Updated: I preferred the PRS Silver Sky 2020 pickups over the 2022 until the 2022 had new strings.

[Deleted member 5962]

I would also add that any time you compare two things and one is slightly lower volume than the other, the lower volume model is immediately at a sonic disadvantage. Turn the lower volume (21 model) up to exactly the same level as the 18 model, the compare apples to applies.

 

[Revelation]

I spent a lot more time with my 1982 Stratocaster and I realized after comparing it to the Silver Sky that I like my Stratocaster better. I like the tuning pegs better. I like the stronger quack it has on toggle switch 2 and 4. I like the neck better and by reducing the tone knob, I can get a closer sound to the Silver Sky. It was a good A/B comparison. If you prefer the Silver Sky, more power to you. They are all great instruments. As I am not getting a Silver Sky, I can use the money to buy a Rega Planner 6 turntable and replace my aging Dual CS5000 turntable.

 

[Revelation]

UPDATE: I went to a music store that had a Fender Vintage II 1961 Stratocaster. I was very surprised that it had a meatier tone and very similar to the latest Silver Sky. The Silver Sky is supposed to be similar to a 1963 Fender Strat sound. Both lack the thin treble sound that you hear on Eric Claptons' Blues Power on his original recording. It has less top end while still providing the single coil sound. This made me realize that PRS and John Mayer knew what they were doing. The Fender is $2,000 while the PRS Silver Sky is $2,600. Some advantages of the Silver Sky include the whammy bar which just slides in. It also does not have the skunk filler in the back and it appears with the scarf headstock is a modern design. They don't need the trees on the headstock to keep the strings down. I also tried the Vintage II 50's which has a neck that is too thick for me. I preferred the 61 Vintage II.

My perception before I tried the 61 Vintage II was that my 82 Strat which is similar to Claptons and other recordings I heard where Strats were thin, and bright. I started to appreciate the thicker sound now that I realized that Fender also had come out with that type of Stratocaster.

Has anyone else compared the two guitars, what are your thoughts?

 

[andy474x]

I have a ‘19, and noticed the same on the newer pickups and frets. I think, had I played them side by side, I’d have picked the newer/updated guitar, but after owning the ‘19, I’ve grown to prefer it. The smaller frets help me to play more smoothly (or at least make me feel that way), and the pickups are excellent. Although I can’t say I have super strong feelings either way, I like the new ones, too.

The nitro neck finish was not consistent on the very first few SS I tried, so I guess around 2019 was a sweet spot. Come to think of it, despite none being bought that year, all my really nice PRS are from 2019, the SS, 594, SSH. It’s almost like something happened and the world ended after 2019…

I wish PRS would hurry up and put out a SE Silver Sky with maple fingerboard and the same neck shape and frets they're using on the SE version right now. Don't change a thing. Just offer it with a maple fingerboard with no other changes.

Then I could put the pickups I prefer in it and be one happy camper.

Not that the standard SE SS pickups don't sound great. They do!

But sometimes we have other preferences that we've just gotten used to and the SE SS is a perfect platform for pickup swapping.

I come t the maple board SE isn’t far away. There’s been talk of it from the mother ship, not to mention some shots from the factory.

 

[László]

My perception before I tried the 61 Vintage II was that my 82 Strat which is similar to Claptons and other recordings I heard where Strats were thin, and bright. I started to appreciate the thicker sound now that I realized that Fender also had come out with that type of Stratocaster.

Not that I claim to be a Strat expert, but what was done on recordings back then was to boost and brighten the treble to overcome tape hiss, and the dulling effect of tape wear through multiple mix passes really did affect the tone we hear on recordings.

This is because in addition to analog hiss, as the tape was shuttled back and forth against the heads, it would shed oxide, and lose high and upper mid frequencies.

So recording engineers and mixers compensated by cutting lows and boosting high frequencies and upper mids. the result would be a brighter, thinner frequency balance.

I got started in the studio biz back in the analog days, and this stuff really affected the sound of everything that went through the processing. It's one of the reasons many studios glommed onto digital tape (and later disc) when it appeared, including mine.

Also, to mix better with vocals, some mids in the vocal range of a guitar would be cut a little with parametric EQ so the vocal wouldn't be masked by guitar frequencies.

So while one can broadly say this or that instrument reminds us of the one on a given record, the instrument itself, played in the room, probably originally sounded a bit different!

 

[Rod/]

Personally, for the tones I go after, I like the newest SS pickups more than the older versions. They remind me a lot of the original pickups that were on my old, stock 1954 Stratocaster I used to own. None of my other Strats back then built in the 60’s sounded anything like my old 54……
For me, the newer pickups are more frequency balanced and with the smoother top end, they will sound less ragged with overdrive …..
Guess I should (again) check out the brand new ones! Oh boy

 

[tabl10s]

Fascinating thread. I don't have a Silver Sky yet and I had no idea they changed it so much since it's inception. You can hear the difference with the pups in the video. Thanks for providing time points. I did watch entire videos also. I must say I was a bit impressed with the Studio model.
From what I heard on vid I prefer the 2018. Thanks for posting this.

The day I get an SS, it gets EMG's

Not putting up with any buzzing garbage!

My son has a 2020 Silver Sky with a maple neck. I brought it to the music store so I could compare it to a 2022 Silver Sky I was interested in.
Yes the frets on the 2022 are a little more raised vs the 2020. I found I could slide up and down the neck a little better with the 2020 version which is no surprise as the 2022 version has taller frets. But it's not an issue that would make me not purchase it or that I would find it annoying.

The big factor is the pickups. When comparing the pickups of both guitars, I played them one right after the other playing the same songs and licks. I also have a 1982 Fender American Stratocaster. I found my son's 2020 Silver Sky to be a little meatier than my Fender and I liked the fact that the back pickup does not have the ice pick issue of my guitar. Also you can adjust the tone knob on the back pickup on the Silver Sky which you can't do on the Fender. Now when I compared the 2020 guitar to the 2022, the 2022 had a lower mid bump that made the top end also sound dull. Not sure if they changed the EQ on the top of the pickup or just boosted the lower freq's with their latest Silver Sky pickups. However it sounds less like a Fender Stratocaster. It could be a Kiesel Bolt, Ibanez LM1, or other brand that has single coil pickup. Now some may say, I like the direction PRS went with the latest change to the Silver Sky. They moved a little further away from the thinner bright charater of a Stratocaster. With the 2020 version, I would agree with this statement and I really like the sound of my sons guitar and it still quacks. They did however had issues with the nitro finish where if the guitar laid against some materials, it could affect the back of the guitar. But that is another story. With the lower mid bump less top end, the 2022 quacks less and just does not sound like a Stratocaster. I was really disappointed. I really wanted to get this beautiful Silver Sky at my local store. But sadly I won't as it just doesn't have the character I am looking for. Remember those older Silver Sky videos where they compare it to a $20,000 Strat, etc. Yes those older Silver Sky's sound incredible. The new ones not as much, unless you want something more different sounding. But if I want something that is not like a Fender Strat but thinner than my 594, I would buy a PRS Studio guitar or even a Core 24.

I wish PRS would go back to the older Silver Sky pickups. This is the guitar I want, but it does not sound Strat enough for me.

https://imgur.com/6xa88Ww

 

[Lewguitar]

Personally, for the tones I go after, I like the newest SS pickups more than the older versions. They remind me a lot of the original pickups that were on my old, stock 1954 Stratocaster I used to own. None of my other Strats back then built in the 60’s sounded anything like my old 54……
For me, the newer pickups are more frequency balanced and with the smoother top end, they will sound less ragged with overdrive …..
Guess I should (again) check out the brand new ones! Oh boy

Might have been Alnico 3 magnets in those old '54 pickups. The pickups in Eric Johnson's signature Strat have Alnico 3 magnets to capture the sound of the pickups in his original '54 Strat.

I prefer Alnico 5 myself and that's what's in the Core Silver Sky pickups. That's what's in most vintage 50's and 60's Strat pickups too and Alnico 3 seems a little weak to me.

But Alnico 3 gives a Strat pickup more of that clean, Eric Johnson style, shimmer and chime.

 

[Revelation]

UPDATE: I just received a polar blue 2023 SK and it has a more open sound than this gold one. The only thing I can think of is I was told this gold one was in the store for over a year and the strings getting old which reduced the top end. I am much happier with the more open sound of the Silver Sky with new strings.

 

[Rod/]

UPDATE: I just received a polar blue 2023 SK and it has a more open sound than this gold one. The only thing I can think of is I was told this gold one was in the store for over a year and the strings getting old which reduced the top end. I am much happier with the more open sound of the Silver Sky with new strings.

Old strings will kill the tone of any great guitar, (or crappy one as well).
If you think about it, it’s what the whole guitar is based around