Over spend on an SE? Lol, check out mine!!

Will changing the bridge post wells make a resonance, sustain, or tone improvement?


  • Total voters
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markd21

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So, I got a hair-brained idea a few weeks back. I had bought a thrashed 1992 Epiphone Les Paul for $199 @ GC, and it was a beast of a player. However, it wasn't a PRS.

Since moving to TN I am living a simpler life. Instead of continuing to work in education, I took a job as Human Resources Coordinator at a little regional grocery chain. While much more relaxing, it came with a $40,000 pay cut.

With that said, I am just no longer in the market for Core and higher PRS guitars. A little sad, but not really. I am happier in my new, slower life.

So, back to the SE....having the singlecut itch, and remembering the sheer perfection that was my 2008 SC245 57/08 I knew what I needed. With Core 245s out of the reach of my wallet, it was SE time.

Whenever I am after a new PRS I start at Dave's. I have bought quite a few from him the last few years, including my ME-V. Well, I was hunting a Zack Meyers model, but ended up with a charcoal burst 245. Cool. The price? VERY affordable. So, how did I overspend?

Lol, by making the SE as close to my 57/08 Ltd as possible. I'm not done, so I'll need to add updates to the thread. But, here's the rundown and a couple pics so far.

The partslist.

From John Mann:
* Gold polepieces
* SE locking tuners
* MannMade USA adjustable wraparound tail piece
* Satin brass bridge posts

From PRS:
* 57/08 pickups
* low ivory pickup rings
* (3) clear lampshades
* gold screws

From Hipshot:
* gold tuner buttons

From Gotoh:
* JCB-2 oval jackplate - Nickel

From Gunstreet Wiring Shop:
* Custom harness details - PRS High Pass filter with coil cuts.
* (2) US spec 500K CTS pots
* (2) US spec 500K CTS push/pull pots
* (2) CDE 0.022uF orange drop caps
* Switchcraft toggle switch
* Rean output jack

* (1) cream chicken head knob for the neck pickup volume pot.

I am in for $1350. Why no S2? Well, considering that I am almost into the cost of a new SE for the parts list alone, I couldn't justify the cost of a used or new S2 594SC. The parts HAD to mimic (mostly) what was on my 245 57/08. Plus, I prefer the old 4 knob layout, with the bridge volume on top, up close....

Here's a couple pics so far. I'm waiting on the bridge, jackplate, and knobs to arrive. Still have to order a TRC, even though I usually keep them off.



 
Cool! I didn't know Gunstreet did PRS wiring, though I'd wondered. What's the scoop on the high pass filter option?

I had Sean do a harness for my Fender 51. It came out so killer I contacted him about a custom get up for a singlecut. Originally, the harness was for that Epiphone, but then I got the SE.

I'm not sure about why he calls it a high pass filter, but when I was explaining all I wanted that's what he said. It's not up and running yet, gotta do the switch and wait for the other parts to arrive, but based on my and Sean's conversation I am expecting very usable volume and tone tapers with clarity as I roll back the volume.
 
I'm not sure about why he calls it a high pass filter, but when I was explaining all I wanted that's what he said. It's not up and running yet, gotta do the switch and wait for the other parts to arrive, but based on my and Sean's conversation I am expecting very usable volume and tone tapers with clarity as I roll back the volume.

I've had my thinking contaminated a bit by playing around with an analog synthesizer for the last couple of months,. I've started wondering if a filter might not just be the ticket to cutting a little mud out of my neck pickups. Over the last decade or so it's seemed to me like the tonal balance between PRS' bridge and neck pickups has been drifting out of whack. If I'm playing dirty and the bridge pickup sounds good to me, the neck pickup is often too dark. I think thats' been happening since the heyday of the 59/09s.
 
Dude, we’ve both got some expensive bada$$ed guitars. Believe me when I say, the SE245 is the real deal. With just a few updates (albeit, expensive ones) it plays and sounds spectacular. Would love to hear it with 57/08s!!

Thanks! One of my very first reattempts at PRS was an SE245 back in 2017. It ripped. I haven't even played this one yet. I'm looking forward to it. And while I have a hard time following through on my YouTube stuff, this git will get a video since it is so overly modded. It will beg the questions:

1. Is PRS magic really in the wood?
2. Is Mr. Smith correct on the concept of everything that touches the string part of the tone?
3. Was I crazy because at the end of the day it still feels like an import?

I've had my thinking contaminated a bit by playing around with an analog synthesizer for the last couple of months,. I've started wondering if a filter might not just be the ticket to cutting a little mud out of my neck pickups. Over the last decade or so it's seemed to me like the tonal balance between PRS' bridge and neck pickups has been drifting out of whack. If I'm playing dirty and the bridge pickup sounds good to me, the neck pickup is often too dark. I think thats' been happening since the heyday of the 59/09s.

I have noticed the same. I have really narrowed down the years of PRS guitars that speak to me. In my mind, the 57/08 years are the epitome of instrument perfection. The balance in pickups, the overall tone, the weight of the guitars, the tops....pretty much 2008 through 2014 are "my" guitars.
 
Here's a couple other pictures. It's hard to see, but the polepieces on the pickups were switched out from nickel to gold. I am a huge fan of the hybrid hardware. Here's where specs separate from my SC245. Obviously it did not have hybrid hardware. Another huge change, and one that could affect resonance and tone, is the tuners. My 245 had vintage style tuners. I opted for the SE lockers so I could go hybrid.


 
Man, this looks great!

I've played a few of the more recent 245's, and the quality of that model is just through the roof now. Super resonant, great feel, great tone. For some reason that I can't put a finger on, I actually prefer the feel of the older SE Customs, it's subtle but there's just something about them. But it's the opposite with the 245's, the new ones feel and sound more alive.

I was shopping for my first Singlecut about 10 years ago, looked at the SE 245, Epi LP's, and a couple other odds and ends, and really couldn't find anything that did what I thought a Singlecut should do. Then I stumbled on a Fredrik Akesson SE, and it was exactly what I was after. Ended up putting 57/08's in within a year or so of buying it, and more recently put the locking SE tuners on there. It was a standout at the time of purchase, and probably the best SE I've ever played. That being said, the new 245's feel and sound very similar to that Akesson, and based on the fact that we've done some of the same upgrades, I'm confident that yours is gonna absolutely rip!!!
 
So, I got a hair-brained idea a few weeks back. I had bought a thrashed 1992 Epiphone Les Paul for $199 @ GC, and it was a beast of a player. However, it wasn't a PRS.

Since moving to TN I am living a simpler life. Instead of continuing to work in education, I took a job as Human Resources Coordinator at a little regional grocery chain. While much more relaxing, it came with a $40,000 pay cut.

With that said, I am just no longer in the market for Core and higher PRS guitars. A little sad, but not really. I am happier in my new, slower life.

So, back to the SE....having the singlecut itch, and remembering the sheer perfection that was my 2008 SC245 57/08 I knew what I needed. With Core 245s out of the reach of my wallet, it was SE time.

Whenever I am after a new PRS I start at Dave's. I have bought quite a few from him the last few years, including my ME-V. Well, I was hunting a Zack Meyers model, but ended up with a charcoal burst 245. Cool. The price? VERY affordable. So, how did I overspend?

Lol, by making the SE as close to my 57/08 Ltd as possible. I'm not done, so I'll need to add updates to the thread. But, here's the rundown and a couple pics so far.

The partslist.

From John Mann:
* Gold polepieces
* SE locking tuners
* MannMade USA adjustable wraparound tail piece
* Satin brass bridge posts

From PRS:
* 57/08 pickups
* low ivory pickup rings
* (3) clear lampshades
* gold screws

From Hipshot:
* gold tuner buttons

From Gotoh:
* JCB-2 oval jackplate - Nickel

From Gunstreet Wiring Shop:
* Custom harness details - PRS High Pass filter with coil cuts.
* (2) US spec 500K CTS pots
* (2) US spec 500K CTS push/pull pots
* (2) CDE 0.022uF orange drop caps
* Switchcraft toggle switch
* Rean output jack

* (1) cream chicken head knob for the neck pickup volume pot.

I am in for $1350. Why no S2? Well, considering that I am almost into the cost of a new SE for the parts list alone, I couldn't justify the cost of a used or new S2 594SC. The parts HAD to mimic (mostly) what was on my 245 57/08. Plus, I prefer the old 4 knob layout, with the bridge volume on top, up close....

Here's a couple pics so far. I'm waiting on the bridge, jackplate, and knobs to arrive. Still have to order a TRC, even though I usually keep them off.




Duuuuude!!! Looks AMAZING and I can only imagine what it's gonna sound like. Killer upgrades!! I may follow your lead on some of the mods for mine.

Mine is a forever guitar. So, I don't care about the cost of the mods, it's not going anywhere. No matter how many great guitars I own in the future, this one is gonna stay with me until I check out. On top of it being one of the most gracious acts of kindness a friend has ever done for me...It also happens to be a bada$$ guitar. I love the neck profile, it fits my hand like a glove, it's not too heavy, and it's gonna be a monster in it's own right pretty soon!;)

Glad it's all coming together nicely for you my man!! I love it when a plan comes together. Play it like you stole it!!
 
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