Look what we had in our sky tonight!
That just raises another few questions: 1. are ALL blue/purple finishes on all brands likely to fade, 2. what is it about blue and purple finishes that cause them to fade and 3. can anything be done to ameliorate this? I honestly have no idea how guitar finishes, whether poly or nitro, work. Or satin, for that matter.
They will fade in sunlight.
Yay, I learned something new. Keep the cherryburst in the case to preserve the stain even longer, and let out my too-dark heritage cherry SG to brighten it up over time.
Chances are... it's going to fade if you don't keep it in the case. It's a pity, because in my opinion, PRS guitars are to be admired for their visual beauty, as much as their sonic beauty. I stare at my guitars in their stands all the time. Makes me happy.
I'd love a Northern Lights finish, but will never do it because of this.
Very well put! But I think it comes down to how we view/use our instruments. For Les, they're an indispensable tool for his profession. If his volume pot starts to crackle while he's tracking an ad, it costs him money. If the finish is faded to a dull purple, it's going to make him sad, and he's going to start writing sad music, which his clients won't like. So whatever he can do to protect his work tools, he'll do it. Same for a contractor, a software engineer, or an electrician (dentists just buy new onesFading is all about photons and the photosensitivity of various organic pigments. For me, keeping a guitar cased is more about maintaining playability, pots and switches, as I’ll discuss below.
Indirect light can still fade a finish; it just takes longer. Remember, if you can see the wall, it’s getting plenty of photons, or you wouldn’t be able to see it. Even light bulbs can eventually affect a finish.
I have a Northern Lights PS. It stays in its case until I’m going to play it. There is no fading whatsoever; it’s as vibrant as the day it arrived nearly 4 years ago, but I keep my guitars cased for other reasons: the case buffers temperature and humidity changes that occur at different times of day, on different days, etc., so my guitars don’t need seasonal setup adjustments. So it just makes life easier for me to case them.
If you’re curious about what happens in a typical room re: humidity and temp changes in a single day or week, get a cheap digital hygrometer and take note of the readings for a while. You might be surprised.
Also, in a home, things like evaporated cooking oils and other airborne gunk are spread around as the air circulates. This is why pots eventually get scratchy, why dust that lands on the instruments turns to gunk and goo, etc.
So they just stay nicer to play if they’re kept in cases. If you prioritize having a great feeling instrument to play, it’s gonna “keep” better in a case. I also toss one of those D’Addario humidipaks into every case, to keep the inside of the case at 45% relative humidity in all seasons (it both absorbs and releases moisture depending on RH); the PRS factory’s HVAC system is programmed for the same RH according to one of the PRS folks I talked with (I’d guess that’s except for the wood drying room?).
I’m speaking only for myself here; if I’m spending PS money for something to hang on a wall, I buy a beautiful work of art meant for a wall. If I’m buying a musical instrument, I want it to be in the best possible shape to serve as an instrument. YMMV, and I’d never tell folks they need to share my value system!
- kidding, this is a PRS forum, we gotta make fun of the dentists! Except Toothace, of course.) For most of us, a scratch pot is an inconvenience, that we can fix with a soldering iron or a can of contact cleaner. I would, however, care if my PRS's finish started to fade - 1) because I couldn't fix it; and 2) because it would take away from the beauty of the guitar, which is part of the reason that I would buy a PRS.
That is a great experience. I worked one winter very near the Arctic Circle. I lied on the roof of the truck parts of a few nights to watch the northern lights paint the sky. It is indescribably beautiful.Luckily, I checked this one off of my "Bucket List' in 2008. I was working in Alaska and stayed up most of the night in absolute amazement! It really is something to behold! Kinda like @matt3310 guitar room...which reminds me..YO Matt! I need to come to your guitar room so I can check it off my list too!
