excellent thread, I keep ping-ponging back and forth for 10 years now, between a PRS and a Les Paul, and of course you have to have both.
I've had about 10 of each, a Les Paul axcess, was a very nice attempt at improving the playability aspects, but the tone was not like my Les Paul classic, I had a 12 pound Les Paul and it had that thing that is described as grunt, it mostly showed up on the bottom three power chords, the PRS 594 can cover the guitar approximately 95% of the tones, but those bottom 3 to 4 power chords just have that extra magical quality, but you only hear it when you pick up the guitar and play it yourself, when I play the PRS I feel like I have it as well, they sound awesome, then I pick up the Les Paul and I say oh this has it too and it's even slightly better. I do think it has something to do with the mass of the guitar, but then of course the rest of the playability and tones of the PRS, lead playing, note clarity, complex chords, feel, you see the PRS outshines the Les Paul,
I was just recently listening to bad company cranked on the car radio OMG, that 59 Les Paul rock 'n roll power chords nothing like it. but close enough is close enough. I hate to buy a guitar for three , notes and three notes only. but the only reason I have a les paul is to listen to those G,E & F power chords. I've had the 2016 Les Paul high performance for about a year now, it is definitely the best Les Paul that I have owned it is amazing, I sold my PRS singlecut 594 to get it. but now I miss the 594, so I've recently ordered a double cut 594, I play a lot of Pink Floyd and I need access to those upper frets, so I'm looking forward to my new 594, I consider the Les Paul the super sexy blonde, a little bit crazy idiosyncratic,, the PRS 594 is the brunette, super sexy, very smart, has it all together, potential long-term relationship. I'm probably going to get in trouble comparing guitars to women.