The Legendary PRS Guitar

Hobbies Articles | July 12, 2011

One of the most famous American guitar manufacturers is PRS Guitars. PRS Guitars has its headquarters in Stevensville, MD, and was founded by Paul Reed Smith, whose initials form the namesake of the company.

PRS Guitars specialise in high end electric guitars, and they are famous for their unique tone. They were originally made for the average guitar player, but their reputation has grown such that they have become collectors items.
The guitars themselves are made of mahogany wood (hence the legendary sustain), with most of the guitars having a maple top. Paul Reed Smith Guitars are famous for their highly figured tops, which include quilt maple, flame maple, and figured maple designs. The necks are generally made of mahogany as well, though some are made of Brazilian or Indian rosewood necks. The fingerboards of the guitars, like the Gibson Les Pauls are made of rosewood.
The guitars are also known for their signature fret markers, which have moon designs on the lower end and birds on the higher end. The bird inlays are especially unique, with each guitar having nine or ten different bird designs inlayed at the appropriate fret. The inlay materials themselves are also of the highest quality and have included semi-precious stones and materials: abalone laminate, gold, and (according to Wikipedia!) even unearthed ivory from the woolly mammoth (yes the extinct one!).
The tuners of PRS Guitars are a proprietary model, and some feature Kluson style tuners from Korea. The guitars have three bridge designs: a wrapover tailpiece, a one piece pre intonated stoptail, and vibrato.
PRS pickups are an in house design, and are also wound there. The company keeps their wire and magnet type construction secret, which helps keep the unique sound of the pickups unique to PRS guitars. They have been given many nicknames because of their unique sound and are one of the reasons for this guitars popularity.
The finishes on these guitars are one of their most celebrated features, and they are achieved through a process known as "popping the grain." Popping the grain is a comprehensive staining process that helps bring out certain elements on the maple top, giving it a depth that is unique to PRS Guitars.
The Singlecut PRS Guitar was accused of looking and sounding too much like a Gibson Les Paul in 2001, and the manufacturer of Les Paul guitars, Gibson Guitar Corp., filed a trademark infringement suit against Paul Reed Smith. A decision of a lower court was overturned and the lawsuit was eventually dismissed. The Singlecut guitar is currently in production. This remains the only incident in which a PRS guitar was ever accused of looking or sounding like any other high end guitar. The reality within the guitar community however is that if you own one of these beasts, you own a serious guitar capable of playing any style, with style.