PRS Hollowbody Bridge Mounting

Newill Guitars

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Jul 31, 2019
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Hello,

New here, I was wondering if anyone out there with a PRS hollowbody design could tell me how they mount their wraparound bridges. Is there a block beneath the bridge and its mounted using studs? Or is it another method? Any help would be great!

-Patrick
 
Welcome! I reckon there's a block inside, and there's some studs.
All of the string holes and grooves are sized for the strings.
They're a work of art and I've never adjusted anything.

Svyvt19c_o.jpg

G0sQ1Xxd_o.jpg
 
Welcome! I reckon there's a block inside, and there's some studs.
All of the string holes and grooves are sized for the strings.
They're a work of art and I've never adjusted anything.

Svyvt19c_o.jpg

G0sQ1Xxd_o.jpg
Thanks for your reply! When you play it does the top vibrate moreso than a solidbody? Do you know how it feedbacks compared to say... a 335?

Btw, that Bad Larry is absolutely gorgeous...
 
Thanks for your reply! When you play it does the top vibrate moreso than a solidbody? Do you know how it feedbacks compared to say... a 335?

Btw, that Bad Larry is absolutely gorgeous...
Appreciate it!
imo it sounds better than any solidbody and never feedsback. But I'm biased and would never consider anything but a hb, so...
 
Thanks for your reply! When you play it does the top vibrate moreso than a solidbody? Do you know how it feedbacks compared to say... a 335?

Btw, that Bad Larry is absolutely gorgeous...
The top is fairly thick, so doesn’t vibrate nearly to the degree that an acoustic top does. You’ll hear the impact of the hollow more than feel it.

You have to go to some effort to feedback. We had another thread on this a bit over a month ago that I reported some feedback testing in it. Basically, feedback is easy to avoid if you don’t want it.
 
Thanks for your reply! When you play it does the top vibrate moreso than a solidbody? Do you know how it feedbacks compared to say... a 335?

Btw, that Bad Larry is absolutely gorgeous...
The top is fairly thick, so doesn’t vibrate nearly to the degree that an acoustic top does. You’ll hear the impact of the hollow more than feel it.

You have to go to some effort to feedback. We had another thread on this a bit over a month ago that I reported some feedback testing in it. Basically, feedback is easy to avoid if you don’t want it.

The Spruce topped ones vibrate a little more than the maple ones IME (at least mine does), I don’t know if it’s a design change like our boy @Tag has mentioned many times or what.

My HB McCarty Spruce is way more “alive” feeling than my last 335 ever was, but in a narrower frequency spectrum, if that makes sense.
 
There is a mahogany block a bit bigger than the bridge that spans the space between the carved top and back. The top and back are full thickness where they connect to the centre block.

Thanks for this info, so their hollow bodies aren't true hollowbodies, theyre just more hollow than their semi-hollows?
 
Thanks for this info, so their hollow bodies aren't true hollowbodies, theyre just more hollow than their semi-hollows?
They are very hollow. The key difference with many other hollowbody Guitars is that the top and bottom are carved, like a violin; many are laminate tops shaped by pressure.

MoggyMel’s photo above makes it clear how hollow it is.
 
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Full hollow, and the carved tops on my HB-IIs are each about 1/8th inch thick.

They are surprisingly resistant to feedback. You can make them howl if you want, but it's a lot more controllable than, say, my Gretsch 6120.

Then there is the unique and sublime pleasure of playing a HB-II at a high enough volume that it nearly feeds back, and you'll feel it breathing gently through the f-hole upon your inner arm. :)

=K
 
These are definitely "hollow"! And as been said already, you have to work to make them feed back.
 
Anyone who has experienced a hollowbody (not PRS) or heard about feedback from those who have used Hollowbodies, then PRS will certainly change your mind. A lot of hollowbody Electrics are made in a similar way to an acoustic. That method takes strips of wood and with steam, bend them to shape the sides. Tops are thin plywood and pressed into shape with heat and steam to create the 'carved' look - some are flat of course.

As you can see from the image that @MoggyMel has provided above, the sides are not made from strips of mahogany bent to shape but a slab of Mahogany, exactly the same as a regular solid body, with the inside cut out leaving just the outside to form the sides. A solid Maple top, like the maple tops they use on their solid bodies, is attached to the top and bottom and carved.

The result is a guitar that doesn't have the uncontrollable feedback associated with Hollowbodies and behave more like a Solid body - maybe a bit easier to get feedback but if you don't want it, its really easy to avoid it too. Its a hollowbody that you can really rock and even do metal on! I am not a jazz player but a blues/rock to a bit of metal player and love my Hollowbody for these genres. I love it so much that I want to add the 594 HB to my collection as well...
 
The Spruce topped ones vibrate a little more than the maple ones IME (at least mine does), I don’t know if it’s a design change like our boy @Tag has mentioned many times or what.

My HB McCarty Spruce is way more “alive” feeling than my last 335 ever was, but in a narrower frequency spectrum, if that makes sense.

Agree on all counts. My last 335 was a Custom Shop version, sounded very good, but not nearly as lively as an HB Spruce. I also thought the maple HB2 was more responsive than my 335.

The 335 has cool tones, but I think solid wood has a quality that the plywood 335 can’t get to. On the other hand, the 335 is certainly a familiar tone and might be a good choice for a different player. My last 335 came and went fairly quickly, even though it was a good example of the model, because after playing PRSes for years, the 335 felt like I’d gone from a new Mercedes to a ‘54 Oldsmobile. The ergonomics were wrong for my playing style (I acknowledge that a ‘54 Olds could be fun every so often).
 
There's lots of videos on PRS solidbody construction. I've never been able to find one on HBs. Would love to see one.
 
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