NGD: PRS SE Tremonti Signature Guitar in Charcoal (2019)
Aug 18, 2022 19:57:27 GMT
ocarolan and earthbalm like this
Post by grayn on Aug 18, 2022 19:57:27 GMT
I went out today, with a good friend, to try out some guitars. I was hoping to get something with a trem but tried out 2 with and
2 without. The prettiest I played was an Epiphone Jerry Cantrell Wino Les Paul Custom, that had a lovely, chunky neck and
played superbly. I wasn't that mad on the pickups though. The second prettiest was a PRS SE Single Cut Santana, in Egyptian
Gold. It played quite nicely but again, the pickups let it down. To be fair, I was after a specific quality in tones, so they may suit
a lot of other players. Thirdly came a rather lovely Schecter Hellraiser, in black. Loved the EMGs on this and it played superbly.
It was a real A/Bing battle between the Schecter and the guitar I ended up with, a PRS SE Tremonti Signature Guitar in Charcoal.
If I'd gone purely on tone, the Schecter would have edged it. As you may have guessed, I was looking for a guitar that sounded
right for hard rock and metal music. But the Tremonti was cheaper, played really nicely, had a beautifully smooth trem and
pushed distortion very well, with a full clean tone as well. The Tremonti was such good value that I also bought a Blackstar
Dept 10 Dual Distortion pedal.
So I got the PRS home and put it through my Orange combo, with just 3 pedals, the Blackstar, a Boss Metal Core and an
analog delay. It's never really sorted until you get it home and through your own set up. The Tremonti is pleasure to play and
feels like a quality instrument. This one was made in Indonesia by Cort (Cor-tek) and all the better for it, IMO. There is nothing
to criticise here. OK, I would have liked locking tuners but they can be had relatively cheaply. I'm not a huge fan of the PRS
headstock either but there's nothing I can do about that. But overall, I think the guitar looks rather nice. The fretboard looks and
feels great and the dark, flame-maple front looks rather classy
So what about those Tremonti S pickups? I really like them clean. A nice round tone but with a bit of edge, to help with cutting
through. Pushing overdrive/distortion, the pickups have plenty of clout and a strong eveness. They do lack a bit of bottom
end grunt, that I can hear in my other single cut. Will I change them? Probably not but it's not totally out of the question. Having
said that, I do like the difference with my other guitars. The Tremonti, like it's appearance, has a strong, dark sound.
Like the last 2 guitars I have bought, this is another that punches well above it's price bracket. I was lucky that it came really
well set up and in close to new condition. And as I previously mentioned, a very smooth and very useable trem system.
2 without. The prettiest I played was an Epiphone Jerry Cantrell Wino Les Paul Custom, that had a lovely, chunky neck and
played superbly. I wasn't that mad on the pickups though. The second prettiest was a PRS SE Single Cut Santana, in Egyptian
Gold. It played quite nicely but again, the pickups let it down. To be fair, I was after a specific quality in tones, so they may suit
a lot of other players. Thirdly came a rather lovely Schecter Hellraiser, in black. Loved the EMGs on this and it played superbly.
It was a real A/Bing battle between the Schecter and the guitar I ended up with, a PRS SE Tremonti Signature Guitar in Charcoal.
If I'd gone purely on tone, the Schecter would have edged it. As you may have guessed, I was looking for a guitar that sounded
right for hard rock and metal music. But the Tremonti was cheaper, played really nicely, had a beautifully smooth trem and
pushed distortion very well, with a full clean tone as well. The Tremonti was such good value that I also bought a Blackstar
Dept 10 Dual Distortion pedal.
So I got the PRS home and put it through my Orange combo, with just 3 pedals, the Blackstar, a Boss Metal Core and an
analog delay. It's never really sorted until you get it home and through your own set up. The Tremonti is pleasure to play and
feels like a quality instrument. This one was made in Indonesia by Cort (Cor-tek) and all the better for it, IMO. There is nothing
to criticise here. OK, I would have liked locking tuners but they can be had relatively cheaply. I'm not a huge fan of the PRS
headstock either but there's nothing I can do about that. But overall, I think the guitar looks rather nice. The fretboard looks and
feels great and the dark, flame-maple front looks rather classy
So what about those Tremonti S pickups? I really like them clean. A nice round tone but with a bit of edge, to help with cutting
through. Pushing overdrive/distortion, the pickups have plenty of clout and a strong eveness. They do lack a bit of bottom
end grunt, that I can hear in my other single cut. Will I change them? Probably not but it's not totally out of the question. Having
said that, I do like the difference with my other guitars. The Tremonti, like it's appearance, has a strong, dark sound.
Like the last 2 guitars I have bought, this is another that punches well above it's price bracket. I was lucky that it came really
well set up and in close to new condition. And as I previously mentioned, a very smooth and very useable trem system.