PRS SE Swamp Ash Special!

Torvald said:
My McCarty has the same 110k resistor for the neck and 220 for the bridge pickup but stays very clean when split. Would have thought that the SAS would be the same. Not sure what would cause the roll off of highs. The single coil is combined with the split neck pup, of course but I wouldn't think that would cause it.
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I agree. It's mixed with middle, but there was more volume loss than expected, especially clean. Still sounds good though.
 
I was at John Mann’s Guitar Vault yesterday picking up my Santana which he did some work on. I played a Swamp Ash Special while I was there. I was floored. And at $679 no less. Beautiful finishes. 2 piece swamp ash bodies. (My least favorite neck) Wide/thin neck profile that actually felt really good..Great maple neck and a cool pickup configuration…
……. also got to play a maple neck & fingerboard SE SS. Same price! Man that was nice.
By the time I came and left they’d sold 2 SA Specials in 2 hours. That says a lot for the guitars ….and the store
 
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I picked one up on whim yesterday. I played my first gig with it tonight. Admittedly i got it on stage before i had a chance to really dial it in.

The gig I played was an outdoor gig, October in Indiana can get pretty chilly but it wasn't horrible, in the mid 50s, but it was a little rainy all day and very wet outside when we played.

I kept the stock strings on it which are 9s. This band plays tuned down a half step so it was feeling very slinky. I had to adjust the trem and the neck a touch. Tomorrow it goes back to 440. Typically i like 10s on my prs guitars but for now I'm going to stick with the 9s, i like the way this guitar feels with them.

The tuning stability was very good. As far as the sound goes i prefered the humbucking tones. It sounded very good. It seems to be a bright and spanky guitar but thats what i wanted. I did have some sqealing issues when using gain. It was not a lot of gain low to mid gain. I did solve the problem by turning off my compressor. My amp was fairly close to me but my stage volume was pretty low. I'll play with it more over the next few days and see what i come up with.

Overall i liked it alot. I bought this guitar as a back up and to use on gigs that im not as comfortable using my core guitars. I may swap out the pickups but then again i may not, i just need to play it some more.
 
Rod/ said:
2 piece swamp ash bodies
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He had 2 piece bodied? All but one I've seen online have been 3 piece. I was going to see it in person today, but it sold yesterday. The ones I've played in person gave been 3 piece too.

I hope PRS takes note of the way these models are flying at the sale price, and we see more of this! Hope being the key word.
 
A buddy of mine just bought one after gentle prodding from me. This Tuesday, I’m going to take my core SAS to an open mike, and we’re going to compare it to his SE. I’ll let you know what we think. I wonder if PRS got more of the SAS than they initially thought and decided to lower the price to move inventory. Either way, I thought this would be a killer right out of the gate.
 
dogrocketp said:
A buddy of mine just bought one after gentle prodding from me. This Tuesday, I’m going to take my core SAS to an open mike, and we’re going to compare it to his SE. I’ll let you know what we think. I wonder if PRS got more of the SAS than they initially thought and decided to lower the price to move inventory. Either way, I thought this would be a killer right out of the gate.
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It's a cool guitar, but not my core SAS. Only reason I haven't bought one. Though I've modded mine with 5909 bridge, 5815LT neck, and freeway. Honestly nothing is my Swiss army SAS, such a killer guitar. It's arguably the last one I'd sell, so the se is up against some stiff competition. Still doesn't detract from the fact PRS hit a home run with the SASse. If and/or when the make a rosewood board I can definitely see one in my future.

Looking forward to your thoughts after the comparison.
 
SinSir said:
He had 2 piece bodied? All but one I've seen online have been 3 piece. I was going to see it in person today, but it sold yesterday. The ones I've played in person gave been 3 piece too.

I hope PRS takes note of the way these models are flying at the sale price, and we see more of this! Hope being the key word.
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Yup. The 1 I played had a 2 piece body…..
 
SinSir said:
It's a cool guitar, but not my core SAS. Only reason I haven't bought one. Though I've modded mine with 5909 bridge, 5815LT neck, and freeway. Honestly nothing is my Swiss army SAS, such a killer guitar. It's arguably the last one I'd sell, so the se is up against some stiff competition. Still doesn't detract from the fact PRS hit a home run with the SASse. If and/or when the make a rosewood board I can definitely see one in my future.

Looking forward to your thoughts after the comparison.
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I hear ya. Friends tried to prod me into buying a DGT SE.
My answer is always:. “Why? I have a WL DGT that sounds incredible ” :oops:
 
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WJH said:
PRSSESwampAshSpecialIriBlueF052076-2_800x.jpg
Got mine
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Beautiful!
 
SinSir said:
It's a cool guitar, but not my core SAS. Only reason I haven't bought one. Though I've modded mine with 5909 bridge, 5815LT neck, and freeway. Honestly nothing is my Swiss army SAS, such a killer guitar. It's arguably the last one I'd sell, so the se is up against some stiff competition. Still doesn't detract from the fact PRS hit a home run with the SASse. If and/or when the make a rosewood board I can definitely see one in my future.

Looking forward to your thoughts after the comparison.
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Interesting. I put a freeway switch in mine to cut down fumbling when going from a rhythm sound to take a solo. That works great. I left the original pickups in mine.
 
dogrocketp said:
Interesting. I put a freeway switch in mine to cut down fumbling when going from a rhythm sound to take a solo. That works great. I left the original pickups in mine.
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The freeway was a game changer for me..

I did the wiring a little different than typical HSH. Basically kept the push/pull to engage the middle to any position. The freeway toggle does the splitting of the humbuckers or humbucker mode. In the middle its either both humbuckers or a kill switch for the top bank so I can have the middle only if the push/pull is engaged.

The only combo I can't do is both humbuckers split running together with the middle. But I can have both humbuckers and the middle for all three pickups. Sounds complicated to type out but as you.now the freeway is super easy to use.

Another cool thing is I found a covered 5909, so both humbuckers are covered. :)
 
Received a blue one yesterday. Probably my 20th + PRSi since 1997. I had a '97 SAS in Whale Blue, and regretted selling it.
The good: Really an impressive array of tones!, Great finish, instantly playable, very attractive, comfortable neck although not my favorite prs neck carve.
The not as good: Doesn't balance in my lap the way I expect, tho, I'll adapt, use a strap, It's a bit heavy, haven't weighed it yet, feels 8-9 lbs. Can't figure out how to isolate the single coil pup.

The Great: It was very reasonably priced, about $675! Can't believe a guitar can sound this good and be such a joy to play at this price. I deserve it for buying groceries and gas the last year!!
 
I checked before pulling the trigger. 8 pounds. Too heavy for me for basses, but fine for a guitar.

I think it plays great. The setup and fretwork out of the box are excellent. It even arrived in tune.

I only have 20 minutes on it unplugged though. It arrived late in the day and we happen to be busy tonight.
 
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