PRS CE Models 00's 10's 20's Comparisons?

[Gtrbldr]

I, of course, wholeheartedly agree

I love flamed tops too but there’s something so cool about this guitar. My only gripe with it is the single side dot at the 12th fret that I find confusing live, no matter what.

Yeah, my 92 CE24 also has the single dot in 12th, also it is not visible in dim lights on stage.

 

[StSpider]

I'd like to solve the thing somehow but I'm very much against modding a guitar irreversibly.

 

[Alnus Rubra]

Plenty of dot and paint options on eBay that would most likely be reversible.

 

[shinksma]

They don't even bevel out a little route for the knobs on the new ones. Shortcut after shortcut for $2500. The old ones were Core level builds. The new ones aren't.

Well, when you consider MAP for a new Core (run of the mill non-10-top) is almost twice that, that's why the CE is made the way it is: to compete at a much lower price-point. I found an old price list that shows the 2007 CEs (maple top) MAPs were priced at about 88% of the cost of a Custom non-10-top. That's no longer the price range you quoted - it would be $1500 or so more.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

Well, when you consider MAP for a new Core (run of the mill non-10-top) is almost twice that, that's why the CE is made the way it is: to compete at a much lower price-point. I found an old price list that shows the 2007 CEs (maple top) MAPs were priced at about 88% of the cost of a Custom non-10-top. That's no longer the price range you quoted - it would be $1500 or so more.

Yeah, my CE wasn’t that less expensive and even cost as much or more than Standards, Customs, Studios, Specials, and Metals back when I chose it.

I think it was around $1600 brand new in 1993?

 

[JasonE]

I have an 06 SAS, which was basically a CE made with Swamp Ash and a maple neck and fretboard. The build on this guitar is every bit as good as the core guitars that I have. It is honestly one of my favorite guitars. The only difference is the neck is a bolt on and different wood than my cores. I have not owned a newer CE and probably wouldn't buy one due to the changes they have made to them. I would spend a bit more and get the core.

 

[dilznik]

Would you be as put out if the name were different?

My sir, you have hit on the crux of my ceaseless whining on this topic. If they had called it the S3 or literally anything else, I'd be happily going about my life with rainbows and unicorns surrounding me. But since I'm a massive fan of the old CE line (I have 3 old style CE24s and an 01 SAS) and since I begged Paul Smith to bring the line back once when I met him on a road show in about 2012ish, I am completely apoplectic with rage that this current CE line is called the CE at all. If it had a different name then I'd be able to move on rather than having this live in my head rent free to the point of going miles out of my way to post in every "compare and contrast the 2000 CE24 with the 2020 CE24" thread.

 

[dilznik]

Yeah, my CE wasn’t that less expensive and even cost as much or more than Standards, Customs, Studios, Specials, and Metals back when I chose it.

I think it was around $1600 brand new in 1993?

The only one that I can specifically remember the price of was $1500 out the door for a brand new CE24 in 2004. Which is, by the way, equivalent to about $2400 today.

The green one in this photo:

 

[dilznik]

Well, when you consider MAP for a new Core (run of the mill non-10-top) is almost twice that, that's why the CE is made the way it is: to compete at a much lower price-point. I found an old price list that shows the 2007 CEs (maple top) MAPs were priced at about 88% of the cost of a Custom non-10-top. That's no longer the price range you quoted - it would be $1500 or so more.

I mentioned this in the post above but in 2004 I paid $1500 out the door for the green one you can see above. That happens to be $2400 in today's money. Which is right around what a new CE24 costs. But my $1500 in 2004 money got me beveled things under the pots, a thicker cap, etched S/N on the neck plate, abalone inlays, a hard case, USA hardware, and so on.

So for the same money you're getting an inferior product that comes with less. Maybe a bigger issue is a non-10 Custom 24 costs $4260, which would've been $2703 in 2004. What was the price of Cu24 in the old catalog priced at?

ETA: That $1500 in 2004 was back in the good old days when Guitar Center allowed haggling and if you had a stack of $100 bills, they were far more likely to accept your offer. I have no idea what MSRP for a CE24 was in 2004.

 

[Permanent Waves]

I've been playing older CE's for over 20 years so I am partial to them and I agree with most of what's been said here. The older CE's are pretty darn close to the Customs (what is now referred to as "Core", but back then everything was "Core"). These opinions can be considered controversial, but I prefer the older specs with the body construction, neck carve and finish, and especially the hardware. I know the wing tuners are a pain at first but now I wish all my guitars had them. Most people seemed happy when they disappeared but I love them.

I have not played enough on the newer CE's to form a highly educated opinion, I only tried some in the store. They felt halfway to an SE to my hands, but the pickups were nice. Probably a bit more smoother/vintage sounding, as opposed to the higher-output HFS in the original CEs. Personally, I would seek out the older ones, and one reason is definitely price. A testament to the quality and desirability of the new ones is that the old ones have NOT bumped up in price since the new ones were introduced, and in fact, older CEs are usually lower priced than newer ones on the used market. That's a win-win for the older ones in my opinion.

 

[RC Mike]

My sir, you have hit on the crux of my ceaseless whining on this topic. If they had called it the S3 or literally anything else, I'd be happily going about my life with rainbows and unicorns surrounding me. But since I'm a massive fan of the old CE line (I have 3 old style CE24s and an 01 SAS) and since I begged Paul Smith to bring the line back once when I met him on a road show in about 2012ish, I am completely apoplectic with rage that this current CE line is called the CE at all. If it had a different name then I'd be able to move on rather than having this live in my head rent free to the point of going miles out of my way to post in every "compare and contrast the 2000 CE24 with the 2020 CE24" thread.

I get all of that, but there’s a bright-side to it: Prices on older ones are perhaps less than they should be. Confusion over the differences likely makes that the case.

 

[jamrcat]

I have a 2019 CE24 semi-hollow. I bought it because it had the tone and a bolt on neck with the thin modern pattern neck I wanted. I looked at the current used market and it was priced in the mid teens, which meant I could afford it. Now that I have a better understanding of the differences between old and new, I might've held out a bit longer to find an older one. I also wanted a piezo but the P22 used was averaging around 3k. A CE24 with a piezo conversion brought me in around 1800. So far I am extremely happy with my newer PRS.!

 

[Broseph]

The new CE’s have import electronics? Could have sworn they were core level pots. Never had a problem with the pickup selector like i do commonly with SE and S2. Guess I never cracked it open to check

 

[jamrcat]

My CE 2019 have core pots and switches.

 

[SinSir]

The new CE’s have import electronics? Could have sworn they were core level pots. Never had a problem with the pickup selector like i do commonly with SE and S2. Guess I never cracked it open to check

You are correct in that they have core electronics including pots and selector.

 

[Jo-]

Was 2016 the year that the CE's were no longer made like a core model? Is that the true cut off year?

I have a 96 CE24 with birds. The pickups are HFS and VB ... it's a great guitar, the only slight aggravation is the winged locking tuners - I never changed them because they share the D/G screw on the back of the headstock.

I also have one of the Reclaimed LTD's and while it is a beautiful guitar, it the hardware makes it feel cheaper than my old CE24. They should really call the new model the CE SE.

 

[Permanent Waves]

2008 is when they initially stopped making the old CE24, and 2016 is when they introduced the new CE24. There are some older CE24s out there with birds, but not too many. It was never an advertised option but I think it could be custom ordered. I've never seen one with a 10-top but I assume anything is possible. Those were reserved for Customs but many maple-topped CEs were very nice, like the ones above.

I look at recent prices on the older pre-2008 CE24s and I am surprised that the re-introduction with different specs has not caused a spike in the prices of the older ones, at least not that I can see. There also has not been a spike in the pre-95 alder-bodied ones. I found this an interesting trend but I'm not complaining about it since I am more of a buyer of the older ones than a seller .

 

[dilznik]

There are some older CE24s out there with birds, but not too many.

Here's one.

 

[shinksma]

The only one that I can specifically remember the price of was $1500 out the door for a brand new CE24 in 2004. Which is, by the way, equivalent to about $2400 today.

Sure. And the MAP was above that - you got a good discount from MAP, which is not unusual...even for today's offerings...cough cough.

What was the typical out-the-door price for a non-10-top CU24 at the time? I would bet about $1800 to $1900. With inflation that would be, what, $3000 today? You simply aren't going to get that price today, even with a healthy dealer discount (which we won't discuss). PRS's prices have increased beyond simple inflation.

e.g. New Velas currently have a MAP that you can easily find on Reverb etc. That MAP is $400 (maybe more) more than what the MAP was in 2017, just five years ago. That doesn't match the accumulated inflation - it is about or over double the rate.

I don't know what else to say: PRS has adjusted their prices as they see fit, and continue to sell with a huge factory backlog.

 

[alantig]

What was the typical out-the-door price for a non-10-top CU24 at the time? I would bet about $1800 to $1900. With inflation that would be, what, $3000 today? You simply aren't going to get that price today, even with a healthy dealer discount (which we won't discuss). PRS's prices have increased beyond simple inflation.

A little north of that, I think. I don't remember what the markup to a 10-top was in 2004, but I got a 10-top CU24 that year for around $2400.