Do you suppose PRS copyrighted the amp design? I wonder if they would release a detailed design schematic for those of us who might want to do a DIY amp clone project at home.
Copyright vs Patent vs Trademark vs Trade Secret are all very confusing when it comes to something like a circuit design and implementation (which is what an amp really is).
The following is AFAIK:
Circuit designs cannot be copyrighted, but the specific schematic drawing or board layout for a particular circuit can be.
Patents would apply if there was some "novel" or unique new part of the design, and that element of the design is protected from being implemented by anyone else for a certain period of time (unless a license is granted).
Looking at the back of a typical Blistertone amp I found online, I see no Trademark or Copyright or Patent notifications. The PRS logo/signature is of course TMed. Well, I would hope it is...
But, regardless of what term should apply, I doubt PRS would be interested in releasing the design/schematics.
Still, one could fairly easily, I suspect, reverse engineer the design from looking at (and possibly partially disassembling) an existing hand-wired amp like a Blistertone (I assume there are no SMD boards or other tiny stuff). The most difficult part would probably be the transformer, since that is where some of the magic happens, and you may not be able to buy that exact item on the open market.
