PRS SE Paul Allender - Guitar Review

[Ihavebecomea]

How's your SG? is it sold?

 

[Plastic]

Yeah, and I wanted to get this, tested it, THEY HAD IT THERE, and went home for cash, boom, its gone.
I got something better anyway.

 

[Ihavebecomea]

what have you got?

 

[Plastic]

A strat, pretty sad that guitar got sold so fast, after I set my sights on it, taking the prs se custom would be like making do, which isn't good.

 

[Ihavebecomea]

what strat?

 

[Plastic]

Oh, st72 fender strat.

 

[adrianli]

Allender owners have got to get this strap from Levy's to match the guitar's inlays:

 

[Mastershredder]

is this guitar good for soloing and what genres ?

 

[echoist]

is this guitar good for soloing and what genres ?

Hi there!

Didn't realize someone posted a question about this guitar.
Sorry...

Yes, its definitely great for soloing.
Physically: The frets are "huge enough - not jumbo", and its flat, and the neck is quite thin. Good for "fast-fingered" guys/gals... Also its a 25" scale, shorter than a Strat/Ibanez, easier for bending too...

Tonewise: The pick-ups are high output and have thickness, and there is an added "brightness" to the tone of the guitar, which retains clarity. Might be due to the maple neck and cap on the body (though its really thin!), or the pickups. Also it sustains well. (mine anyway...)

What genres?
Well, i personally feel it does not matter actually. The guitar might be aimed towards the metal/rock crowd (physical looks, electronics, sound) or Cradle Of Filth/Paul Allender lovers. But i really believe its up to the players to get the right sound/tone from this guitar by tweaking your effects/amps and playing with the tone/vol knobs on the guitar to get the right sound for you...

I myself plays mostly funk, dub, acid stuff... And this guitar works well for me so far. :mrgreen:

 

[superpotato_30]

uber attractive guitar lucky owner of this thing ^^

 

[bf0502tr]

looks nice...but i aint gassing for one anytime soon

 

[echoist]

8 months later...

Ok, i've had this guitar for 8 months now. And i've been playing it more than i should, (in view of having a family and lots of work/chores to do...) good thing, bad thing? Hmmmmm...

Anyway, its been holding well for the pass 8 months. I have not had to send it for repairs/check-ups. Zero maintenance done on the guitar except for wiping down the strings after playing, and occasionally the body/neck when it gets too gooey with sweat/dirt/oil... And i'll do a thorough wiping with guitar polish: the whole body front/back, neck and headstock when i changed strings (Super Slinky). Twice so far. I had to adjust the truss-rod once after changing strings the 1st time. The originals were D'addario 9's. And it stayed put until now...

The gold plating/paint have worn-off at certain areas (screws, tuning heads, trem) due to constant contact with skin. Scratches on the body and pick-ups rings. (But i does make the guitar look better!) The fret have worn-off quickly... Its more to my playing style (heavy right and left hands) than the fret wire. Though Jim Dunlop jumbos might be welcomed! I'm guessing i might have to send for refretting in 6-8 months time.

Conclusion after 8 months: Great guitar still! Plays well, need little maintenance. Solid construction, solid sound! Buy or steal one, quick!

p.s. I've recorded some more demos after acquiring a Line6 ToneportGX (another great piece of equipment!). It might help shed some light on questions regarding whether this guitar is fit for metal, funk, blues, etc... Take a listen: http://www.purevolume.com/mrecho :mrgreen:

 

[malaysian]

i prefer the se custom. too bad no1 selling used.

 

[bigblackbear]

this is one sweet axe! i really would look into getting this

 

[echoist]

Paul Allender SE Upgraded

There are "things" on the guitar i might add/change/upgrade:
Immediate:
- dunlop straplocks (Dropped guitar from broken/slipped straps suck!)
In a distant future:
- locking tuners (Schaller or Wilkinson variety, gold of course!)
- humbuckers (These are going to be the last on the list as the stock ones works extremely well for me at the moment. I'm anal about tone/sound, but why fix something unbroken and "perfect".

I mentioned in Jan '08 during the original review of the guitar about "things" i might upgrade. Bought the stuff in the afternoon, but only managed to do it early morning (2am onwards to be exact!) when everyone's asleep. The strap buttons have been replaced with Jim Dunlop straplocks (black), and the machine-head upgraded with the Sperzel locking tuners (black too!). The guitar looks sinister now!!!

We'll see how the tuning will stay-put. I've yet to put some pencil lead in the nut slots before the abuse. Better yet, i might change the nut to a Graphtech one in the future... Hmmmm... another item to be added to the change/upgrade list! :mrgreen:

 

[nigellum]

did you change the tuners yourself or you got davis to do it for you?

 

[echoist]

did you change the tuners yourself or you got davis to do it for you?

I did it on my own actually...
Need a bit of patience and steady hands with an electric drill!!! :mrgreen:

Have you bought yours yet? :?:

 

[nigellum]

im going down next weekend to get my tuners! haha. i dont really know how to install it though.

 

[bf0502tr]

We'll see how the tuning will stay-put. I've yet to put some pencil lead in the nut slots before the abuse. Better yet, i might change the nut to a Graphtech one in the future... Hmmmm... another item to be added to the change/upgrade list! :mrgreen:

what does pencil lead in the nut slots do?? and also whats the diff between the graphtech nuts and the standard graphite nuts?? thx

 

[echoist]

im going down next weekend to get my tuners! haha. i dont really know how to install it though.

hey, you can always ask the shops around peninsula to help you with the installation..
or i can install it for you.. charges apply though.. :mrgreen: