PRS SE Standard 24 vs. PRS SE Custom 24

[mcsooner32]

I'm sure there are 1,000s of posts along these lines but I couldn't find one so I will post a new thread. I am typically a rhythm guitar player, normally on acoustics. About a month or so ago, I desired to make a transition to Jazz but found I was a bit out of my league. I normally played bluegrass.
I decided to take lessons and start learning a bit more along the lines of blues, theory and more lead style guitar. I hate the chunky necks of the Gibson and I don't like basswood so naturally, I bought a mexistrat with noiseless pickups. I don't have any remorse in that decision other than my local shop doesn't carry PRS so I haven't had the chance to play one and will probably have to buy online.
I got a job a week after the purchase as a worship leader. I really like the tone of the PRS's I see online but I don't know if that's accomplished through amp or guitar. I figure either way, I want a guitar with humbuckers to compliment the strat. I'm 45 years old, will probably never be a great guitarist. Don't care anything about metal. I like blues, jazz, folk, bluegrass, will likely play at church, so worship will be in there. I'd like to stay around $500- $800. Closer to the $500 if I can, I could save up but I'm impatient. My wife doesn't want to see another guitar in this house... lol
I've pretty much narrowed myself down to the PRS SE 24 standard or custom. My biggest question is how much does the maple cap (not the veneer) contribute to the sound? I'd like this to be my last guitar purchase so I can start investing in decent amps and/or pedals.
How sad am I going to be if I buy the standard and don't get the custom. I'm not concerned with where it was made as long as I get a great guitar for my money. I don't mind making some upgrades down the line. My biggest concern is will I regret the neck and the body of the standard tonally compared to the custom.
Are there other factors I need to consider?
Lastly, I'm playing on a blackstar V3 but would like to get a monoprice or a fender blues jr. tube amp with reverb. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated. Please understand, when it comes to tone, I'm still just figuring it out with electrics. Simpler is better. Also, having the strat, the coil split is not as important to me as a quality sounding humbucker, especially on neck pick up.
Thanks in advance,
Mike

 

[Duvupov]

Kind of wondering about the same thing. Especially now the standard 24-08 is out. Somehow without the veneer it even looks more premium to me.

Only thing that is holding me back is that I also want to have nice clean single coil sounds. You don't see single coils on all mahogany very often so I wonder if it's a good match.

 

[Ovibos]

You can read this thread on the forum.

TL;DR: Generally people feel that all mahogany is less bright with more prominent low kids (growl).

 

[beakybird]

I was able to get a mint condition SE Custom in this model for approximately the same price as the new Standard. This might be an option if you keep your eye open.
It's a wonderful guitar that's keeping me from my other electric, an American Deluxe Telecaster. I love the whammy bar, the super neck, and all the sound choices.
I defer to the PRS experts here about whether the maple top is a visual adornment or a sonic enhancement.

 

[NBW]

I started playing with a Standard 24 SE bought used from Dave’s. They had SE customs for about $100 more, the salesman who was working with me just asked “Why?”

They aren’t going to sound different due to the thin veneer of nice wood on top. I personally love the wide/thin neck profile, I’ve never played a more comfortable neck. I got a Custom SE24 super cheap on EBay, and sold the standard for about what I paid for it. So now my number one is prettier.

Look on Dave’s site they have both used standard and custom SE 24s and 24-08s as well. It will be the best money you’ll ever spend on a guitar. Their prices are exceptional and they are always the same.

https://www.davesguitar.com/collections/paul-reed-smith-se-series?sort_by=price-ascending

 

[Uncle Bob]

Tricky one, as the pickup selection is going to have WAY more influence on the tones than anything else, including type of neck joint, wood etc.

With this in mind, dare I say that I don’t think the pickups in the SE models are particularly great for jazz/blues. They are really bright and have a pretty high output. Subjective, of course, but personally I think something with a more PAF/vintage vibe works better for that style. You could always roll the tone knob back a bit, or maybe lower the pickups a bit too. Plus a lot depends on the signal processing you use...

Just something to consider, but regardless of all that the SE Customs are great guitars. Haven’t played a standard, but tbh I doubt it would really be hugely different.

 

[Duvupov]

They aren’t going to sound different due to the thin veneer of nice wood on top.

They have a thin vineer of maple AND a maple top that is thicker. So I do think it is going to have influence on sound. They both have a maple neck though.

 

[Duvupov]

This video is quite nice to hear the difference between two 2021 models:

 

[danktat]

Their prices are exceptional and they are always the same.

Bought my A40E acoustic from Dave's. Great shop. Guitar arrived in better condition than was advertised. Couldn't find a flaw with it at all. It was listed as "very good" on Reverb (and the price reflected it). I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to other people.

 

[NBW]

Bought my A40E acoustic from Dave's. Great shop. Guitar arrived in better condition than was advertised. Couldn't find a flaw with it at all. It was listed as "very good" on Reverb (and the price reflected it). I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to other people.

So lucky they’re my local shop.

 

[beakybird]

This video is quite nice to hear the difference between two 2021 models:

Thanks for this helpful video. Yes, they sound different, but one guitar doesn't sound better than the other. I liked the Custom slightly more in the clean recordings. It sounded warmer, slightly less brash, but in the saturated metal mix, I preferred the Standard. It sounded more focused. The differences in sound were very subtle.

 

[dogrocketp]

Remember, it’s one player through his own setup. The big thing with a PRS is that as you grow musically, the guitar can always give you what you want. Changing the amp/pedals can get you there. A good PRS will always sound right if the neck feels comfortable in your hand.