PRS SE Santana

119
december 2016 Guitarist
review PRS SE SANTANA, SE CUSTOM 24 AND SE TREMONTI
PRS SE SANTANA
PRICE: £849 (inc gigbag)
ORIGIN: Korea
TYPE: Double-cutaway, carved-top
solidbody electric
BODY: Mahogany with carved-flame
maple-faced maple top
NECK: Mahogany, Santana profile,
glued-in
SCALE LENGTH: 635mm (25”)
NUT: Friction reducing
FINGERBOARD: Rosewood,
old-style bird inlays (pearloid),
254mm (10”) radius
FRETS: 24, medium
HARDWARE: USA-designed PRS
vibrato with PRS logo’d die-cast
tuners
ELECTRICS: 2x PRS-designed SE
Santana humbuckers, 3-way toggle
pickup selector switch, master
volume and tone
OPTIONS: None
RANGE OPTIONS: The USA Santana
signature starts at £3,649
LEFT-HANDERS: No
FINISHES: Santana Yellow
(as reviewed), Orange
PRS SE CUSTOM 24
PRICE: £849 (inc gigbag)
ORIGIN: Korea
TYPE: Double-cutaway, carved-top
solidbody electric
BODY: Mahogany with carved-flame
maple-faced maple top
NECK: Mahogany, wide-thin profile,
glued-in
SCALE LENGTH: 635mm (25”)
NUT: Friction reducing
FINGERBOARD: Rosewood,
old-style bird inlays (pearloid),
254mm (10”) radius
FRETS: 24, medium
HARDWARE: USA-designed PRS
vibrato with PRS logo’d die-cast
tuners
ELECTRICS: 2x PRS-designed SE
85/15 humbuckers, 3-way lever
pickup selector switch, master volume
and tone (w/ pull/push coil-split)
OPTIONS: The 22-fret Custom 22
(£849) has same specs w/ toggle
switch and no coil-splits
RANGE OPTIONS: The USA S2
Custom 24 costs £1,549 and the Core
Custom 24 starts at £3,300
LEFT-HANDERS: No
FINISHES: Tobacco Sunburst
(as reviewed), Scarlet Red, Trampas,
Whale Blue
PRS SE TREMONTI
CUSTOM
PRICE: £849 (inc gigbag)
ORIGIN: Korea
TYPE: Single-cutaway, carved-top
solidbody electric
BODY: Mahogany with carved-flame
maple-faced maple top
NECK: Mahogany, wide-fat profile,
glued-in
SCALE LENGTH: 635mm (25”)
NUT: Friction reducing
FINGERBOARD: Rosewood,
old-style bird inlays (pearloid),
254mm (10”) radius
FRETS: 22, medium
HARDWARE: USA-designed PRS
vibrato with PRS logo’d die-cast
tuners
ELECTRICS: 2x PRS-designed SE
Tremonti humbuckers, 3-way toggle
pickup selector switch, individual
pickup volume and tone controls
OPTIONS: None
RANGE OPTIONS: The USA S2
Singlecut costs £1,549; the USA Mark
Tremonti signature starts at £3,349
LEFT-HANDERS: No
FINISHES: Gray Black (as reviewed),
Vintage Sunburst
PROS Classic sounds; partial coil-
splits, excellent vibrato; affordable
version of PRS’s classic solidbody
CONS PRS’s maple/birds aesthetic
isn’t to everyone’s taste
PROS Wide contrast sounds with
low-end power; wide travel vibrato
CONS It’s weighty; no coil-splits or
hard-tail option; not everyone will
enjoy the control layout
PROS Tidy build; pre-Custom vibe;
excellent vibrato and fat sounds
CONS The addition of coil-splits
would’ve increased your sound
options here
8
9 8
7. An upgrade to the
SE Tremonti is its
Korean-made versions
of Mark’s signature
USA pickups
8. Again, despite
the vibrato, this
SE Tremonti has
non-locking tuners
along with a friction-
reducing nut
9. The pickup volume
and tone controls are
laid out in a different
diamond placement
to Gibson’s classic
confi guration
8
GIT414.rev_prs.indd 119 27/10/2016 17:42