P94 pickups in PRS?

D

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Hi everyone,

I'm interested in buying a PRS SE Zach Myers (2017 model) and have a few questions please.

1) Is it possible to install Gibson P94 pickups? How would these sound on a PRS? I want that Les Paul Junior/Green Day tone, but want to stick with a PRS model.

2) Besides aesthetics, do I need to swap out the neck pickup? I never use it and would rather save my money and only install a P94 in the bridge

3) I own a PRS SE Custom 24 and I'm used to the wide/thin neck. The Zach Myers has a fat/thin neck. Will this be "uncomfortable" or weird to transition to?

Thank you!
 
get yourself a used SE One and you will be on your way

Thank you for the suggestion, but I already looked for an SE One and I cannot find any in my area.

Does anyone have any answers to my original questions?

Thanks
 
Hi everyone,

I'm interested in buying a PRS SE Zach Myers (2017 model) and have a few questions please.

1) Is it possible to install Gibson P94 pickups? How would these sound on a PRS? I want that Les Paul Junior/Green Day tone, but want to stick with a PRS model.

2) Besides aesthetics, do I need to swap out the neck pickup? I never use it and would rather save my money and only install a P94 in the bridge

3) I own a PRS SE Custom 24 and I'm used to the wide/thin neck. The Zach Myers has a fat/thin neck. Will this be "uncomfortable" or weird to transition to?

Thank you!

I have owned a couple of ZM guitars and currently have a 2014 model. The used ones can be had for about half the cost of new. If I were going to mod one I would go with an older one as you are not wanting the new for 2017 pickups....unless you just want the new headstock decal as well.

I regards to your questions:

1) It will drop right in and with the semi hollow it should howl. The bridge on the ZM really does a great job with sustain.

2) No need to change it other than a probable volume difference but that is the beauty of the 4 knob layout!

3) ZM has the Wide Fat neck with the shorter scale and the fatter body of the single cut. That satin finish is what you will really notice on the neck!

Cheers'

Steve
 
I have owned a couple of ZM guitars and currently have a 2014 model. The used ones can be had for about half the cost of new. If I were going to mod one I would go with an older one as you are not wanting the new for 2017 pickups....unless you just want the new headstock decal as well.

I regards to your questions:

1) It will drop right in and with the semi hollow it should howl. The bridge on the ZM really does a great job with sustain.

2) No need to change it other than a probable volume difference but that is the beauty of the 4 knob layout!

3) ZM has the Wide Fat neck with the shorter scale and the fatter body of the single cut. That satin finish is what you will really notice on the neck!

Cheers'

Steve

Thanks for your reply Steve.

Unfortunately, I don't think I could find a used ZM nearby even if I wanted to. And in all honesty, I'd much prefer a new guitar - even if that sounds a bit stupid.

I did find one here for a bit cheaper though. I think this could perhaps be the 2016 model? No way to see except for the head stock, but even then it could be 2015 or earlier. I'm not sure.

What major differences / drawbacks would there be in taking that guitar over the newer 2017 model?


I'm happy to hear the P94 will fit then, that's great. I was wondering how the semi-hollow will affect the tone? I like playing hard rock stuff like Green Day or even Linkin Park. Does it affect the tone in a positive way? Cus some people said semi-hollows aren't "suitable" for that type of music, though I took that with a grain of salt.

Indeed, the neck I saw has no gloss on it and should be quite comfortable. I was just concerned about it being too thick and weird in comparison to the SE Custom 24 size. I hope it won't be a problem.

Cheers,

Rich
 
Hey Rich,

There is no down side to an older ZM as they remained all the same except for 2017 with new Pickups and the head stock logo. The rest is all the same. The ZM is about as Semi ...Semi Hollow as it comes. It only has the one side chambered so you can play as hard as you want without any issue ringing or loss of sustain. A lot of guys have modded this guitar into a grunge machine. I prefer blues with mine but it is such a diverse instrument.

Trust me....you will only notice the Satin of the neck....the shape never comes to mind and I play a lot of Pattern Regular necks and a wide fat Rosewood....they all feel good to me. In the end the scale length is the big one for me. I don't own a 24 fretter for that reason.
 
Hey Rich,

There is no down side to an older ZM as they remained all the same except for 2017 with new Pickups and the head stock logo. The rest is all the same. The ZM is about as Semi ...Semi Hollow as it comes. It only has the one side chambered so you can play as hard as you want without any issue ringing or loss of sustain. A lot of guys have modded this guitar into a grunge machine. I prefer blues with mine but it is such a diverse instrument.

Trust me....you will only notice the Satin of the neck....the shape never comes to mind and I play a lot of Pattern Regular necks and a wide fat Rosewood....they all feel good to me. In the end the scale length is the big one for me. I don't own a 24 fretter for that reason.

Well, I guess that's it - I'm sold haha. I really just fell in love with this guitar as soon as I saw it.

You know, I really did want a Les Paul Junior but they only make them every couple years. Couldn't even find an Epiphone one. ( New or used! )

But I think with the P94s in the PRS it'll be pretty close to what Billie Joe sounds, as long as I get the right pedals and amps going too.


Here is one with P94s for sale on eBay - http://www.ebay.de/itm/PRS-SE-ZACH-...961651?hash=item5695981d73:g:oWMAAOSwj85YQZN7.

It has been listed on eBay for quite a while, but looks like it may sell now. If you wish you can contact the owner and ask him if it was a direct fit.

That is great, thank you! Do you guys think it would be wise to buy that guitar? It seems ok, but seeing as it's been used you can never know. What do you guys say?
 
That is great, thank you! Do you guys think it would be wise to buy that guitar? It seems ok, but seeing as it's been used you can never know. What do you guys say?
No clue about that specific guitar, but I liked it enough to keep track of it for quite a while. I prefer buying used as I believe I get better deals, but you never know. Thomann sold some 2016 SE ZM heavily discounted once the 2017 models were announced, so in that case, I would have picked up a 2016 new if I wanted one.

However, you can do the math - Buy new guitar + buy new pickup vs. 2nd guitar with the changes you want. That is how I ended up with Bernie number 2 with a decent amount of upgrades for a reasonable (but not cheap) price.
 
I have p94 style pickups in my older SC SE. They sound great and were an easy swap. I'm digging the. beefy single coil sound. I have no complaints.

If you want to play heavier stuff and you think hum might bother you, you could always look into the Seymour Duncan p-rails. That way you could have a P90s style and a humbucker with a push-pull pot.
 
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