Paul Reed Smith's New Archtop Guitar
The McCarty Archtop II
By Cliff Suttle
cliffnotes@harmony-central.com
WOW! That was the first word out of my mouth when I opened the case. I had been waiting for the new Paul Reed Smith (PRS) hollow-body, archtop guitar to arrive for about a week. As far as I know, this was the first PRS archtop in the whole city. I carefully pulled the guitar from the case and ripped off a few riffs. DOUBLE WOW! My first impressions of this guitar were nothing but favorable.
Mainly known for their high end solid body electric guitars, PRS has built a large and loyal following of guitar players and collectors, myself included. I have a PRS Custom 22 that I just love. Therefore, an important point for me in writing this article was to retain my objectivity. The fact that my Custom 22 is the pride of my collection didn't mean that the new archtop would be great. After all, PRS had never made a production guitar like this before. PRS did make a few hollow and semi-hollow body custom guitars for special clients in the past, but a mass market release of a new design is a different story. The big question on everyone's mind; can PRS produce a hollow-body that lives up to the PRS reputation for excellence? If you are interested in more history about the PRS company or Paul Reed Smith himself, please read my interview with Mr. Smith only on Harmony Central.
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| PRS private stock guitar similar to the Artist Archtop. |
After having the guitar for only one day, I found that everyone wanted to check it out. Jay (my guitar salesman), my son's guitar teacher, my neighbor, everyone wanted to take a look. Why the big fuss over just another guitar? Two reasons: first, the PRS name is synonymous with great guitars and second, most guitar players will probably not see this guitar in local stores for another year! Doug Chandler at PRS said that they sold out the entire first year's production in only two days at the winter NAMM (National Association Music Merchants) convention where it was first shown. My sources at Guitar Center (a large discount music dealer) claimed that this guitar is so difficult to get ahold of that they would be selling it close to list price for some time to come -- if they could get them at all. Can this guitar really live up to all this hoopla?
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Let's take a look at the guitar's specifications first. The demo-model I received from PRS was a McCarty Archtop II. PRS also released the McCarty Archtop I, Archtop Artist, and two semi-hollow body models at the NAMM show. The McCarty name refers to Mr. McCarty (Gibson President from 1950-1966 and guitar maker) who participated in the creation of these guitars. McCarty's influence on this guitar is clearly apparent. The guitar reminds me a little of a Gibson Blues Master but with some definite PRS touches and improvements. Below you will find a listing of the specifications for each of the three archtop models PRS has available. All three models are basically the same design, but made with different materials.
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Cha-ching! Now if these price tags made you fall out of your chair, please note that I have not included any options yet. My demo model had the optional 10-top/back and inlayed birds raising the price of this instrument to $5,060. The street price will be lower of course, once the supply catches up with the demand, but obviously this guitar isn't for everyone. If this price doesn't scare you off, keep reading -- this guitar may be what you've been waiting for.
Next, lets study the guitar's playing features. I chose to compare this instrument to a PRS Custom 22 (my guitar - a solid body electric with similar wood working and neck) and a Gibson 335 from the 1950's. I selected these instruments because they are well known and the McCarty Archtop II seemed like a cross between the two in many ways. It may seem unusual to compare a full body archtop to a solid body electric and semi-hollow body guitar, but in this case, there are many similarities between them.
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| Another archtop from the PRS private stock collection. |
The action of this guitar is quite low. When I first started playing it, I thought it was strung with .010's. As it turns out, the guitar came strung with .012's, which is a more common gauge for this type of instrument. Except for bending strings, the guitar plays more like an electric solid body -- smooth and fast. However it still has the tracking of a jazz guitar that you would want from an archtop. The playing action was stronger than my Custom, but it has the clean note cut off and tone similar to a 335. Slides were beautiful, quick, and responsive. Bending of notes was clean and smooth, although more difficult to perform than my Custom due to the heavier strings. Fretting is fast, clean, and easy. Even full bar chords seem effortless. I thought that the fretting on this guitar was superior to most jazz guitars I've played, including the old Gibson line-up. In general, this instrument is a joy to play.
The electronics in my opinion are very vintage in quality. A bit brighter and richer than the old Gibsons, but with the full bodied sound that players of this type of instrument have come to expect. The sonic range of the instrument goes from country bright to jazzy smooth, although I did find that the two pickups (neck and bridge) were fairly close in tone. This electronics setup does not have the 5-way selector switch or tonal variety that PRS's Custom guitar players have become accustomed to, but every sound it does make is beautiful. The volume control was extremely responsive all the way to the lowest setting. The tone control has a large effect on the sonic quality of the instrument, much like the older Gibsons. Overall I found the electronics very usable for almost any type of music. There are no pickup settings that made the instrument sound muddy or washed out. Every setting was clean and smooth.
The output from the McCarty pickups was very clean. After running the guitar through my effects box, it kept a nice smooth tone with every patch I tried. To clarify my point, we all know that some guitars take better to distortion or overdrive than others. The old Gibson hollow-bodies, for instance, don't do well with distortion but are the kings of the hill with effects like delays and phase shifting, whereas a Strat can have trouble with many delay patches, making them sound muddy, but is great with any type of distortion. The PRS archtop made every effect sound good. This would allow a top 40 guitar player to play the entire show without changing guitars. It also makes this guitar hard to put down at the end of the jam session.
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Now we get to my favorite part of the instrument: its feedback characteristics (or lack thereof). PRS has invented a new sound post that joins the top and back of the guitar with a solid 5"x1" carved block of wood. The result of this new technology is a big body jazz guitar that doesn't feedback (well . . . almost). I decided to put this feature to the test. My band practices at "earplugs required" volumes. I play through a Peavey 50 watt, all tube amp with a 4x12" cabinet. I play this amp with a preamp and effect box inline. The results can rip the skin off your ears. I planted myself five feet in front of the amp and faced the guitar toward the speakers. Then I began to turn it up. When I reached the normal practice level of my band the guitar was still not feeding back - I mean not at all. I continued to turn it up until I was at full club volume (for my loud band). At this point I did get some minor high pitched squeals, but they were easy to control with a little palm muting. When the strings were muted, the feedback cut out immediately. Continuing up to "rip plaster off the wall" volumes, the high pitch squeals began to get a little annoying. However, even at this ear bleed volume, I never got that low growling hum that the old Gibsons were known for. At this volume an old Gibson would have blown up. I was impressed. I never liked playing a full bodied guitar in concert because of the finicky problems inherent in the design of the instrument. This guitar would make me change my mind. When I turned my back to the speakers and played as if I were at a gig, there was no feedback that wasn't very easily controlled.
The visual aspects of this instrument are impressive. The top and back are deep carved in the PRS Custom 22/24 style, making this instrument quickly identifiable as a PRS guitar. The shape of the carved top reflects light in a sparkling way. The transparent stain of the woods is truly in keeping with the PRS reputation. The "NOT BINDINGS" give the guitar a very classic look. What are "NOT BINDINGS" you ask? PRS doesn't use plastic or wood to join the top/back of the guitar to the sides. This binding method is necessary in many guitars, but not on PRS guitars. However, PRS doesn't stain the edge of the 3/4" carved top/back, leaving it natural wood. This gives the illusion of a natural wood binding, hence "NOT BINDINGS". The F-holes are well sized and shaped. All in all, the archtop is a beautiful sight. I haven't even seen an Artist archtop yet (the $10,000 model) but that must be incredible. Just hanging on the wall, this guitar would make an honored addition to anyone's collection.
The question I always like to ask myself about any instrument is: what, if anything, would I change about the guitar? My list for the McCarty Archtop II is short and nitpicky, but here it is anyway. First, I would like to see the inside edges of the F-holes sanded perfectly smooth and finished. Keep in mind that other guitar makers don't do this either, but I would like to see PRS do it. Secondly, why is it that high end guitar makers don't put some type of strap-lock system on their guitars? In all fairness, the strap buttons that PRS uses are good, but you don't want to keep a strap on the guitar all the time. Leather straps can destroy the finish of a guitar over time. I recently got a Roland AX1 keyboard controller that came with strap-locks and that instrument was only $600. When I purchased my PRS Custom 22 I bought a set of strap-locks the same day. After spending $2,000 to $5,000 on a guitar I don't want to see it destroyed when the guitar slides off the strap and falls to the floor. I think all guitar manufacturers should take note.
While testing the archtop guitar, I had many other people play the instrument and give me their opinions. This gave me the benefit of hearing some different points of view as well as verifying that I was not being overly bias towards this instrument. Overall, the opinions I got from other guitar players were overwhelmingly positive. A couple of viewpoints I thought were worth your attention in more detail.
Ron Mladjan, a noted local Top-40 and jazz guitarist had this to say:
"When I first started playing it, I found it was stiffer than I thought it would be. I guess I had a preconceived notion about what the guitar would be like. But then the more I played it, the more I liked it. It has a really good feel. I had a hard time putting it down. I love the carved top. It really makes it look like a PRS. They didn't try to copy anyone else's design. They made a unique looking instrument all their own."
David Beard, a custom instrument builder in the Michigan area added:
"Looking inside I noticed the construction right away. It wasn't designed like a box. The entire inside had been routed out. Beautiful work that really helps the tone. The sound post and heel [the parts that join the top and back together] rounding was excellent. I really enjoyed the way the instrument was balanced. There is a lot of wood in the body and yet the guitar rides across your knee very nicely."
In closing, I found this guitar to be a delight to look at, to play, and to listen to. This guitar will probably be a hot ticket with most collectors. Needless to say, I was very sad when I had to send this one back to PRS. This is a guitar for people who really love guitars. So if you really love high end guitars like I do, keep your eyes peeled for this one at your local music store. I think you will be as impressed with it as I was.
If you would like to reach PRS about this or any other guitar they manufacture, their web address is www.prsguitars.com and you can reach them by phone at (410) 643-9970.
If you would like to send me a note about this or any of my other articles, you can reach me at cliffnotes@harmony-central.com and thanks for reading.
Keep Jamming, Cliff Suttle
Cliff Suttle (cliffnotes@harmony-central.com) has been studying music for over twenty years including studies at the University of Michigan. Fluent on keyboards, guitar, and bass, Cliff is currently playing in an all original rock band Middle Earth. Cliff's motto: Understand the theory and you can play anything.
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