What color is my guitar?

[OmniCognateSnr]

Hi all,

New to the forum, so forgive me if this question has come up before ( I had a quick look and couldn’t find anything specific ). Is there a way to confirm the colour of my CE24 ? It was sold to me by the dealer as Amber, but its becoming obvious its not that because the back is red and the amber model has a clear back. After a bit of digging I thought it was probably Vintage Sunburst, but after a little more research it seems more likely its actually McCarty Sunburst. Trouble is the guitar was built in April 2019 and McCarty Sunburst on the CE only appears in the 2020 catalogue.

I like the colour, so have no real issue with it other than my receipt will be wrong ( which may be problematic when i come to sell it ) and I feel a little aggrieved that i was charged for one colour and ended up with another ( i have found the Vintage Sunburst model elsewhere for £100 cheaper - IF it actually is the same colour ).

Photo’s on line all look very similar, so it’s difficult to tell from pictures alone. I have also seen the colour “Vintage Yellow” pop up too, just to confuse things, but I think that’s just for the pre 2016 models.

Before you all ask, yes I love the guitar and the colour. Other than the potential price matching argument with my dealer and the incorrect invoice this is more about curiosity.

thanks

 

[Alnus Rubra]

What is this “selling” you talk of?!

 

[OmniCognateSnr]

very good point. I have 2 other electric and one electro-acoustic guitars ( cheap ones - including a Korean Fender and a “Vintage” Les Paul ), and I can’t even bring myself to sell those. I suspect the CE 24 will be around for life. It is a lovely guitar. Still good to work out what colour it is though.

 

[merciful-evans]

hmm... big ask. What colour with no pics?!

Good luck.

 

[Boogie]

 

[OmniCognateSnr]

Not sure if i can just paste a photo .... here goes

 

[OmniCognateSnr]

Nope, that didn’t work. How do i attach a picture?

 

[OmniCognateSnr]

This may work......

https://www.instagram.com/p/B8q9rOXArbA/?igshid=1axxmrwt0uw7m

what I really want to know though, is if there is any way to tell from the serial number etc? I’m a bit surprised they don’t write it on the little tag that come with the guitar. I know the initials of the guy that signed it off as complete, but not what colour it is.

 

[bodia]

Find the modcat located on one end of the case, and underneath the bridge pickup, and enter it here.

http://www.toragraphics.com/modcat/

A sample would look like this:

A sample MODCAT: SLM2FAHFIET_FR_HB-BS

Model: 408 Signature Limited
Top Wood: Maple
Frets: 22
Top Spec: Figured Maple
Top Grade: Artist
Neck Wood: Mahogany
Neck Carve: Pattern (Wide/Fat)
Fingerboard Wood: East Indian Rosewood
Inlay: MOP/Paua Heart Birds (ME 2)
Bridge: Tremolo or 2-Piece Bridge
Color: Fire Red Burst
Hardware: Hybrid (Nickel and Gold)
Treble Pickup: 408 or Bass
Middle Pickup: none
Bass Pickup: 408 or Bass
Electronics: Swamp Ash or Signature Limited

 

[bodia]

This may work......

https://www.instagram.com/p/B8q9rOXArbA/?igshid=1axxmrwt0uw7m

what I really want to know though, is if there is any way to tell from the serial number etc? I’m a bit surprised they don’t write it on the little tag that come with the guitar. I know the initials of the guy that signed it off as complete, but not what colour it is.

Looks great! I'd agree with McCarty Burst from that pick. It could be Amber, but I always thought there was a little more brown in Amber finishes.

 

[OmniCognateSnr]

Yes, i thought the amber was a bit more brown. Kind of surprised the guys in the store didn’t realise.

The Vintage sunburst and the McCarty sunburst look very similar though.

it was a toss-up between this one and one that was Violin Amber Sunburst. That one looked really nice but possibly a bit too close to the 35th Anniversary SE Custom 24 that it was replacing. So also a little brown.

thanks for the link but its still a bit new for me to start taking the pickups off. I took the panels off on the back to see if there was anything in there, but alas not. And sadly the CE comes in a soft gig bag, not a hard case, so no external sticker.

 

[bodia]

My bad, I forgot about the CE coming in a gig bag. You could always shoot an email to Customer Service and ask them.

[email protected]

 

[OmniCognateSnr]

Oh, and if it is McCarty sunburst, I am even more confused, because the PRS catalogue says that is a 2020 colour for the CE, and mine is showing a build date of April 2019 ( although i have just bought it as a brand new guitar ).

 

[OmniCognateSnr]

Sorry, our messages must have crossed. Thanks for the Customer Services address, I’ll give that a go.

 

[Black Plaid]

Dealers can do runs of guitar in "whatever color they are h*ckn' willing to pay for"

I have a 2016 CE in Dupont Copper. I don't think there are many of those floating about. (not since the mid 00's)

 

[OmniCognateSnr]

The nice people at PRS customers Services confirmed it is Vintage Sunburst. So, somewhat anti-climatically the mystery is over.

 

[Ovibos]

My bad, I forgot about the CE coming in a gig bag. You could always shoot an email to Customer Service and ask them.

[email protected]

I think there's a MODCAT sticker on the gigbag, unless you get it from somewhere where they take em off...?

BTW, looks lighter than Amber to me too.

 

[OmniCognateSnr]

Just had a good ol’ rummage around the gig bag, and definitely no modcat sticker. Like you say, its possible the store removed it.

The mystery was solved, however, by the kind folks of PRS customer services, who looked up the serial number for me and confirmed it is, in fact, Vintage Sunburst, not Amber. So the dealer got it wrong ( including on the receipt ). Interestingly it was marked up as £1999 but they said it was £1799 on the web site , because they thought it was the amber one, so sold it to me for that ( actually a little less). But it was actually the amber one that was £1799 so I may have got a better deal than I thought

in all honestly I suspect it would have been the same price. The Amber Violin Sunbust one i had a go with was £1880 though, so they weren’t all the same price.

anywho, now i can not only enjoy it, i can actually tell people what colour it is!

 

[Alnus Rubra]

Congratulations on getting a good deal

 

[OmniCognateSnr]

Thanks. More importantly I got a good guitar. Now all I need to do is work out how to make it make the same noises the guy in the store did. I know those amazing noises are in there somewhere....