PRS Fatback 24 vs. Custom 24?

vami

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Jun 9, 2019
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Hi

For anyone here who owns or have played both the guitars,
is there a considerable tonal difference between the two with added thickness??

And how does Flamed maple neck on few Fatback compare to Flamed Mahogany
 
He didn't address the difference in tone between the two, but who cares? LOL That boy can PLAY.
 
I have one of their 35th anniversary FatBack Frostbite CU24, same specs as the one in that first video: 58/15 LT pickups, maple/BZRW neck, mahogany back
And I have another a CU24-08 which has: 85/15 pickups, maple/BZRW neck, ash body.

Different pickups and neck woods. IMO whatever difference you hear will be primarily due to the pickups.
 
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I have one of their 35th anniversary FatBack Frostbite CU24, same specs as the one in that first video: 58/15 LT pickups, maple/BZRW neck, mahogany back
And I have another a CU24-08 which has: 85/15 pickups, maple/BZRW neck, ash body.

Different pickups and neck woods. IMO whatever difference you hear will be primarily due to the pickups.
Hey,

Could you please explain the differences between these two guitars? I will buy one of these however I will probably buy online so I do not have a chance to try them. I want to play prog rock/metal with it but also the versatility to play some jazz, fusion, blues, etc.

Thank you for your time in advance. :)
 
The 85/15 pickups are more aggressive than the 58/15LT so I think better suited for what you describe you want. They sweeten up nicely. I live 20 minutes from Wildwood but the showroom is closed. But this is the best one I've heard; (IMHO)

 
t
The 85/15 pickups are more aggressive than the 58/15LT so I think better suited for what you describe you want. They sweeten up nicely. I live 20 minutes from Wildwood but the showroom is closed. But this is the best one I've heard; (IMHO)

Thank you so much for your reply. Actually, I try to hear a review of swamp vs mahogany body, there's not much about this topic.
 
I have one of their 35th anniversary FatBack Frostbite CU24, same specs as the one in that first video: 58/15 LT pickups, maple/BZRW neck, mahogany back
And I have another a CU24-08 which has: 85/15 pickups, maple/BZRW neck, ash body.

Different pickups and neck woods. IMO whatever difference you hear will be primarily due to the pickups.
So could you please give a comparison between the sound and feel of these two guitars? Which one would you prefer for what?
Thank you for your time :)
 
I play mainly noise, they're all great for that. You can't go wrong with any guitar for that style of music.

On a more serious note...
I had to double check and none of my guitars have 85/15.
The two CU 24-08 have 58/15MT, while the fatback CU24 has 58/15LT. I tend to prefer the LT for getting slightly more convincing single coil tones when split, but it's not a huge difference to me.

For your genre I'd guess 85/15 would be a better fit than 58/15, but ask the PUPs expert on here or see existing threads comparing those.

I played them acoustically and couldn't tell the difference, at least not one I would care about, between the fatback (mahogany, maple+rw neck) and the CU24-08 (ash body, maple+rw neck).
The other CU24-08 with ash body and maple neck though sounded clearer, but it just got new 46-9 hybrid strings yesterday while the other two are 10s and older.

The feel for me is down to:
- the neck shape: they're all pattern thin but one of them (the satin maple neck one) feels borderline too skinny
- comfort/weight balance, i.e. does it fall on the floor if I don't hold the neck while playing in a sitting position like most Les Pauls (with vintage Kluson-style tuners) do ?
It's a bit hard for CU24 to be as butt-heavy as say a Les Paul, but if it gets too close or above 8lbs it could well be. Most of the CU24 are below that.
The fatbacks should be at a disadvantage, but mine is better in that regard than one of the CU24-08 of similar weight (luck of the draw). The other CU24-08 is quite a bit lighter though and more comfortable overall.
 
I play mainly noise, they're all great for that. You can't go wrong with any guitar for that style of music.

On a more serious note...
I had to double check and none of my guitars have 85/15.
The two CU 24-08 have 58/15MT, while the fatback CU24 has 58/15LT. I tend to prefer the LT for getting slightly more convincing single coil tones when split, but it's not a huge difference to me.

For your genre I'd guess 85/15 would be a better fit than 58/15, but ask the PUPs expert on here or see existing threads comparing those.

I played them acoustically and couldn't tell the difference, at least not one I would care about, between the fatback (mahogany, maple+rw neck) and the CU24-08 (ash body, maple+rw neck).
The other CU24-08 with ash body and maple neck though sounded clearer, but it just got new 46-9 hybrid strings yesterday while the other two are 10s and older.

The feel for me is down to:
- the neck shape: they're all pattern thin but one of them (the satin maple neck one) feels borderline too skinny
- comfort/weight balance, i.e. does it fall on the floor if I don't hold the neck while playing in a sitting position like most Les Pauls (with vintage Kluson-style tuners) do ?
It's a bit hard for CU24 to be as butt-heavy as say a Les Paul, but if it gets too close or above 8lbs it could well be. Most of the CU24 are below that.
The fatbacks should be at a disadvantage, but mine is better in that regard than one of the CU24-08 of similar weight (luck of the draw). The other CU24-08 is quite a bit lighter though and more comfortable overall.
Thank you for your brief review about those :) I checked and saw that the CU24-08 I’m looking at has 85/15 so I think this guitar suits my needs really well :)
 
Hi I have both, as well as a custom 22. The 24 and 24 fatback have different pickups but I can tell you this. I have a 57/08 bridge in both the 24 fatback and 22, and it sounds noticably thicker in the fatback.
 
Hi I have both, as well as a custom 22. The 24 and 24 fatback have different pickups but I can tell you this. I have a 57/08 bridge in both the 24 fatback and 22, and it sounds noticably thicker in the fatback.

Hey,

Thanks for the reply.

How dramatic is the tonal difference between, both the Custom 24, them unplugged?

Best,
VaMi
 
Thank you for your brief review about those :) I checked and saw that the CU24-08 I’m looking at has 85/15 so I think this guitar suits my needs really well :)
Thank you for your brief review about those :) I checked and saw that the CU24-08 I’m looking at has 85/15 so I think this guitar suits my needs really well :)

hey,
I’m an old school player who plays Blues, Hard Rock, Fusion & some Jazz.

85/15 are definitely more suited to modern sounds but if you have good ears then you can dial I’m pretty thick tones reminiscent of those PAF as well.

After spending time with Custom 24 & playing hundreds of other guitars, I can say that it is probably the most versatile guitar ever in the Mahogany territory.

Cheers,
VaMi
 
hey,
I’m an old school player who plays Blues, Hard Rock, Fusion & some Jazz.

85/15 are definitely more suited to modern sounds but if you have good ears then you can dial I’m pretty thick tones reminiscent of those PAF as well.

After spending time with Custom 24 & playing hundreds of other guitars, I can say that it is probably the most versatile guitar ever in the Mahogany territory.

Cheers,
VaMi

Thank you for your response. I generally - 90% - play progressive rock/metal - "Opeth" type of music to be more specific - and jazz. I play blues, classic rock, etc. when I jam with my friends. That's why I think to choose CU24-08 with swamp ash body and 85/15mt pickups. What do you think, do you have any suggestions or comments?
 
Thank you for your response. I generally - 90% - play progressive rock/metal - "Opeth" type of music to be more specific - and jazz. I play blues, classic rock, etc. when I jam with my friends. That's why I think to choose CU24-08 with swamp ash body and 85/15mt pickups. What do you think, do you have any suggestions or comments?
Hi
Swamp ash would definitely change the overall tonality of the guitar. Since we are no longer talking about mahogany, then think using Alder wood on strats for playing metal music. Which seems a little odd to me!
If you go Tremonti route, he plays mahogany bodied guitar and can get plenty of satisfactory progressive metal tones.

I recommend to stay with traditional wood choices of Custom 24, as you May be playing something else in future that would make this guitar as a versatile choice.
Good luck
 
Hi
Swamp ash would definitely change the overall tonality of the guitar. Since we are no longer talking about mahogany, then think using Alder wood on strats for playing metal music. Which seems a little odd to me!
If you go Tremonti route, he plays mahogany bodied guitar and can get plenty of satisfactory progressive metal tones.

I recommend to stay with traditional wood choices of Custom 24, as you May be playing something else in future that would make this guitar as a versatile choice.
Good luck
Thank you for your kind reply. I also prefer to go with the traditional mahogany CU24 but the finis and being 24-08 type really catches me. Also I really love single coil tones on ash body, like Fenderish tones so may be this guitar fits me well but I think I should try and see.
 
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