Which other PRS guitars complement the Santana Retro?

Charles Wong

Charles Wong

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Hello! Got back into PRS guitars after a decade. Got myself a Core Santana Retro with the impression that it will give me LP tones. It does not and I'm fine with that. Having its own sound is good. I am thinking of another PRS to complement Santana and DGT and 594 are both contenders. Unfortunately, there's no way for me to try them out in person at this point (maybe the 594 but certainly no the DGT). I know that the 594 will get me closer to the LP territory (single cut more so than double cut?) but I'll like to keep my options open.
 
The DGT is a fantastic guitar, but if you're going for more of the Les Paul thing, I would say the 594...especially with the difference in the bridge. The PRS Trem is one of the best trem's out there, but you'll get better tuning stability and sustain with the stoptail on the 594. Plus, and this gets overlooked, the neck angle on trem equipped guitars is different (flatter) than on stoptail guitars. It's subtle, but stoptail equipped guitars have always just felt more ergonomic than trem equipped ones to me.
 
Here are two videos that compare LP and PRS guitars. In the first the great Tim Pierce compares new PRS stoptails to Howard Leese's real, vintage 1959 McCarty burst. The video goes back and forth, so you can hear how similar they are.

The second compares a DGT to a Les Paul. One thing to note on the second video, the Les Paul has hotter pickups which definitely drives the amp more, but part of the difference is that thick singlecut guitars with more meat next to the neck have a bit more "oomph" anyway.

I find the 594 Singlecut sounds more LP, as it's meant to with the 2 piece bridge, thicker body, etc. I have a PS McCarty Singlecut that does the same thing. I also have a recently bought DGT I love. The DGT is certainly more versatile, if you need or want that.

Seems to me that hearing these comparisons will give you a good idea of what's what. The second video is by a Strat player who wanted something completely different - kind of an apples to oranges comparison, as the 594 has a different neck angle, construction, bridge and pickups - so he preferred the LP and evidently isn't aware of the difference in neck angles between stop tail PRS guitars. and trem guitars.

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If you seek the single cut sound, that’s the way to go. If you want an SC sound but ergonomically can’t deal with the SC neck joint, then the 594 dc, DGT and McCarty are all nice options.
 
Charles Wong said:
Hello! Got back into PRS guitars after a decade. Got myself a Core Santana Retro with the impression that it will give me LP tones. It does not and I'm fine with that. Having its own sound is good. I am thinking of another PRS to complement Santana and DGT and 594 are both contenders. Unfortunately, there's no way for me to try them out in person at this point (maybe the 594 but certainly no the DGT). I know that the 594 will get me closer to the LP territory (single cut more so than double cut?) but I'll like to keep my options open.
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I have those three models, they do complement each other, feel/sound different among themselves.
The 594s have the split coils which the SR does not have. The DGT has that and, the longer scale with thicker strings (off the store) and also a tremolo unit, which is not in the 594s. Also, the SR has a thicker tone to my ears and the controls’ settings are very usable and sensitive at every notch. Among these three you cover most if not all bases needed for an electric rock/jazz/pop gig
 
Charles Wong said:
Hello! Got back into PRS guitars after a decade. Got myself a Core Santana Retro with the impression that it will give me LP tones. It does not and I'm fine with that. Having its own sound is good. I am thinking of another PRS to complement Santana and DGT and 594 are both contenders. Unfortunately, there's no way for me to try them out in person at this point (maybe the 594 but certainly no the DGT). I know that the 594 will get me closer to the LP territory (single cut more so than double cut?) but I'll like to keep my options open.
Click to expand...
If you bought the Santana and wanted a LP vibe outta him, why not just swap out the pickups? If you really need a new one though, I'd say DGT. That's going to be my next one for sure!
 
László said:
Here are two videos that compare LP and PRS guitars. In the first the great Tim Pierce compares new PRS stoptails to Howard Leese's real, vintage 1959 McCarty burst. The video goes back and forth, so you can hear how similar they are.

The second compares a DGT to a Les Paul. One thing to note on the second video, the Les Paul has hotter pickups which definitely drives the amp more, but part of the difference is that thick singlecut guitars with more meat next to the neck have a bit more "oomph" anyway.

I find the 594 Singlecut sounds more LP, as it's meant to with the 2 piece bridge, thicker body, etc. I have a PS McCarty Singlecut that does the same thing. I also have a recently bought DGT I love. The DGT is certainly more versatile, if you need or want that.

Seems to me that hearing these comparisons will give you a good idea of what's what. The second video is by a Strat player who wanted something completely different - kind of an apples to oranges comparison, as the 594 has a different neck angle, construction, bridge and pickups - so he preferred the LP and evidently isn't aware of the difference in neck angles between stop tail PRS guitars. and trem guitars.

allguitarnetwork.com

THIS Could be the BEST PRS ever made

Vintage Guitars are kind of magical- no doubt about it. But as tools of the trade, New guitars always seem to be my favorites. Here I explain why... and I also feature a superb new Paul Reed Smith...
allguitarnetwork.com

Click to expand...
Thank you for sharing the videos. I think the neck angle for a carved top, stop tail, guitar is always attractive as it kinda 'pulls' the neck closer to the player. I like that and that's coming from a long-time Strat guy. My last PRS was a P22 and somehow I could not bond with it mainly because of the pickups. Carved top guitar with a trem certainly feels different.
 
Steve Dombroski said:
The DGT is a fantastic guitar, but if you're going for more of the Les Paul thing, I would say the 594...especially with the difference in the bridge. The PRS Trem is one of the best trem's out there, but you'll get better tuning stability and sustain with the stoptail on the 594. Plus, and this gets overlooked, the neck angle on trem equipped guitars is different (flatter) than on stoptail guitars. It's subtle, but stoptail equipped guitars have always just felt more ergonomic than trem equipped ones to me.
Click to expand...
I think the 594 will be different enough tone-wise compared to the Santana. Also the stop tail will make a lot of difference compared to the trem on DGT (which is the same as the Santana Retro). However, there's so much hype around the DGT that it's hard to resist the temptation to give it a try.
 
vchizzle said:
If you seek the single cut sound, that’s the way to go. If you want an SC sound but ergonomically can’t deal with the SC neck joint, then the 594 dc, DGT and McCarty are all nice options.
Click to expand...
SC neck joint is always an issue ergonomically but I must say that the 594 SC neck joint is quite well-designed. Of course, I have not tried one to tell if it is indeed different from a regular LP neck joint. But from the pictures, the 594 SC neck joint really looks promising.
 
Charles Wong said:
SC neck joint is always an issue ergonomically but I must say that the 594 SC neck joint is quite well-designed. Of course, I have not tried one to tell if it is indeed different from a regular LP neck joint. But from the pictures, the 594 SC neck joint really looks promising.
Click to expand...
I love PRS Singlecuts. and the 594 SC will give you stuff the Santana won't. Plus the 594 Pattern Vintage neck carve is much nicer (at least in my hand) than an LP neck carve.

I'm also a fan of the DGT since getting one; considering I've played PRS since 1991 and just got around to the DGT last fall - it's just stellar. But you've got a PRS with a trem already, so I'd probably go 594.

BTW, the double cut 594s only give up a little bit of oomph compared to the SC version, if you're leery of the playability of an SC. Personally, I don't find the SC a problem, but we're all unique.

My only very small beef with the 594 is that I prefer the 57/08 pickups and the DGT pickups to the TCI 58/15 LTs that come in the 594 and a few other models. I've had all three pickups in my PRSes; I've had the 58/15s in a 594, a McCarty and a Special Semi-Hollow, and I like slightly thicker low midrange that the 57/08 has. Other folks love the 58/15s and prefer them to the ones I like. Like I said, we're all different, and that's a good thing!
 
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László said:
I love PRS Singlecuts. and the 594 SC will give you stuff the Santana won't. Plus the 594 Pattern Vintage neck carve is much nicer (at least in my hand) than an LP neck carve.

I'm also a fan of the DGT since getting one; considering I've played PRS since 1991 and just got around to the DGT last fall - it's just stellar. But you've got a PRS with a trem already, so I'd probably go 594.

BTW, the double cut 594s only give up a little bit of oomph compared to the SC version, if you're leery of the playability of an SC. Personally, I don't find the SC a problem, but we're all unique.

My only very small beef with the 594 is that I prefer the 57/08 pickups and the DGT pickups to the TCI 58/15 LTs that come in the 594 and a few other models. I've had all three pickups in my PRSes; I've had the 58/15s in a 594, a McCarty and a Special Semi-Hollow, and I like slightly thicker low midrange that the 57/08 has. Other folks love the 58/15s and prefer them to the ones I like. Like I said, we're all different, and that's a good thing!
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Yes. The pickups on DGT. I read about how good they are (especially when split coil). Really wish I could try one soon. But I have gotten use to the Santana Retro neck and really like the "chunkiness" (which is a nice departure from my Tom Anderson's neck). I have heard good things about the 594 necks (chunky but not too much).
 
Charles Wong said:
Yes. The pickups on DGT. I read about how good they are (especially when split coil). Really wish I could try one soon. But I have gotten use to the Santana Retro neck and really like the "chunkiness" (which is a nice departure from my Tom Anderson's neck). I have heard good things about the 594 necks (chunky but not too much).
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The 594 neck is the nicest feeling neck carve of any Core PRS I've ever owned. It fits my hand like a glove. Feels great!

I actually like the DGT pickups as full-on humbuckers. I very rarely use the coil splits, but they do sound very good when split. However, the DGT is its own thing, a brighter tone than the 594 with a different frequency emphasis.

The best coil split sounds on a PRS - just my two cents - are the 408s, like on Paul's Guitar. It's subtle, but they sound wonderful to me.

By the way, Tom Anderson makes wonderful instruments; they're the only ones in that Fender-oriented style I've owned that I ever really loved for long enough to keep them for several years.
 
I have a Santana and 2 vintage LP's, I'd agree with Lazlo .. The SC's are the closest I've found . This SC245 1 piece top is a steal at <$2700
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