Why PRS guitars cost so much

[jmh151]

GOLL-LEE

I bet you wouldn't see a Gibson video jumping up and down on a neck!

Granted, to be fair, it DID look like a maple neck, which for PRS is usually quartersawn, much stronger than a mahogany neck

[ImmortalSix]

Granted, to be fair, it DID look like a maple neck, which for PRS is usually quartersawn, much stronger than a mahogany neck

I read on the internet that all Gibson necks are made out of sawdust and glue these days, if not microwaved maple.

[TheProphet]

I get people not jiving with them. I certainly don't get along with their Wide-Fat neck profile.

Once I got mine with a patern thin neck it's probably one of my favourite guitars. Easily probably one of the most well built guitars I've owned. Took me a couple of days to get used to the 25 inch scale, other than that .... Perfecto.

[Chris of Arabia]

It maybe coincidence, but a link to this just appeared in my inbox - Stripped 58 - I rather like that

[darthphineas]

Fixed.

only thing fixed about you is that excuse for what you got dangling... or so your sister tells me.

I'll have to disagree. If you want small changes to be made, go to a small guitar maker or have a lutheir custom make you a guitar. PRS has turned into a big company, and when you're dealing with a big company it's harder to make design changes for a one off guitar, unless the buyer has the money.

I met the Paul Reed Smith Team last year in NYC during a 2 day event- I met Paul Reed Smith, Len Johnson, the head of the PTC team, Doug Sewell, and David Grissom. It was at Rudy's Music, Soho, NYC, and it was a very small event where you could walk in with your PRS, meet Paul himself, have him sign your guitar, and have Les- the master tech that does all the setups on all the stars guitars including Carlos Santana- set up your guitar with new strings FOR FREE.

Paul was busy with buisness alot, always on his cell phone, but when he was off, you could easlily approach him and he was extremely friendly. He does have a Bill Gates/ nerdy personality meaning he is friendly but quirky at the same time, but he took the time to just hang out and talk for 2 straight days, discuss guitars, help you place orders, answer your questions, etc- not for 2 hours, but for 2 days. Though he has the whole line of new SE amps out, at no time was Paul being a salesman and get you to buy anything. If you tried badmouting the competition or say how his guitars were so much better than others, he wouldn't say anything.

Doug Sewell was there performing amp mods on the spot, modding an amp for David Grissom.

Paul respects David's input ALOT, and was probably there to discuss a new guitar. They were talking alot about what Dave wanted in his next guitar- which I suspect were discussions for the new all Mahogany DGT Standard model. Dave was evidently very demanding with what he wanted, both in his guitars and amps, and Paul was bending over backwards to make Dave happy with the guitar he was designing and amp Doug was modifying. So from what I saw, Paul is still very involved, though has maybe taken on the role of CEO or President of the company rather than lutheir. He is still very actively involved in every aspect of the company.

If you REALLY wanted to talk shop and setups, Len was there to answer all of your questions while doing a setup on your guitar.

As far as being expensive, I spent $1599 for my Korina KL1812. No fancy top, solid Korina but rare. More people, including Paul and Len, ooo'd and ahhh'd over that guitar that day than their own expensive Artist series Artist top guitars. PRS has come out with budget lines- the Mira, and even the Korina Limited- if you want even cheaper, their import line are excellent quality for the money.

disagree all you want. it doesn't change the facts. Paul spends more time winding pickups than he does running the company that bears his name. his phone calls were probably to more of the lawmakers in DC that he smoozed to get the Fed to go after Gibson in retaliation for the Gibson lawsuit shutting down the SingleCut model.

[thunderkyss]

I don't know which came first. My not liking them, or my not wanting to pay so much for them.

I do know back in the mid 90s, when every body was going PRS, I tried to like them. I just couldn't. I wanted a guitar that looked & sounded like a Les Paul. Not better than a Les Paul. I didn't want better fret work than a Les Paul. I didn't want better wood quality than a Les Paul.

I wanted a guitar that had the look & sound of what I had in my head.

PRS just don't have it. Nothing wrong with that. Strats don't have it, Teles don't have it.

Having said that, I did want a strat at one time, got one. I wanted a Tele...... got one. I wanted a BC Rich Mockingbird a few times..... got them.

Got a flying V, an American Dean Hardtail (when they first came out).

I've just never played a PRS & said, got to have it. Never heard anyone play one & say.... got to have it. & I'm a big Santana fan, I just prefer his SG/Boogie tone.

I've got a hanker'n for an Ibanez Prestige.

[SlyFoxx]

More unsubstantiated speculation about a guitar company and and an insult to another forum member not worthy of a ten year old.

Fixed.

[AudioWonderland]

they cost so much because people will pay that much for them. people pay that much for them because they want to believe they are worth it. I say they are not. why do I say that? well, beside being true... the company behind it is not worth it. why? because they do not have an open ear to customer input... they do not take it well. an empty sense of arrogance, based on the conversations I've had with them - meaning, they act as if their $hi7 doesn't stink as much as it actually does... probably something to do with the impression they put out there to try to get people to believe their product is so much better when it is not. I've personally have conversations with them about changes or options that they ignored or shot down or literally said they'd never do. I've come to see at least 2 of them come in to play on different models since them... I'm certain they will expect people to believe it was soley an interal decision and not at all based on customer input/feedback. so... although I liked my SingleCut and how it played and how it sounded, the experience with the company was such that I just got rid of it last year. I'd like to say that maybe if Paul actually ran the company, it'd be different... but I expect the arrogance started somewhere.

there are guitars out there that are of better quality for a more cost-effective price from a company that really does care about the customer. go find them... and buy them... and play them.

What a truckload of sour grapes. Boohoo... A large guitar make would not make you a custom guitar. Gibson and Fender won't either. That's what custom builders are for. PRS has not been that for 20 years

[AudioWonderland]

only thing fixed about you is that excuse for what you got dangling... or so your sister tells me.





disagree all you want. it doesn't change the facts. Paul spends more time winding pickups than he does running the company that bears his name. his phone calls were probably to more of the lawmakers in DC that he smoozed to get the Fed to go after Gibson in retaliation for the Gibson lawsuit shutting down the SingleCut model.

Yeah, you have no direct knowledge and nothing to back it up. Your credibility is dropping like a stone.

I have called PRS and spoken to a number of people as well. All very helpful. As for customer service, They took back a guitar I purchased that had a neck alignment issue and built me a new one since they could not fix the issues on the original.

As for Gibson, don't import illegally and you don't have a problem. Thats a Gibson issue. I suggest you take it up with them

[SlyFoxx]

I think this is worth repeating. We guitar players have it easy. You can put together a pro rig for one or two grand. Want a pro level sax? You could spend 10 large easy. Trombone=3K
Clarinet=4-5K
English Horn=9K

Wanna rock a Bassoon? 20-35K no problem. Let me start up my collection.

[jmh151]

only thing fixed about you is that excuse for what you got dangling... or so your sister tells me.

disagree all you want. it doesn't change the facts. Paul spends more time winding pickups than he does running the company that bears his name. his phone calls were probably to more of the lawmakers in DC that he smoozed to get the Fed to go after Gibson in retaliation for the Gibson lawsuit shutting down the SingleCut model.

Not that I'm trying to beat a dead horse, but as I waited to get my PRS signed, I overheard alot of the phone calls, and they were all related to Private Stock Orders. These are facts, I was there, I'm not speculating. I too heard the rumors he was no longer involved with the company and was just a figurehead, but seeing him interact and hang out with customers for two whole days in a small music store dispelled those beliefs, he is still very much involved, though aside from the Signature line he is not personally building the guitars, he's designing them- on sophisticated, expensive 3D CAD computers that rough cut and shape the necks and bodies on CNC's.

And the argument regarding shutting down the Singlecut model is laughable. PRS won in court, and in "retaliation" went out and made Singlecuts that were better than before the lawsuit. Prir to the lawsuit, the Singlecut was only offered in the standard 25" scale, thin back, which will not give you a Vintage Les Paul tone. After the lawsuit, they came out with the SC245- a Gibson scale singlecut aimed at the Vintage Les Paul tone, and the SC250, the 25 inch scale aimed at the high gain crowd. Both had the thicker Mahogany backs. Then they went out and made the 58- basically an SC245 but with a 2 piece tail piece. Instead of using off the shelf parts Paul designed a tailpiece he believed was better than what Gibson was using.

If that wasn't enough, Paul improved the import SE that pretty much destroys the Epiphone line- where he admits that in this economy he's making more money from than the American made PRS's. In this economy the SE line is keeping the American line alive.

Basically what PRS is- is the best mass produced guitar that you can find in music stores. If you want something more custom, look at a private lutheir like Joe Driskill- who IMO makes a guitar as good as or better than PRS, which the same PRS concepts

[Ascension]

Although I am the State Chairman of a Political party on that groups National executive committee and work consistently in the Political arena, when I pickup a guitar and play on stage I leave the politics behind and attempt to get lost in the music. It is my escape and is what keeps me sane in this insane world of US Politics.
Bottom line I need to answer one question alone does it work for me on stage as an instrument.
When I bought my first and only PRS I was not buying it to do anything but flip it to make some $$. When I got the guitar on stage for the first time just to see how it felt I found it did things for me with the style of music I played that nothing else had ever done.
I kept that guitar and sold several other guitars I owned instead and have never looked back.
The rest of the arguments over PRS in this thread is BS to me.
I like the way some other brand guitars look better, I like the way some others play better. Saying that in the real world playing on stage because of how they respond and work as pure instruments 90% of the time now I play my PRS .

[aleclee]

Prior to the lawsuit, the Singlecut was only offered in the standard 25" scale, thin back, which will not give you a Vintage Les Paul tone.

While the pre lawsuit SC were all 25", only the SC Trems were thinner. The hardtail SCs were thick (owned a 2001, still have a 2006) like a LP.

[uOpt]

It maybe coincidence, but a link to this just appeared in my inbox - Stripped 58 - I rather like that

So even PRS finally offers something other than just poly for paint. Who-hoo.

[Chris of Arabia]

So even PRS finally offers something other than just poly for paint. Who-hoo.

Willcutt have a couple already. Apparently there are not so many of those being made - Willcutt Singlecut lineup

[aleclee]

So even PRS finally offers something other than just poly for paint. Who-hoo.

They've been offering guitars with nitro for some time now.

[thespricket]

PRS guitars consistently play, look, and sound amazing. They are truly great guitars. That being said, they have no soul.

[3'scompany]

That being said, they have no soul.

Statements like this make my head hurt.

[AudioWonderland]

PRS guitars consistently play, look, and sound amazing. They are truly great guitars. That being said, they have no soul.

What a crock. Players have soul. Not things

[3'scompany]

What a crock. Players have soul. Not things

Bingo. Certain guitars sound better than others, but that's not soul. A guitar is a tool. Some just do their jobs better than others.