Played Some Different PRS Guitars Today!

squirrel211

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And it's making my life difficult!!!!!

I had the, for me, uber rare opportunity to actually go to a music store today. (It brought back my "stage fright" about playing in music stores!)

The first axe I was able to sample was the HBII in an absolutely stunning green finish. The feel, appearance, and sound of this guitar were 1,000% TOP SHELF! This guitar is a musical instrument AND a work of art; and I'm not exaggerating even a little bit! The one thing of note that I didn't realize was that it came with 11's that had a wound G; quite a bit different in feel than the 10's that came stock on my CU24. I was so geeked out about playing in front of guitar heroes that it took me a couple of flat bends with the G to examine why I suddenly lacked the physical strength and/or talent to even perform a whole step bend!! HA!

After talking with the sales rep, I also sampled an all mahogany 408, and a Paul's. The 408 had a pretty punchy, powerful sound on the bridge humbucker that in hindsight I wish I could have tried on a different amp. The single cool sound was pretty sweet I must say! That particular guitar was difficult to get in tune, so I spent most of the time trying to get the G tuned properly. I really should have spent a little more time with it...

The Paul's guitar sounded GREAT! I have to be honest with you guys/girls, I never really liked the look of the pickup configuration on that guitar. It just looks kind of... funny. Wow does it sound sweet though! It's really making me rethink what pickups I thought I wanted in my new axe! I wonder if PRS could wind them on squabbins????

I was all set to order a straight away HBII, but now I think I may want to put some different pickups in it!!!!

I have to go give them a deposit when I order the new axe, and you can be sure that I'm going to try these bad boys out again before I pull the trigger! This time on a couple different amps!

I really wish they had an isolation box for Scaredy Cats like me!
 
Sounds like you had a fun time -- I totally understand the iso box concept, too, even though I play in front of people in a different context, a store is a weird place to play.
 
I don't like playing at the store either. I like playing in front of a crowd that's having a good time. It's a grin waiting to happen, but in a store it seems like half the people there are judging whether they can play better than you and the store personal are trying to sell you something while most of the time you know more about the guitar or amp your looking at than they do.

But you just gotta suck it up and play if you are going to try before you buy.
 
Cool. I have a HBII; an older, non piezo.

The other two are the core models I'm most interested in due to the versatility of the switching system.
 
I don't like going to guitar stores in general.... but f@ck that too scared to play business!

Sucking and trying out a guitar in store is the same as me being an ugly hag in a lingerie store buying the wrong bra-cup size 'cause I'm too shy to ask for help. If it's a cool shop with good employees, they honestly shouldn't care as long as you're a happy and pleasant customer. If there are other people judging you in the store besides the employees, they're dorks who hang out at guitar stores, and don't matter one bit in your life.
 
I don't like going to guitar stores in general.... but f@ck that too scared to play business!

Sucking and trying out a guitar in store is the same as me being an ugly hag in a lingerie store buying the wrong bra-cup size 'cause I'm too shy to ask for help. If it's a cool shop with good employees, they honestly shouldn't care as long as you're a happy and pleasant customer. If there are other people judging you in the store besides the employees, they're dorks who hang out at guitar stores, and don't matter one bit in your life.

Right on! Every store has them and every one of them has a sadder existence than you! They are the ones hanging out it a guitar shop searching for self validation, not you. You are buying the instrument most of them could never afford and ultimately living their dream. the people working in the store hear beginners to full on pros and everywhere in between day in and day out. They aren't judging anyone, they probably don't even hear it anymore.
 
Right on! Every store has them and every one of them has a sadder existence than you! They are the ones hanging out it a guitar shop searching for self validation, not you. You are buying the instrument most of them could never afford and ultimately living their dream. the people working in the store hear beginners to full on pros and everywhere in between day in and day out. They aren't judging anyone, they probably don't even hear it anymore.

This....first hand experience.
 
I know what you mean about playing in the store. The salespeople always seem to want to plug me in right away. I like to play unplugged 1st. One, because I'm not ready to perform. Two, I don't want to compete with the loudest out of tune version Master of Puppets you've ever heard, and three, if I don't like how the guitar feels I really don't care what it sounds like through an amp I don't have at home.
 
I know what you mean about playing in the store. The salespeople always seem to want to plug me in right away. I like to play unplugged 1st. One, because I'm not ready to perform. Two, I don't want to compete with the loudest out of tune version Master of Puppets you've ever heard, and three, if I don't like how the guitar feels I really don't care what it sounds like through an amp I don't have at home.

Plug in - and turn down. I almost always turn down the amp and/or the guitar after someone sets me up because they turn it up beyond what I'm looking for to test things out.

I still get a bit of self-consciousness playing when I'm in a store, but what I like to do is play stuff that no one's familiar with. There are a couple tunes I like to use for that. Although one time I did have someone come up and say, "Excuse me, but isn't that...?" I didn't think anyone in this area except my buddy and my family (because of me). The other thing is to play stuff that has a pretty high likelihood of being recognized, but playing it differently - different phrasing, different tempo, different accents. I did it at one store, playing the solo from Ozzy's "I Don't Know." A kid in the store was standing in aisle near me, and I could tell from the look on his face he thought it sounded familiar but it wasn't. Poor guy looked *so* confused.
 
Sounds like a fun day! Man I wish I could go to a music store that stocked core PRSi...

Also, 408s are wound with 57/08 wire apparently, so maybe 57/08 squabbins might be the ticket. Then again you'd lose out on the narrow format of the PRSg pickups.

Have you tried a CU22 with 57/08s?
 
I totally agree with you view of the 408 and Paul's. I really like the 408, but I love the Paul's!

I have a soft spot for green HB IIs, but in the single cut variety. It's my #1, though I went with an unwound G.

 
That's the nice thing about PRS. With their wide range of models, there's bound to be something that floats your boat. Add in PRS quality, materials and workmanship all of them will at least be great playing guitars with awesome fit and finish.
 
I'm looking at getting a private stock axe, and I'm afraid yesterday's jaunt to the store is causing "paralysis through analysis!" I was thinking that I'd just pick out the wood and finish on an HBII; then the guy let me play the other guitars and I started getting the wheels in my head spinning. An HB-Paul's axe? An HBII with a 408 neck pickup? HB-Brushstroke?!?

And don't get me started on the amps they had! That's helping pull this whole right back to square 1.

I think the real bottom lines are:

#1 - I need my band to start charging more; that'll help justify more gear purchases!

#2 - I am going to end up buying several of these guitars.

3 pick up HB-Paul's!! :)
 
Both 408 and Paul's are great guitars! I have them both. I love their versatility so much that even got another Brushstroke 24 with the same set-up.

Call me crazy, but I love all 3 of them!
 
Don't stress out in guitar stores. They want your business. Good luck on choosing a new PRS. Maybe think about how you plan to use the guitar and how many guitars you want to take to gigs / band practices etc. Also - thanks for the info on strings. I have a HBII on order and do not want a wound G string. I may even go with .10's but there are trade off's vs the .11's.
 
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