Even more fiddling with the Digitech GSP-1101 - parallel (wet/dry) setup

After last week's update on my progress with the GSP1101, I noticed at Tuesday's practice I was having a hard time hearing myself. GSP1101's fault? Hard to say, but I hadn't had too many problems hearing myself with the M4 + VHT 2/50/2 + 4x12 cabs prior to getting the GSP1101. In an effort to try something new, though, I reconfigured the rig a bit... now the guitar signal goes through the GSP1101's pre-FX section into the M4, then splits... one side goes straight into the power amp/cab, the other side is returned to the GSP1101 for post-FX then on to the power amp/cab. In all my years of big rack rigs, this is the first time I've ever tried a wet/dry setup.

The upsides of the wet/dry setup are: 1) Maintains better signal integrity than running everything through the AD/DA converters. 2) Easier to control the overall FX levels on the fly at the power amp than tweaking lots of patch parameters.

The downsides of the wet/dry setup are: 1) The GSP1101 isn't really designed for a wet/dry setup (it's designed to handle all the mixing internally), so it's hard to get a pure "wet" tone out of the GSP1101. 2) As such, there's the potential (though I haven't noticed it yet) for phase issues to pop up. 3) Certain effects (swells, tremolo) are less effective than they used to be. 4) Because of the location in the signal chain, the volume pedal and noise gate are also less effective--actually this has turned the volume pedal into more of a wet/dry mix control.

Despite the fact that it looks like there are more cons than pros, I'm digging the tone... with one side being "pure" guitar tone, I can apply additional effects to the "wet" side and still maintain clarity. I've got a pseudo-Van Halen setup where the wet tone has a touch of detuner, doubling delay, and ambient reverb, making the overall tone extremely thick. In theory, this setup would probably be better served by an effects box designed for 100% wet operation (e.g., Rocktron Xpression, TC G-Major, pretty much anything by Lexicon), but I still like the all-in-one design of the GSP1101 + Control 2 too much to bail on it yet.

So based on this experience, here are a few more general observations on the GSP1101:

• Last week I commented that dialing in tones is relatively quick... one reason for this is that the GSP1101 has preset parameters for every amp model and effect in the box. So while some FX units default all the parameters to "0" or "12 o'clock", the GSP1101 has the parameters fine-tuned for each model/effect. For example, if you're using the Rectifier model and switch to the Tweed model, the tone parameters are adjusted to a setting more appropriate for Tweed. Same on the effects side... if you're using the digital delay and switch to an analog delay, the delay parameters are adjusted. The good news is that many of the default parameters sound pretty good out of the box, which is why minimal tweaking has been required when building new patches... if I want to add spring reverb to a patch, the default parameters sound pretty good, and with just a little tweaking to reverb mix I'm ready to play.
  
• One feature that would make patch creation even easier, however, is something I've seen in the Lexicon MPX-G2 and Boss GT-8... the ability to "copy" model/effect parameters from another patch. So if I have the "perfect" delay on one patch and want to copy it to another patch, it would be nice to be able to press a couple of buttons to copy the parameters without having to re-create the effect manually. Right now I have a little notebook of "favorite settings" on top of the rack that I use when creating new patches to ensure they're somewhat consistent with my existing patches.
  
• While I haven't had a lot of time to experiment with this, the signal chain appears to pass through the cab simulator regardless of whether the internal or external (M4) preamp is used. The way my GSP1101 is configured, this doesn't impact the 1/4" outputs, but does impact the XLR and headphone outputs. The implication is that I could use the GSP1101's cabinet models with the Egnater M4, running an XLR cable direct to the console for silent recording. Not sure how it will sound (or if it will be worth the effort vs. just using the internal models), but it's an intriguing option to be able to apply any of the GSP1101's cab models to the M4 when recording.

More to come, I'm sure...

--B

More thoughts on the Digitech GSP-1101 + Control 2

Well, it's been just over a month since I brought home the Digitech GSP1101 & Control 2 to integrate into the Egnater M4 rig. I've had a decent amount of time to mess around with the GSP1101 on its own, but still haven't tried it out in a band context or putting anything down to tape. Here, though, are a few thoughts on my experience of building some patches over the past few weeks...

• Initially I was all fired up about X-Edit, the PC-based editor. After fiddling around with it for a couple days, I've stopped using it, not to the fault of X-Edit. The relative simplicity of the GSP1101 (with fewer effects and parameters to tweak than competing units) and its relatively intuitive display/controls means that I don't need to fire up the PC to be efficient at editing patches... it's only taken me a couple of minutes to dial in any particular tone I've been looking for.
  
• That said, I created about 20 patches to use for performance/rehearsal... starting with clean tones from the M4 with spring reverb (and switchable wah), crunch/heavy tones from the M4 with studio reverb (and slightly "pushed" wah), solo tones from the M4 with delay and hall reverb, all sorts of clean variations (chorus, flange, phaser, rotary, autowah, detune, etc), some heavy pitch shifted tones, a guitar-synth patch (loaded with modulation, delay, and reverb), and finally an acoustic simulator patch. They all sound good (high quality effects, relatively transparent) at low volumes, but I'm curious to see how well they hold up at high volumes at tomorrow's rehearsal.
  
• I also created about 25 patches to use for recording... all of these are stripped down with no effects except for a touch of studio reverb. I have a patch for practically every model in the GSP1101 with the corresponding simulated cab enabled (e.g., Fender Champ through a 1x8, Fender D.R. through a 1x12, Vox AC30TB through a 2x12, Marshall JCM800 through a 4x12, etc.). Again, they sound good so far through the headphones, but I haven't tried recording using the XLR outputs--I'm hoping it will stack up favorably against the V-AMP Pro currently in the studio rack.

So my experience with the GSP1101 + Control 2 has been positive so far, but the real test will be in rehearsals and recording sessions.

My one gripe... Having read a lot of GSP1101 reviews prior to purchase, I knew there was an issue affecting some GSP1101's where there is a loud "click" sound through the headphones until the unit gets warmed up. As luck would have it, my unit is plagued with this issue. It's very annoying (since it's relatively loud compared to the audio level), though not a complete show stopper since it goes away after 3-4 minutes of playing. Still, it defeats the pupose of my "instant on" setup for recording. It does not impact the 1/4" line outs, and I have yet to see if it impacts the XLR outs. Hopefully it will be a simple (quick) repair under warranty.

Coming soon... more on the GSP1101, including thoughts on how it holds up with the band, as well as some sample clips of the amp models straight to PC.

--B

New guitar collection pictures

Every 4-6 months, thanks to the near-constant churn of musical gear going in & out, the time comes to snap a few pictures of the latest guitar collection. While there was a lot of activity in January, things have slowed down considerably... I don't have any guitars on the "for sale" list and only have a couple on the "wish list". So unless I stumble across any killer deals in the next few weeks, the collection should be pretty stable for a while.

Here's a pic of the current PRS collection, including the recently-acquired 513, Mira, and Custom 22:

L to R back: Custom 22 semi-hollow (tobacco sunburst), Custom 24 (violin amber burst), Custom 24 (gray black), Custom 24 (cherry sunburst), Custom 24 (whale blue), Custom 22 (vintage yellow); L to R front: Mira (vintage cherry), Standard 24 (cream), 513 Mahogany (vintage natural), Singlecut (black sunburst), McCarty Rosewood (natural), McCarty Soapbar (black w/ natural binding)

And here's a pic of the non-PRS collection, where nothing is really all that new:
L to R: Gretsch G6120-1959 hollowbody, Heritage H-535 semi-hollowbody, Voodoo Guitar Works custom archtop, Carvin DC120 12-string, G&L Legacy Standard, G&L ASAT Classic, EB MM John Petrucci 7-string

Here's a picture of the often-neglected acoustic collection:

L to R: Gibson Country Western Model, Guild F47M-CE mini-jumbo acoustic-electric, Guild DC5E-NT True American acoustic-electric, Takamine EF-385 12-string acoustic-electric

And finally, in the spirit of taking a "wallpaper-worthy" picture, here's a close-up of the PRS collection in the rack:

L to R: Custom 24 (whale blue), Custom 24 (gray black), Custom 24 (cherry sunburst), Custom 24 (violin amber burst), Custom 22 semi-hollow (tobacco sunburst), 513 Mahogany (vintage natural), Custom 22 (vintage yellow); McCarty Rosewood (natural), Singlecut (black sunburst)

Well, that's all for now... enjoy the pics!

--B

New guitar - PRS Custom 22

Friday was a good day (in the words of Ice Cube)... I had the day off work and FedEx delivered a new (to me, at least) guitar. My latest acquisition is a 2000 Paul Reed Smith Custom 22. This particular CU22 is finished in tasty vintage yellow with 10-top flame and bird inlays (of course). Options include the wide-fat neck profile, fixed bridge, and ebony tuning keys. The guitar is stock (for now) from an electronics standpoint with covered Dragon II pickups and the 5-way rotary switch--though before plugging the guitar in the thought had already crossed my mind of swapping the Dragon II's for something new to me, such as RP's or #10's. Anyway, this is the first "normal" CU22 I've owned; the only other CU22 I've owned is the semi-hollowbody, which is pretty different from a construction standpoint even if not all that different visually.

So far I'm digging the CU22, even though it has a rather different feel & tone from the CU24's I've got... The neck is shorter & thicker, giving the guitar a "stiffer" feel. The Dragon II's are a bit lower output and darker/warmer than the HFS/Vintage Bass pair. Overall, this gives the CU22 more of a vintage vibe, while the CU24 has a slightly more modern vibe. Again, it's not a night & day difference, but it is noticeable, and I could see how folks could develop a slight preference for one or the other. For my style of playing/music (coming from an Ibanez-centric background), the CU24 is probably more up my alley, but I can tell already that the CU22 will get its fair share of attention.

Of course, here are a couple obligatory pictures of the CU22...

What's next? Hard to say... I'm still on the lookout for a PRS Singlecut Satin Trem or McCarty Korina, or perhaps a non-PRS configured with HSS pickups or mini-buckers. But realistically, the rack is full again, so before I do too much more guitar shopping I'll probably need to sell a couple of the guitars I've got, and looking around, none of them are screaming "sell me!"

--B

P.S.--Updated... I just found a thread on The Gear Page where someone was asking about the difference between CU22's and CU24's, and found the following visual, which shows the difference in construction between the two:

Current gear revisited - Egnater amp seminar JTM45 head

While I've been spending plenty of time talking about the guitars that have been around here for a while, thought today it would be interesting to talk about some amp gear, the focus being a hot-rodded JTM45 clone I built at the first ever Egnater amp-building seminar back in October 2006. Having already owned several Egnater designed amps at the time (including the TOL100 and a considerable portion of the Randall MTS series), I was pretty fired up about the prospects of building my own amp under the guidance of Bruce, and I have no doubt that spending some time at the Amp Lounge was a key driver in my decision to buy an Egnater M4 last year.

Even though the seminar is now using a slightly different design (believe the new kit has an effects loop, solid state rectifier, and a "clean" input), the original design hasn't let me down yet... it's been very reliable, sounds killer, and over a year later I'm still taking pride in the fact that I built it. For those with the means, it is money and time well spent.

So here are a couple of pictures of the amp, first on top of my Randall RM50B (which often serves as a 1x12 speaker cabinet for the JTM45), and also part of a former amp switching rig with a Fender Deluxe Reverb re-issue head.



Also, below is a review I posted on Harmony Central about the amp just over a year ago... it provides a lot more details for those who are interested.

--B

---

Product: Egnater JTM45 kit
Price Paid: USD 1175
Submitted 01/04/2007 at 12:29am by Brent
Email: wassupg at gmailcom

Features : 8
I also attended the amp-building seminar in October to build the hot-rodded JTM45 kit. It was described as a ... "JCM800 master volume model on steroids. You get more gain, smoother tone (no ice pick to the forehead high end) and more punch than any stock JCM800. If you are familiar with our Egnater amps, the sound is basically channel 3 of the TOL100 or IE4 or our current EG3 module", which (having owned a TOL100) is a very accurate description.

Anyway, the amp is a tweaked-out MOJO JTM45 kit. Features are relatively basic... 4 inputs (2 for each channel), presence/bass/mid/treble/gain/master volume controls, a couple speaker jacks and impedance selector around back--for anyone who's owned an Egnater TOL100, it's quite the low-tech departure. It will channel switch if you plug a guitar into INPUT 1 and a standard 1/4" footswitch into INPUT 2, which provides a fixed gain/volume boost.

So it's not the most feature-laden amp ever made, but hey... it's a JTM45 clone... I wasn't expecting a laundry list of features. If I wish for any features, it would be reverb and an FX loop. I've got the schematics and a soldering iron, so technically, there's nothing stopping me from adding those features on my own. Bruce provided us with a book of suggested mods, so I actually feel encouraged to try to add/change features on my own.

Sound Quality : 10
Thick. Warm. Aggressive. Smooth. Every guitar sounds unique through it. Every dynamic nuance of playing comes through. Technically the amp can produce clean tones if you roll back your guitar's volume, but let's face it... this amp was not meant to be played clean. We're talking about a crunchy rhythm tone that will take paint off the walls and a singing solo tone that sustains for days. Plenty of gain, heavy on the mids and low-end--sounds like it has a built-in Density/Depth circuit dialed up to '10'. It shakes my house better than any other amp I've owned.

So far I've used the amp in the context of two bands... one 60/70/80/90's cover band, one original "mainstream" rock. The amp works well in both contexts. I also recorded a few original progressive rock tunes and guitar-oriented instrumentals with the amp, and it's delivered stellar results. The simplicity, while it feels limiting at first, is a blessing... with only 6 knobs, it's a relatively quick effort to dial in the tone you're looking for. Try that with a Mesa Mark IV!

For what it's worth, I typically run the amp with presence on 5, bass/mid/treble tone controls on 8, and gain on 4--it's strangely reassuring to know that there's more gain on tap if needed.

Reliability : No Opinion
Well, this is hard to rate... I built the amp with guidance and assistance from Bruce & his crew. I followed the instructions in meticulous detail, Bruce checked over my work several times and burnt the amp in before I brought it home. 3 months later, no problems at all. If it blows up tomorrow, I'd blame myself and my shoddy soldering skills. Good news is that I feel like I have just enough knowledge to try to repair it myself first. But if I couldn't fix it, read on...

Customer Support : 10
The amp-building seminar was my first direct interaction with the Egnater crew (though I'd owned a few Egnater designed amps), and it was a great experience all the way around. Prior to the seminar, some components were swapped out and pre-assembled to save time during the seminar. Also, Bruce sent out a survey in advance to better understand attendees' experience with soldering & electronics. Certainly a lot of pre-work went into this.

The seminar was a day-long event that kicked off with breakfast (lunch was provided as well). Every attendee was loaned a complete set of tools to use for the day. Bruce, Frank, and several other folks were available to provide assistance and check work throughout the day. Nobody went home without a fully functioning amp (which was a bit challenging, since we had a few problematic JJ rectifier tubes). Bruce even provided a booklet of potential post-seminar mods for the amp.

While support was great the day of the event, I'm confident if any problems did pop up with the amp that I could call or e-mail Bruce and he would walk me through fixing it. I believe he even mentioned that we could ship the amps back to him for troubleshooting if necessary. That's the kind of guy Bruce is... Clearly knows his stuff, but takes care of people and stands behind his work.

Overall Rating : 10
I've been playing for about 15 years. I've got more gear than I know what to do with... close to two dozen PRS, G&L, and EBMM guitars, a Vox Tonelab for FX, several other amps (Rocktron Vendetta, Fender Deluxe Reverb, Hughes & Kettner Edition Tube 20), and Avatar cabinets (2x12 with V30's, 2x12 with G12T75's). I typically use the Fender DRRI (for cleans) and this amp (for rhythm/leads) together, which is a match made in heaven. While the multi-amp setup is more complex than a 3 or 4 channel head, it's worth it to have two stellar tones with no compromises. I've tried a lot of amps over the years (Egnater TOL100, Randall MTS, Marshall TSL, Mesa Triaxis/Nomad/Recto/Marks, H&K Triamp II, Rivera Knucklehead Reverb), and this one is a keeper. Partially because of the killer tone, but also because I can take a lot of pride in the fact that I built it. Interestingly, it's given me enough confidence in my amp-building skills that I'm planning on assembling a Super Reverb clone later this year.

Plus, what's it worth to spend a day with an amp guru like Bruce? Priceless. I mean, you could spend $900 on the stock MOJO JTM45 kit and end up with a decent amp. But for a couple hundred dollars more, you get the experience of working with Bruce for a day and the end result is an amp that smokes all the genuine Marshall JTM45/Plexi/JCM800 re-issues for several hundred dollars less. Totally worth it. If Bruce offered another seminar based on another amp model (e.g., a Fender design, something class A, etc), I'd be there in a heartbeat.

Current gear revisited - All the other electrics

So here's a bit of the "expanded" collection... I spend a solid 80% of my time playing PRSi for rehearsals and gigs, but what fewer people see is the non-PRS collection, which gets a considerable amount of attention in the studio. While most of my PRSi date back to 2004 when I traded in all the Ibanezes for various PRS models, many of the guitars here are from 2006 & 2007, when I cashed in half of my PRSi to "diversify" the collection.



Carvin DC120 - Here's my only 12-string electric, which I arrived at after a brief stint with a PRS Custom 22/12 and Rickenbacker 360/12. While visually basic in the classic white finish, it does have several "nice touches" from Carvin including ebony fretboard, Sperzel locking tuners, block inlays, and an extremely versatile electronics package (2 humbuckers, volume, passive tone, active tone, dual coil-tap miniswitches, phase miniswitch)--this guitar has more tonal variety than anything else I've ever owned! Bonus points for being made in the USA and being extremely cost-effective at that.



Casio MG-510 MIDI guitar - Here's a bit of an oddity courtesy of (you read that right...) Casio. Theoretically, this guitar was made in the same Japanese factory as many Ibanez and Fender models. It has a basswood body, 22-fret rosewood fretboard, Strat-style trem, and HSS pickups with volume + tone + 5-way switch + coil-tap miniswitch. What's most worthy of note, though, is the guitar's MIDI implementation... it has a standard 5-pin MIDI jack instead of the 13-pin Roland jacks--this means it can be plugged directly into a keyboard or sound module or computer for recording. The MIDI-related controls include volume, octave up/down, and fixed pitch/glide, and the MIDI-related circuitry can be powered by a set of batteries or a 9V adapter. And (best feature of all) the guitar has a built-in tuner, using the six-string hex pickup. Very well designed and reasonably well built, it's as much a conversation piece as a useful studio tool.



Ernie Ball Music Man John Petrucci model - Here's my only seven-string guitar, which is a considerable downsizing from the Ibanez days when I typically had 2-3 seven-strings around (and rarely played any of them). This one's finished in carbon blue pearl with the JP shield inlays on the rosewood fretboard and a birdseye maple neck. It is stock with the original Dimarzio humbuckers, locking tuners, and EBMM vintage-style trem that stays in tune remarkably well. Also somewhat surprising... this guitar excels at clean tones, particularly in the middle position where both humbuckers are split. Having owned several EBMM's (including a couple 6-string JP's and an Axis), I'm always impressed by the craftsmanship and feel of their guitars, and this one is no exception.



G&L ASAT Classic - Both of the G&L's (this ASAT plus the Legacy below) were the first guitars purchased during the big diversification experiment in 2006... after a considerable amount of scrutiny (and many other guitars have come & gone), they remain must-have's in the studio collection. The ASAT Classic was Leo Fender's "upgraded" version of the Fender Telecaster--the most noticeable upgrade is the G&L MFD pickups, which are hotter, warmer, & quieter than traditional single coils. Anyway, this ASAT is finished in vintage white with a maple fretboard, not a lot of bells & whistles otherwise. But what it lacks in features, it makes up for in vibe... I can't quite put my finger on it, but this guitar's a blast to play and gets put to use on practically every track I record in the studio. Given the choice between a USA-made Fender and G&L, I'd take the G&L pretty much every time because I have yet to find a G&L where the craftsmanship wasn't spot-on (whereas all you have to do is take a trip to Guitar Center to find a handful of Fenders with shoddy craftsmanship).



G&L Legacy Standard - Yet another "no frills" model, the Legacy was Leo Fender's "upgraded" version of the Fender Stratocaster, including a more stable tremolo design and more versatile tone circuits. This Legacy is finished in Lake Placid Blue with a rosewood fretboard and mint pickguard. Much like the ASAT, it has great tone, playability, and craftsmanship. This one sees a bit less play time than the ASAT (the Legacy's traditional single coils are a bit too "laid back" for me), but it does get pulled out for the occasional funky or bluesy track in the studio.



Gretsch G6120-1959 Chet Atkins model - Not biggest by weight, but biggest by volume. :) This Gretsch is undoubtedly the most "old-school" looking guitar I own, with unmatched levels of vibe and visual appeal. This one's finished in deep orange and equipped with an ebony fretboard, FilterTron pickups, and the relatively obvious Bigsby vibrato. On one hand it's quirky (the floating bridge can bounce around, making it hard to keep tuned/intonated, and the completely hollow design is more prone to feedback than anything else I've got). But it has a gut-wrenchingly big, deep clean tone, which is amazing for jazz & folk tunes. With the tone controls dialed up, it's got that famous rockabilly twang (I expect it would sound equally amazing for country licks, if I actually had any chops). Much like the G&L's, the Gretsch is a staple for studio work... nothing else sounds or feels quite like it.



Heritage H-535 - When I'm not writing original rock tunes or recording semi-obnoxious guitar instrumentals, chances are that I'm playing with a 20-piece volunteer big band. And if that's the case, chances are high that this is the guitar I'll be playing. This one's finished in old-style sunburst with a bound rosewood fretboard, basic dot inlays, and several Heritage features including flame maple pickguard and Schaller hardware. The original Schaller pickups were recently swapped for a Duncan Pearly Gates in the bridge and a Jazz in the neck (not shown in the picture). Overall, it cops the Gibson ES-335 vibe for half the price with arguably better quality, which should be no surprise since Heritage was formed by a handful of Gibson employees after Gibson shut down the Kalamazoo, MI plant to move electric guitar production to Nashville. Given the choice, I'd take a Heritage over a Gibson any day of the week due to more innovative features and better attention to detail (fit & finish).



Voodoo Guitar Works archtop - This is perhaps the coolest guitar I own, perhaps the coolest guitar I'll ever own. It was built by Chris Meade, who was doing US custom shop work for BC Rich at the time. Anyway, it's got a similar body & neck profile to a PRS McCarty, all mahogany construction, bound rosewood fretboard with custom inlays, Sperzel locking tuners, and an Original Floyd Rose trem (odd to think that this is my only Floyd-equipped guitar, especially considering how hard it used to be to find an Ibanez without a Floyd). Electronics include a Duncan Distortion in the bridge, '59 in the neck, volume + tone + 3-way + push-pull coil-tap switch. It is truly one-of-a-kind, and hangs with everything else in terms of craftsmanship, playability, and tone.

Well, that's it for electric guitars... next up will be a bit of discussion on the acoustics and basses I've got around here. Stay tuned!

--B

Current gear revisited - 22-fret PRSi

Having spent a a bit of time to discuss the merits of the 24-fret PRSi in the last post, it's now time to turn focus to the 22-fretters in the collection. Generally speaking, the 22-fret PRSi have a more traditional tone (more "classic" sounding) and feel (thicker, stiffer necks) with the same top-notch craftsmanship, playability, etc. Even though they have a different vibe than the Custom 24's I've got, they've definitely seen their fair share of use in the studio & on the stage over the years.



Paul Reed Smith Singlecut - This was the first PRS I picked up that wasn't a Custom 24... It's a 2001 (pre-lawsuit :p -- like it matters) model in black sunburst with 10-top flame, bird inlays, and stock electronics. After seeing, hearing, and playing this one, I swore I'd never buy another Les Paul (and although that turned out to be a lie--I've since purchased and sold two LP's--I'm now back to just this Singlecut and am in the market for a Singlecut Satin Trem model). Wins the "heaviest guitar I own" award hands down; also wins the "most likely to sustain for days without being plugged into an amp" award. Nonetheless, it gets a lot of play time because it sounds amazing.



Paul Reed Smith McCarty Rosewood - This one's a 2001 model in natural finish with 10-top flame, bird inlays, and solid Indian Rosewood neck. Once again, everything is stock. While there's always a lot of buzz about the PRSi with the Brazilian Rosewood necks, this one is certainly no slouch... the rosewood brings an extra touch of "warmth & smoothness" to the tone, plus, the unfinished rosewood has a silky feel to it--it doesn't get quite as "gunky" as the finished necks. Classic crunch tone in the bridge position, smooth lead tone in the neck position, and surprisingly, with the coil-tap engaged and the gain dialed down on the amp, it becomes a respectable funk machine. This one's a must-have for studio work.



Paul Reed Smith McCarty Soapbar - This is a 1998 model in "none more black" finish (with natural binding) and bird inlays. It's also the most electronically-simple PRS I've got, with two soapbar pickups, volume & tone pots, and a 3-way switch (no 5-way or push-pull switches here!). Picked this up because I had been playing my then-fiance's (now wife's) Les Paul Pro (loaded with P90's) almost non-stop, but my back couldn't handle it--this has all the tone, better playability esp. on the high frets, and somewhat lighter weight. Like true single coils, hums like a mother around florescent lights and excessive amounts of electronics, but that's part of the charm, right? Still, it sounds pretty sweet... the soapbars have a thicker, warmer tone than traditional single coils, making it great for jazz and blues.



Paul Reed Smith Custom 22 semi-hollowbody - Finally, here's a somewhat uncommon model... It's a 2002 Custom 22 with a chambered body (no f-holes)--slightly thicker than a normal PRS Custom 22/24, slightly thinner than a McCarty. This one is finished in tobacco sunburst with 10-top flame, bird inlays, and ebony tuning keys. It had HFS/Vintage Bass pickups installed when I got it, which have since been swapped for the Dragon II's that were in one of my Custom 24's (now order has been restored in the universe). Also, the electronics have been re-configured like my Custom 24's. Really does sound like cross between a solidbody and hollowbody guitar... it's just a touch more hollow & woody sounding than the normal Custom's.

In addition to those four, I've also got a 2007 513 Mahogany (in vintage natural) and 2000 Custom 22 (in vintage yellow), both of which are recent additions that have been discussed in more detail here over the past couple months.

In the next episode... a discussion of the non-PRSi electrics I've got...

--B

Current gear revisited - 24-fret PRSi

In my 10+ year history of gear acquisition, I've picked up a lot of gear that hasn't been discussed much in the past 6 months of blogging here. So I thought it would be interesting to revisit some of the "older" gear I've got--stuff that has stood the test of time and will (most likely) not be sold anytime soon--and provide a bit of perspective on it... why I got it to begin with, what I like about it, why I haven't sold it (yet), etc.

---

When I first got into PRSi back in 2004, the 24-fretters were what originally caught my attention... I had been bouncing back & forth between hot-rodded Ibanez RG's and old-school Les Paul's and thought the Custom 24's would bring a bit of the best of both worlds. So I started by picking up the four Custom 24's below, then gradually started branching out into other PRS models in the following months.

Several of the guitars have had electronic modifications made to them, either pickup swaps or control (knob/switch) reconfiguration. So what's been reconfigured? On the PRSi with 5-way rotary switches, I "optimize" the controls for my personal playing style. I tend to use the pickup selector more frequently than the volume and/or tone knobs while playing. So I do a bit of a round-robin... put the rotary switch in the original volume pot position, put the volume pot in the original tone pot position, and put the tone pot in the original rotary switch position. I find it easier to adjust pickup combinations "on the fly" with this control setup, whle still getting to the volume & tone knobs easily enough when I need to. For PRSi with 3-way switches, I leave them in the stock positions with the pickup selector switch behind the bridge.



Paul Reed Smith Custom 24 #1 - This is the first Custom 24 I picked up... it is a 2002 model in whale blue with 10-top flame, bird inlays, and regular neck profile. It still has the stock (HFS/Vintage Bass) pickups, though I have reconfigured the controls. It is, without a doubt, my "go-to" PRS for gigging and recording, mostly because I prefer the slightly meatier "regular" neck to the wide-thin neck.



Paul Reed Smith Custom 24 #2 - This is the second Custom 24 I bought, very shortly after the whale blue one... it is a 1998 model in violin amber burst with 10-top flame, bird inlays, wide-thin neck profile, and the (now discontinued) fixed bridge. It has HFS/Vintage Bass pickups (though it had Dragon II's in it originally, which I put into the Custom 22 semi-hollowbody to be more "accurate") and the controls have been reconfigured. This one is a close second to the whale blue one in terms of "go-to" status, because it's hard to argue with (and kinda hard to find) a giant chunk of mahogany & maple with a fixed bridge and 24 frets.



Paul Reed Smith Custom 24 #3 - Here's a 1995 in grey black finish with 10-top flame, bird inlays, and wide-thin neck profile. The pickups have been swapped for zebra Artist-series pickups, which are a bit more laid back than the typical HFS/Vintage Bass pair, and the electronics have been reconfigured. This is probably the oldest electric guitar I own, but it really doesn't look like it's 13 years old.



Paul Reed Smith Custom 24 #4 - And finally, here's my last Custom 24 from 1997 in cherry sunburst with 10-top flame, bird inlays, gold hardware, and wide-thin neck profile. Once again, the stock pickups have been swapped out--this time for a pair of PRS Dragon I's--and the electronics have been reconfigured. In person this one looks like the stereotypical cherry-sunburst Custom 24 from old PRS catalogs and advertisements.



Paul Reed Smith Standard 24 - Last but certainly not least is a Standard 24, which is a 2003 model I acquired in 2007. It has the (now discontinued) cream finish, bird inlays, and regular neck profile. Electronically, it is the only stock guitar listed here (with the original HFS/Vintage Bass pickups)--it is equipped with the McCarty-style 3-way switch and push-pull coil-tap on the tone control. Visually simpler and tonally darker/warmer, it provides a nice contrast to the flashier (both visually & tonally) Custom 24's above.

The only other 24-fret PRS I have is the recently-acquired 2007 Mira in Vintage Cherry... I won't say much about that one since I recently gave it a full write-up, but needless to say, it is considerably different in body style/construction and electronics than the Custom/Standard 24's described here.

--B