PAUL REED SMITH
PAUL REED SMITH McCARTY
What an amazing guitar! I'm glad I finally broke down and got one of these!
I had actually begun looking at PRS guitars for a couple of years and I had very specific expectations. I wanted a 22-fret model - not a 24-fret one. I wanted the bird inlays - not dots. I wanted a fixed bridge - not a tremolo model. I wanted covered humbuckers - not black exposed coils. I wanted chrome/nickel hardware - not gold. I also wanted a cool transparent color. And I didn't want to spend more than $2000.
I found a new transparent tortoise shell McCarty with a flamed "10 top", bird inlays, and chrome hardware on eBay in November 2005 for $2000. The price even included a new PRS case. Of course, this 2005 20th anniversary McCarty did not require modifications, right? Well... I replaced the stock vintage Gotoh tuners with vintage locking Gotoh tuners. The replacement tuners look exactly the same and fit perfectly in every way. I also took off the stock PRS strap buttons and put on a set of chrome Schaller straplocks - the usual stuff.
The mahogany body with the carved maple top is amazing. It's pretty heavy, but balances well with the neck. The "10 top" flamed maple top is absolutely beautiful. I liked the turquoise, whale blue, and red transparent colors PRS was offering, but when I saw this brown tortoise shell I was really inpressed. I hadn't seen a PRS in this color before. And it looks really cool with the natural binding, cream humbucker rings, and chrome hardware. Even the stained mahogany back looks awesome.
The neck and frets on the McCarty are undeniably the most valuable asset on this guitar. The mahogany neck with the rosewood fretboard feels incredible. I typically do not like neck backs that are finished, but this one feels great - no "roughing up" needed. And then there's the frets. Perfecty crowned and the fret ends are flawless. The action on this guitar is very low and it just feels like a million dollars to my left hand. When you pick up this McCarty, it's the neck that separates it from less-expensive guitars. And this guitar came set up perfectly with 9s.
The stock PRS pickups on this guitar are incredible - the McCarty Bass in the neck position and the McCarty Treble at the bridge. (I have the PRS Dragon II Bass and PRS 7 Treble pickups in my Silvertone LP Standard). This guitar's electronics offer some serious versatility, too, with the tone pot doubling as a push-pull switch to enact coil splitting on each pickup. So basically I can get every tone from a Les Paul to a Telecaster out of this thing.
Overall, I'm very impressed with the workmanship on this guitar - even for the price. I've played a lot of different American-made guitars over the years, but this is the first one I've picked up that made a really cool first impression. It feels great in my hands, sounds good unplugged, looks awesome, and has a lot of different tones. Sure, it costs quite a bit, but I have to say my experience with Paul Reed Smith guitars has been more than positive.
PRS sales tag
January 2006
UPDATE: October 2006
I went on a tour of the Paul Reed Smith factory in Stevensville, MD on October 18 with a friend of mine from work, Greg Valentine, and had a super time. I learned a lot about these incredible guitars, saw some amazing finishes, and even got our picture taken with the Paul Reed Smith. Very cool. Glad I bought one of these.
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