input gain, and tweak the "amp" to work better with the guitar. IF NEEDED I would add a parametric EQ block to fix any weird frequencies that annoy me. Then I could have the character of THAT guitar work better with MY tone.

Anyway, that's where I stand with 'em. After writing this, I am kinda jonesing for one, lol!!! Off to Reverb!!!

 

[merciful-evans]

You really need to try some out. Only you have your taste.
Its the only way to make an informed decision.

 

[cshallcross]

I was in the same boat recently and went with an older '98 and love it. I played a few of the new ones and while those ultimately helped me to realize that a CE was for me, they also didn't feel quite the same as the older ones. It came down to the '98 or a newer 2017, and I grabbed the '98 without hesitating.

For me, I don't think I would've been happy without the carved top Untitled by cxcxsx, on Flickr

 

[markd21]

That's a beauty!!! YES, the carved top is essential as far as I am concerned!!

 

[Drew816]

cshallcross, is that a Tort top or black cherry? Whatever it is it's amazing, nice guitar.

Markd21; I'm totally with you on the "rig" being untouched while the guitar colors tone. Thanks for the write up and it sounds like you need to give this all a try again, because ya know, why not?!?

Checking ads now and seeing what options I have...

 

[cshallcross]

cshallcross, is that a Tort top or black cherry? Whatever it is it's amazing, nice guitar.

Markd21; I'm totally with you on the "rig" being untouched while the guitar colors tone. Thanks for the write up and it sounds like you need to give this all a try again, because ya know, why not?!?

Checking ads now and seeing what options I have...

Tort indeed

 

[Johnny Rigs]

I was in the same boat recently and went with an older '98 and love it. I played a few of the new ones and while those ultimately helped me to realize that a CE was for me, they also didn't feel quite the same as the older ones. It came down to the '98 or a newer 2017, and I grabbed the '98 without hesitating.

For me, I don't think I would've been happy without the carved top Untitled by cxcxsx, on Flickr

Man, carved top AND zebras. Bravo!

 

[gush]

I was in the same boat recently and went with an older '98 and love it. I played a few of the new ones and while those ultimately helped me to realize that a CE was for me, they also didn't feel quite the same as the older ones. It came down to the '98 or a newer 2017, and I grabbed the '98 without hesitating.

For me, I don't think I would've been happy without the carved top Untitled by cxcxsx, on Flickr

I've never played a new CE so I can't or shouldn't say which is better BUT I have three 1997 CEs and I love them. They get most of my play time.

I think that top carve is sexy as hell and something psychological happens when I KNOW I'm playing a sexy guitar.

 

[rlw]

Deviating just a little, I'm going to look at a 2016 CE up for sale near me. How different, if at all, is this to the current models AND is the satin CE the same again, or different to either or both?

I've tried to find this information but there isn't anywhere - that I can find - that states it all clearly in black and white.

 

[shinksma]

Deviating just a little, I'm going to look at a 2016 CE up for sale near me. How different, if at all, is this to the current models AND is the satin CE the same again, or different to either or both?

I've tried to find this information but there isn't anywhere - that I can find - that states it all clearly in black and white.

The 2016 CE will be essentially identical to the current (2018) models, even the pickups will be the same - 85/15 pickups. It is possible PRS made tiny tweaks to something that wasn't announced but enhances manufacturing or playability.

The satin CE is the same as current model, AFAIK, except for the finish, obviously.