Seymour Duncan’s stock in a PRS guitar???

[guitarajax]

hey everyone, I found a great deal on a 2014 SE standard. It has Seymour Duncan pickups in it...I asked the seller what kind and he said they came stock. According to him PRS was doing this for a short time. Is this true? If by any crazy chance that’s true what model pickups are they?

 

[sergiodeblanc]

I’ve never heard or seen that.

EMG’s, yes. And the Holcomb has some non-PRS G&B pickups (DiMarzios?) but, nah... I think dude is fibbing.

 

[Solteroblues]

I think the Core P90's are Seymour Duncans, but I've never seen them in an SE

 

[Dirty_Boogie]

The only ones I know of (that are openly advertised as such) are the Mark Holcomb Signature Seymour Duncan "Alpha" and “Omega” pups that come in the Holcomb SE.

 

[Mozzi]

I personally think they are lying to get you to buy...

As others have said, P90's and the Holcombe signature model are the only PU's that are not solely PRS. It makes no sense for PRS to pay a fee to Seymour Duncan on any of their own models when their own PU's are great. You can understand why a Signature Model may come with the Artists signature PU's and even PRS collaborating with Seymour Duncan on P90's if they don't normally make P90's themselves but Humbuckers, on an SE Standard, I really cannot see PRS doing this.

I could be wrong and that this is a 'special' run that I missed hearing about, but of all models, an SE Standard seems most unlikely....

 

[László]

It’s possible the pickups were dealer-installed for a customer and really did come with the guitar.

 

[WEDGE]

Either way they are likely better than the import SE pickups

 

[Fullmoon 1971]

hey everyone, I found a great deal on a 2014 SE standard. It has Seymour Duncan pickups in it...I asked the seller what kind and he said they came stock. According to him PRS was doing this for a short time. Is this true? If by any crazy chance that’s true what model pickups are they?

PRS Introduced the SE Standard in 2014 for the 2015 sales year and where first introduced here in europe. All the models featured SE-245 pickups withe exception of the Tremonti Standard which featured SE Treble & Bass pickups. Heres a link to the offical release page.
http://www.prsguitarseurope.com/2014/11/prs-se-standards-unveiled/

Like others have said the Duncans (As long as not duncan designed) probably sound better than the SE's original - although the ones in my sons SE Standard 245 sound outstanding (I usually swap the magnets in SE pickups but not with these ones). If the price is right it's certainly worth a punt.

 

[drdoom8793]

A couple signature models have had non-PRS pickups from the factory, but never heard of an SE Standard 245 coming with SDs. Definitely doesn't sound stock, regardless of what the guy says.

 

[elvis]

Pickups are not a big deal unless they changed out something you want but can't replace like 85/15.

However, open the control cover to see how well the work was done. I've gotten a hot mess on more than one occasion. I'm fine with that as I can fix them, but sometimes they also put random pots in and whatnot.

 

[guitarajax]

Thanks everyone for confirming my suspions. I’m pretty sure he is lying about the model year also. Moving on!

 

[Mozzi]

Thanks everyone for confirming my suspions. I’m pretty sure he is lying about the model year also. Moving on!

Even if its not stock, there is nothing to say the Seymour Duncans aren't as good as the original pick-ups. Its possible that they maybe better too. Its difficult to lie about the model year with the serial number on the back indicating the year it was made. If this is a retailer, I may give them some slack as they may not be a PRS dealer and you may have some extra warranty/cover than buying from an individual. If you can get to play it first, then you can see if its worth the risk.

On the other hand, if they are not very honest, it does make you wonder about what else they may be lying about too....

 

[merciful-evans]

I may well be the only player on the face of the planet that doesnt like Seymour Duncans. If so, I feel fine about that. It may be that I just have not heard or used the right SDs? Maybe, but I trust my ears and so far I've never heard any SDs that were any good.

PRS pickups are just fine. Some sound amazing.

 

[GADonis]

I have an SE SoapbarII Maple. I thought the pickups in that were called "Duncan Designed" which meant that they are based off of a Seymour Duncan design but manufactured outside of the USA?

 

[Johnny Rigs]

My thoughts aren't so much whether the SD pickups would sound better than stock. It's that if the seller isn't telling the truth about the pickups, what else is he not telling the truth about..

 

[WEDGE]

My thoughts aren't so much whether the SD pickups would sound better than stock. It's that if the seller isn't telling the truth about the pickups, what else is he not telling the truth about..

Likely ignorant rather than devious.