Where does the Special SH fit?

jeffroel

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Sep 24, 2020
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Hi everyone!

lastly I've been contemplating the idea of buying a Special SH. I love the looks, the F-hole, but thinking about it I'm not sure it brings something new to me that I cannot cover with my other PRSi (a bit of eye candy to spice the thread :) )

YybgRO1.jpg



With this in mind I started to think what's the "space" for the Special in the PRS line up? What do you think? Anyone with experience with this model can share how and when do you use it?
 
Well it gives you a third pickup for starters which is different from everything shown (awesome BTW). Tone wise I consider them somewhere near the McCarty/PG section of yours which leans more towards warm, but let’s be honest there’s some overlap between dual HB mahogany guitars with the same scale length. I might suggest to try and find one with a different wood combination like ash/maple if you’re really looking for *different* though the third pickup alone would be enough to justify different here.
 
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The third pickup would be difference enough for me, and it was because that’s why I bought one. Mine is a swamp ash back with maple neck and I’ve found I really love that wood combination. I’d try to find one with the 58/15 MT pickups instead of the 58/15 LT as well.
 
Yeah, the middle pup is really the functional difference, plus the coil mini-toggles that you only have on your Paul's.

I would suggest you look at a 509 if you want a middle pup guitar that is quite different from what you have.

OTOH, if you really like the Semi-hollow element, I think the SSH is probably a fine option for you.

EDIT: Oh yeah, as @21Hemispheres12 noted, get a SSH with non-standard woods, like a Swamp Ash body, maple neck/FB, or something. That will help separate it from the pack!
 
Wow, that special is great.

I've seen some specials with the swamp ash body / maple neck combination, but I don't know if this is a very bright wood combo. How would you describe the difference with a typical mahogany/mahogany?
 
Wow, that special is great.

I've seen some specials with the swamp ash body / maple neck combination, but I don't know if this is a very bright wood combo. How would you describe the difference with a typical mahogany/mahogany?
The biggest difference I notice is clarity and ability to cut in the mix. When you play a chord you’ll distinctly hear every note ring out as opposed to squish together like a mahogany neck/back guitar. Also the tone knob is very useful if you want to pull back some of the highs. It’s definitely not overly bright at all and it’s pretty much the only guitar I have that the split bridge by itself sounds great.

I love using this guitar to cover “Say it Ain’t So” by Weezer with my band because the bridge split sounds perfect for the intro and then I just throw it into humbucking mode for the heavier chorus. Also the split bridge by itself with some light overdrive nails the tone on “Radar Love” by Golden Earring. When I gig with my cover band I have no doubt the guitar will be able to cover everything we do with ease.
 
I never want to push a model just because I have one. Yes, it's different from what you have, but whether it's different enough from your semi-hollow guitar to warrant a purchase is another matter.

The middle pickup is a great feature. The little switches to turn coils off and on are great features. I think that in terms of tone compared to the semi hollow you have, the guitar does more, and I prefer a set neck to a bolt-on, anyway.

I like the 58/15 MT pickups, especially with the middle narrow field pickup. I think it's a great combination, and the TCI process seems worthwhile to me. Also, it's great to be able to individually split the coils.

If you like positions 2 and 4 on a Strat, you might find the same positions useful on a Special. If you're a neck or bridge pickup player who won't use the middle pickup, you might not need the Special.

I'm glad I got mine, and really enjoy playing it. To differentiate mine even more, it's an Artist model, so it has an abony fretboard. It's quite different from my usual suspects that are all solid body guitars with rosewood fretboards in various varieties that are my usual fare.

My theory is that the decision to buy a guitar is inherently irrational. We fall in love with the tone. or we don't, and can't quite explain why 'It just works' for us.

I'm happy I bought one, but YMMV based on your ownership of a different semi-hollow guitar.

Edit: I should note that I also had a 2010-ish CU22 Semi-hollow Ltd. Also a great guitar. If I still had that one, I might not have been as interested in the Special as I am now. But...I dunno, maybe I'd have sprung for it regardless. Because I'm a little crazy! ;)
 
Thanks everyone for your inputs!

To be completely honest, i know for sure that I don’t need an SSH, but as LSchefman says, buying a new guitar is not a rational decision

I love all my PRSi and lately I’ve been playing more and more my semihollows (the ce24 and a Suhr Alt T). I see the SSH as the combination of everything I love from a standard PRS (set neck, humbuckers, etc) but with the twist of beijg a semihollow and offering even more sounds with the middle pickup.

I’m almost convinced by now, but I’m facing the toughest decision: what finish should I go for?
 
Thanks everyone for your inputs!

To be completely honest, i know for sure that I don’t need an SSH, but as LSchefman says, buying a new guitar is not a rational decision

I love all my PRSi and lately I’ve been playing more and more my semihollows (the ce24 and a Suhr Alt T). I see the SSH as the combination of everything I love from a standard PRS (set neck, humbuckers, etc) but with the twist of beijg a semihollow and offering even more sounds with the middle pickup.

I’m almost convinced by now, but I’m facing the toughest decision: what finish should I go for?
I don’t know what your budget is, but Brian’s guitars has some great SSHs right now. I’m partial to the teal fade myself.
 
Thanks everyone for your inputs!

To be completely honest, i know for sure that I don’t need an SSH, but as LSchefman says, buying a new guitar is not a rational decision

I love all my PRSi and lately I’ve been playing more and more my semihollows (the ce24 and a Suhr Alt T). I see the SSH as the combination of everything I love from a standard PRS (set neck, humbuckers, etc) but with the twist of beijg a semihollow and offering even more sounds with the middle pickup.

I’m almost convinced by now, but I’m facing the toughest decision: what finish should I go for?
Blue, of course. (Don’t listen to Sergio!) Any blue will make your guitar sound better.
 
Just to expand on where the SSH would "fit" a little more - I find mine to be more scooped sounding, and not as thick in the mids, as a solid body, like the 594. It also has a more immediate note attack, whereas the 594 has a bloom to the note. It has a strat-esque hint to it, not just in the fact that it has a middle pickup. Great for rhythm work, and the variety of tones it can produce with the mini toggles and middle pickup are almost endless. I've become a firm believer in having at least one 3-pickup PRS in the arsenal at all times.

Well, I've actually got 3. But we're not here to talk about my problems!
 
The special in my avatar pic is a 2019 LTD model originally with the multi-tap pickups. I sent it to the PTC for a “makeover”, having a bone nut installed, upgraded “tweaked” phase III tuners, and a set of 58/15LT pickups installed. I was initially not very pleased with the LT’s, but after setting and re-setting the pickup heights, and using a sweet setting on my source audio EQ, it came alive in my Marshall sv-20, and my Headstrong lil’King S amp.
I was unable to tune out the strident treble and mid focused sound of the MT’s, whereas the LT’s sweetened right up. i think the TCI wiring is playing a role in the new pickups. I also think even the same model of pickups can vary a great deal from set to set. You really can’t go by ohms, and henries...you have to use your ears. Anyway, I highly recommend picking up a Special semi-hollow, as it covers a lot of sonic territory, and as always, plays great! YMMV!
 
I've become a firm believer in having at least one 3-pickup PRS in the arsenal at all times.

Well, I've actually got 3. But we're not here to talk about my problems!
Hmm, I had to think about how many 3-pup PRSi I have. (Not including models like P24, which do have three pickups: two mag and one piezo, I suppose.) So I went and counted my 3-mag pup PRSi:

7.

Ooops. Yes, one is an SSH (with MT pups).

And I want more...I know specifically some particular models that would be very nice to have...
 
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