Overlap between MEV and Special 22?

Silvertree

I love the smell of a PRS case in the morning.
Joined
Apr 26, 2012
Messages
366
The Special 22 semi-hollow has been catching my eye lately but I have a Wood Library MEV on order already. Can anyone speak to how much overlap there is between these two guitars, tonally?
 
I'd say quite a bit of overlap. I had a 509 and Special 22 when I got my ME-V. I lived with all three of them for a couple of months, and ended up selling the Special 22 and the 509. I found that they were essentially the "same" guitar. IMO, the ME-V splits provide a more authentic single coil tone than the splits on the 58-15MT of the Special. Plus, the Narrowfield on the Special got in the way of my picking. The middle pick up on the ME-V is positioned a little more towards the neck pick up, and doesn't get in my way. Also, while the 58/15MT splits were the best single coil version of a regular pick up, IMO, the new Special has 58/15LT, which aren't as good in a single coil setting, IMO.
 
No experience with the ME-V but I just want to echo above that the 58/15 MT pickups are absolutely fantastic. I personally wouldn’t want a special 22 without them.
 
I have a MEV and a Special 22 SH Limited and they are both awesome. I think that the single coil option on the MEV makes it very versatile but I don’t think the middle pickup works that well with the neck and bridge in humbucker mode. I also think that the single coil sounds are on the thinner side. It’s a really good guitar for someone who needs to be able to switch between humbucker and single coil sounds quickly but is mainly a humbucker player.
The Special limited (58/15 MT) on the other hand sounds absolutely fantastic in any pickup combination. The humbuckers sounds equally amazing in single coil and humbucker mode and the narrowfield works with any setting and combination. Those pickups really are Special.
Haven’t tried the newer 58/15 LT so I can’t compare them unfortunately.
 
Back
Top