MA Pete
Pattern Thin Convert!
Obligatory direct sunlight shots!! 
Awesome top, and cool finish!
Awesome top, and cool finish!
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The Official "McCarty 594" Love Thread!!
- Thread starter MA Pete
- Start date
Yes, it is nice and beefy! They all are, the 594's, varying degrees. PRS's beefiest neck carve to date.
28.5/32" Depth at the nut, or 0.89". That is in the range of an R9 spec. Some R9's are as small as 0.89", sometimes a little larger at 0.90" or 0.91".
My favorite PRS neck carve yet, I love it!! I'm not sure I could bond with any other PRS neck carve at this point.
Thanks, Kevin! Yes, I am really digging the color. From a distance it looks dark and mysterious, like a darker burgundy, but up close and in more light it really has a lot of dimension and depth with lighter colors and beautiful flame. PRS's Nitro finish is so thin that you also see the shape of the vertical grain in the body, when you look closely. I would bet yours have the same thing going on.
I love the look and feel of the Nitro finish, that will be a primary driver for me to "evolve" my 594 collection to be more Private Stock centric over time!
I'm not sure I agree with the drawing. Maybe it's my computer screen but looking only at the drawing, the pattern thin looks thicker than the pattern regular (which should not be so) and the pattern vintage should have an oddly shaped curve making the carve fatter on the left (low E side) and thinner on the right side as opposed to the same arch on each side.
I thought these were the same but I haven't compared body specs.
MA Pete
Pattern Thin Convert!
This much.
Compared to yankeebulldog's DC 245 PS, which is McCarty thickness. Notice how the jackplate overlaps the binding on the DC 245, but does not on the 594 (my former GOM shown here). A few millimeters.
My two Private Stocks have been less than 7.5 pounds, which no doubt had hand selected lightweight Mahogany bodies optimized for light weight, but the average Core/WL 594 has been over 8 pounds, with the beefiest being the Tobacco Burst at 8 pounds, 6 ounces, 1 ounce heavier than my last R9 (which is probably my last R9, ha!). So definitely more mass from a thicker body!
Maybe the drawing isn't done to scale, just to show the shapes.
MA Pete
Pattern Thin Convert!
It's actually an interesting topic, why the 594 is so ergonomically great. This experience of getting several has clarified something for me, that is why a DC 245 Ted and the 594 are ergonomically my favorite guitars on the planet. (They feel very similar to me, despite the 594 being a little thicker. Actually, what I notice more as a difference is the beefier neck. Besides that, they felt about the same to me, when I was able to compare both, before I sold and traded the last two DC 245's.)
The thinner body (than a Les Paul) makes a difference sure. But to me to the two main things are (1) the belly cut shape keeping the guitar very close to the body (versus the Les Paul digging into your ribs!) and (2) the feel of the neck being in closer to the body, the left hand is tighter into the body of the guitar.
I have gigged DC 245's primarily since 2009, and these seem just as much "home" for me. Can't wait to get an excuse to gig one of these!
The biggest surprise to me is how little the weight seems to make a difference, to me. It's the way the body carve keeps the guitar close to the body, and the left arm being compact that makes it feel great, even my 8 pound 6 ounce Tobacco Burst feels great playing on a strap! I used to think weight had something to do with it for me, I am not so sure now.
(No more Obeche guitars for me, you do lose a little bit of mojo with that wood for the body, in my experience...)
Les - you are hitting the nail on the head! My Core and WL 594's are AWESOME, but there is just something special about a nice Private Stock!
So I usually try my best not to make bold declarations fresh into that NGD (N5D) Honeymoon, but honestly I think this is the most kick-ass guitar I have owned, the tone and resonance of this thing is unreal.
I thought so when I first played it, but a good validation for me was yesterday when my instructor and friend plugged it in and played it for a while, it sounded incredible, and when he was done he set it down and was like "holy cow dude, that is the best one you have had..." That is saying a lot, considering he has played every single one since 2011!
And after playing it all weekend, I think it is my favorite yet. [EDIT: I should clarify that I guess I really mean that in the context of the best of the 594's, because I love the 594 so much that psychologically I have hit the reset button that nothing before the 594 counts for me now. That's just the way my mind works...]I think it looks cool, but honestly I am not head over heels on the looks of it, you guys know I like the Vintage finishes. For me it is the way it sounds, and the way it plays and feels, which is the way it should be, I guess!
Of course I will no doubt outdo this one with a future personally spec'ed PS creation!
A couple of other updates - the Livingston Lemonburst sold today. I will miss that one, it was GREAT! But I felt it prudent to sell two to fund the PS, especially with another PS in the oven.
Also, right now I am obsessed with Peter Green, so I decided I am going to try some of the Peter Green Throbaks in the Vintage Burst, you know, with the out-of-phase neck pickup. I had been meaning to try a set of those for a while.
It sort of has that vibe, right?
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MA Pete
Pattern Thin Convert!
I wouldn't call myself obsessed but...let's just say, you and me both, brother...
That is an awesome one, Les! I love those vintage PRS finishes...
I did think the finish on the McCarty was very, very vintage looking.
dkilpatrick
Makes guitar faces
Totally agree with this.
MA Pete
Pattern Thin Convert!
So I will leave the long weekend here with an update on the Honeymoon weekend tone report on the new Private Stock 594. It is truly an amazing instrument, it has this feeling of being alive with a strong resonance that moves around like a spirit in the guitar, sometimes the resonances jumps on so strongly that it sort of freaks you out. I feel like it is one of those things that once you get used to it, you incorporate that energy into your playing and it takes you for a ride! Magical in that sort of way, like a few Private Stocks I have owned previously.
But the plain old Non-10 Top Tobacco Burst still sounds to me like the best vintage Les Paul I never had, with those classic vintage tones that almost bring a tear to your eye. Like the one I wanted but could never find.
Interestingly enough, I made similar comments a while back in comparing the GOM PS to the Honey Core 594, that the GOM was very "alive", but that the Honey sounded more like a vintage Les Paul, or at least what I thought one should sound like. This time around it is similar, but more pronounced in both cases, this PS is more incredible, and the Tobacco is the best vintage sounding Singlecut I have owned.
I'll say it before and I will say it again here to wrap up this post. This Doublecut IS the Singlecut, no Singlecut needed anymore. I am headed to the Holy Land this week, with no urge whatsoever to consider a 24.694" McCarty Singlecut. Another variation of one of these will do just fine, thank you!!
But the plain old Non-10 Top Tobacco Burst still sounds to me like the best vintage Les Paul I never had, with those classic vintage tones that almost bring a tear to your eye. Like the one I wanted but could never find.
Interestingly enough, I made similar comments a while back in comparing the GOM PS to the Honey Core 594, that the GOM was very "alive", but that the Honey sounded more like a vintage Les Paul, or at least what I thought one should sound like. This time around it is similar, but more pronounced in both cases, this PS is more incredible, and the Tobacco is the best vintage sounding Singlecut I have owned.
I'll say it before and I will say it again here to wrap up this post. This Doublecut IS the Singlecut, no Singlecut needed anymore. I am headed to the Holy Land this week, with no urge whatsoever to consider a 24.694" McCarty Singlecut. Another variation of one of these will do just fine, thank you!!
Some "real life" pics. Not a lot of sunlight coming in the room yet today, but this gives an idea on how cool the color is with the tight flame.
I am not usually a fan of Gold Hardware, but this is Hybrid Hardware with Gold for the two bridge pieces. I may later swap those to nickel, I plan to inquire with PRS about doing that. But for now I don't mind it.
I think this is a great acquisition for me, as the finish is something that I would never be brave enough to spec myself, but I dig it! I am glad that PRS built it, and that I was able to snag it out there in the wild. Of that run of 629x Private Stocks that I have seen (4 at Sweetwater, 3 at World Guitars), this one is my favorite! I really dug the Glacier Blue one that Sweetwater had as well, not sure where that ended up, but I think I like this one a little better. The Sweetwater Glacier Blue one was more so nostalgic for me, calling back to that great DC 245 WL Ted I had in Glacier Blue. This one is just plain awesome for the sake of being awesome!
P.S. It cracks me up how more often than not the 3 Way is in the Middle Position with the 594's. That is my "go-to" position, I use the 2 volume and 2 tone controls to shape the tone from there, you get an amazing range of vintage tones from doing that!
Pete,
Congratulations!...yet again.
This is a simply beautiful guitar! I like the color better then any of your previous choices...so far. It has a natural look to it, being that red is almost a wood tone and an autumn tone. This guitar imho, was a far better choice then the ones at Sweetwater. It just looks "correct", to me.
Ya' done well.
I hope you stick with this one as one of your new PS guitars. While I don't have a PS yet, even though you really like the Core versions you have acquired, this was a smart buy. It's always nice to have a couple or more private stock versions of a guitar that you have attached yourself too, in addition to Core versions.
I always say that. I really do!
Stephen
P.S. did I read correctly that the date on the peg head is 6-7-16? If I did read it correctly. that's my birthday, Pete!
MA Pete
Pattern Thin Convert!
Updated Harem shot! (I also have the Honey Core one in my apartment in CA.)
Of the 9 I have had, these 5 are the ones I have decided to keep so far. All 9 were great, not a mediocre one in the bunch, but these ones are the ones I have bonded with the most with regards to how they sound, play, look and make me feel.
I really love this model, to me my collection of guitars overall feels more complete (and AWESOME) than ever!
Of the 9 I have had, these 5 are the ones I have decided to keep so far. All 9 were great, not a mediocre one in the bunch, but these ones are the ones I have bonded with the most with regards to how they sound, play, look and make me feel.
I really love this model, to me my collection of guitars overall feels more complete (and AWESOME) than ever!
BrianC
more toys than talent
Maybe take the pups out of that guitar and put them in the new one. Even though the pups are suppose to be the same you can get a set that is JUST RIGHT. Give it a try.
BrianC
more toys than talent
The new red one looks sooooo different in the shot above - much darker (cool!)
