I met Paul as a kid in his small 1 man studio when he was making my dad's double cut away Santana model back in I think 1983. Paul was poor and told my dad he helped him by buying that Santana model. 10 years later when I was living in Los Angeles, I went to the Hollywood Guitar Center and saw Paul with his band, and he remembered me and went up to me and said hi....he wasn't poor anymore...lol
I feel like you simply can't find anyone on the net who had a bad experience with Paul. And many, many like you who share great stories about how he connects to the people who play his gear, like they are old friends.
I have a 1990 EG4, from when you were there. It has the initials RM written in white on the black finish under the trem springs. Are your initials RM, or do you know who was? (You probably can't tell us the name but I'm interested to know the history!)
@@0megalul309 There were two guys who did the buffing just before final assembly and they both had the initials BS- Bob Spore and Brian Selph. Brian still works there AFAIK.
So cool that he mentioned the HFSII pickup. I came up with that pickup one day. While I worked there, I used to listen to Jason Becker and Marty Freidman and Paul Gilbert in my headphones - so I was into all that really high gain stuff. I took an HFS pickup that was already hot (and sounded great as-is) and wound as much wire onto the bobbins as I possibly could. I put it together, waxed it and had somebody put it in a guitar. The next day Paul comes over with the guitar and says, "did you make this pickup?". I thought I was in trouble for wasting materials. I said, "Yeah". He smiled and said, "I love it, sounds fantastic!". About a month later he handed me a certificate with my name and the "HFSII" on it and said we would be making them for guys who wanted that really hot metal sound. It was probably one of the best days of my life.
I was just a kid when PRS came out and they were always really expensive guitars that old guys bought to hang on a wall and not play to me. Now that I'm an old guy I finally tried one again and bought it on the spot. Wish I gave them a chance sooner. Mine won't be an art piece on the wall though, it will be in my hands as much as possible!
Decades ago when I first discovered PRS guitars I sold my 2 Gibson Les Pauls and bought my first Paul Reed Smith,... which of course I still own and play regularly. PRS and Leo Fender's G&L guitars have long ago become my favourites due to their build quality, playability and tone capabilities. Thanks to you both for the passion, dedication and expertise that is engineered into your products. RIP Mr.Leo Fender,... Paul, don't you dare leave us for for at least a few more decades.
I just received my PRS Custom 24-08. What a beautiful instrument. And I also own a Mod Shop Strat and a Les Paul Tribute. After playing the guitar for one day, I have to say I am now a certified PRS fan boy.
This is such an impressive video, primarily because of the way Paul describes every step in such a knowledgeable and sincere manner. I was lucky enough to go on a factory last summer (2018) in Stevensville and let me tell you, everything you see here is true. Unfortunately, I don't own a PRS at the moment, but that will change once I find the right one for me.
This was an awesome and interesting watch for me. Paul seems to be a special kind of guy who really knows his product. I have allot of respect for him and his staff for building the PRS brand into what it is today. I hope to be lucky enough to own one in the future. Beautiful throwback video.
Thank you for posting this! The sheer amount of experience, R&D, and design - clearly Paul has settled for nothing less than passing along an excellent guitar to the masses. When someone complains about the price of a great guitar, let's share a link to this video. Hopefully, a light bulb goes on.
I’ve been playing the HFS/vintage bass pickup set for almost 20 years now and still consider it to be the best humbucking setup on the market. Yes...Bare Knuckle, Fralin, Dimarzio and Duncan have put out some killer stuff but every time I plug in my ‘02 cu24, my brain goes “yup, there it is 🤤”. It’s the sum of its parts (and the guitar’s entire system contributes in some way or another) but that pickup set just takes the sonic perfection and delivers it down the cable perfectly...a solid, unbroken connection between brain, fingers and speakers. And that’s what you’re looking for with any tool. The lowest amount of resistance between your creativity and the finished product. So this isn’t total PRS “propaganda”, I’ll state for the record that Fender’s Fat 50s pickups perform the same function in my strats.
Just purchased my first PRS a couple of days ago, a stunning Hollowbody I 10 top 20th anniversary, just the most beautiful and the best guitar I ever had. On this video he looks almost like a kid, but this dude knows how to build guitars !
I agree with the peak years assessment. I have owned many PRS guitars, but the one still in the stable is a 1990 Custom 24 with brazilian board and birds. It's not a 10 top, but it howls. Mine has a somewhat rare deep dish neck pickup, that's tonally where I believe they should have stopped tweaking the neck pickups.
I love watching and listening to people who are so into their subject; we need more Paul Reed Smiths in the world. The geeks shall inherit the world and the quicker the better.
What an absolutely amazing video...I play guitar now, the virus left me no choice with lock down and for me it has been a minor miracle and a revelation. I have been learning on a 2000 Squire Strat and though a rather cheap guitar when talking about the hardware and material construction, I love it...It has a great neck on it, never goes out of tune and always playable however in Jan 2021 I certainly plan on purchasing one of PRS guitars, they are Beautiful guitars and sound amazing
Lol I wonder how many of us began really learning guitar during this fiasco. We should call ourselves a world wide guitar gang/band known simply as Outbreak haha lol. Seriously though I feel ya, while this is all been very scary and devastating to so many people, have to thank God for small miracles I finally have had the time to focus on something I've wanted to learn for so long. Cheers mate.
I think Paul was a better player in 90 then he is today..Ive been with PRS since 1987. Thanks Paul for me having to field questions all night !! What the hell is that thing. I never left PRS. Owned around 200 and my fav since 2012 the NF3. I owned Vernon Reidsville C24
I was a music store today trying out a Quad Cortex and a Helix, and not digging them at all. I spied an old PRS Harmonic Generator head nearby, so I plugged into it. It totally smoked the modelers. For fairly old solid state technology, it actually sounded damn good. It didn't have any of that fizzy, buzzy overdrive that a lot of solid state amps have. It was fat and punchy sounding that cleaned up when rolling back the guitar's volume. It had pretty decent dynamics for a SS amp. I ended up taking the amp home. It reminds me a bit of the old Lab series amps. I know these amps were a big failure in the marketplace, I remember a store sitting on a half stack for over a decade. I don't think the world was ready for a high end SS amp in 1990. Dan Pearce also found out that lesson the hard way with his expensive Pearce amps.
I'm with ya - the HG70 is a total sleeper amp. I still have the head version - used to have one with the matching 4x12 back in the LA days. The Solo side does a hell of an excellent impression of a good Marshall when it drives the speakers hard enough. Sounds killer through old 25 watt Greenbacks. I really like the amp, too - AND! - what a cool light-up front panel!!!
Rickey Ryan No need to get butt hurt my friend .. lifes short .. chill .. that'll shorten your life man 🙄 Its slang commonly used here by myself and peers in the old studio scene (and elsewhere) when we see old photos from back in the day of people we've known for decades i.e. Dave Smith called ->himself
Thanks for posting this video! It's cool to see the older factory location. I have a 1990 CE Bolt-On (in Tortoiseshell) that I bought that year, and at so many points here, I felt like I was having that guitar explained (not that I needed that, but it was still fun to hear). Finally, Paul was, and is, a great player, too. Nice touch. It's very rare in my experience to find the namesake of a company being quite that good.
I use a Marshall DSL40CR combo on top of Marshall 4x12. And it works exactly as Paul described it. It's great to have the flexibility. Why do people get mad about that?
Damn. He came across as completely focussed on amazing guitars even back then. I bought a 2002 ten top after 20 + years of wanting a PRS and it did not disappoint. Amazing guitar. Sounds so musical and coherent. Hard to describe. Feels like home. I was coming from an Ibanez 91 RG570 which was an amazingly well built guitar. The PRS felt more homely. The neck is a little narrower but I can adjust. It just sounds more right. Very hard to explain. Just a more Coherent Guitar. Through and Though more musical. Play one and you'll know what I mean. I was wedded to my RG570 for 20 years. I bought it in 1993 with my student loan. I put a new pickup in it in about 94 (Multibucker) with a Micro switched Coil tap on both coils. Very versatile pickup. The neck on the RG570 92 variant is epic. It's wide and flat and has Jumbo frets the make bending easy as pie. Without a doubt it's the fastest neck I've ever played on. I can play faster on that neck than anything including the PRS. What you compromise with the Ibanez is tone. Tone but also some subtle things like bend a note on the Ibanez and the whole Floyd Rose will bend down. Bend a note on the PRS and the bridge is stable. There's certainly a horses for courses argument here. My Ibanez is a magnificent guitar and there definitely things it will be better at than the PRS. I'm just surprised there aren't more of them. Honestly these PRS guitars survive the hype. Luv and Peace.
Man, thank you so much for sorting this. I was born in 94' and just bought a 94 CE-24 and it brought me back seeing this video style and a video how PRS did things back then. Back when Paul was more the face of the company.
Tyler I didn't think you were bad mouthing him. Its all good. I don't know, I guess I watch too much youtube because I have seen hundreds of videos with him in it. Even some from his website.
You may already know but if not, Sean at PRS has a thread going with PRS employees where they're building a guitar. I can't think exactly what the title is but, you might like to follow it.
Wow I’ve never see Paul this young , he was so ahead of the curve i31 years later this video shows why PRS guitars are worth the money 💰 and a pipe under the road ? haha
thank you for the video. how i wish the guitar/PU demos had better audio quality. it all sounds the same to me, makes me wonder how they really sounded
I bought my '91 PRS CE24 #174009, (I'm not sure what the 7 means in the number) in the summer of '91 from Rhythm City, Atl., Ga.. It took me a couple of weeks to figure out every sound the pickups could make with a JCM 800. It is the finest guitar I've ever played, and I've played them all, (yep, even a Hagstrom), the only guitar that could be indistinguishable from my Mosrite. After 26 years it plays as well, or even better, as the day I bought it. I agree that the 89-91 years were the best! The Pearl White paint job looks like it was done yesterday,
the legend . Paul Reed Smith .. man id like to meet this guy someday . i currently own 9 core guitars and hope to buy at least 5 more before i am 40 years old
I have an early 1990 Custom 24 and the way he should have demonstrated the pickups was to play them clean. Between the 5 position rotary and the sweet switch, you get 10 very distinctive sounds when played clean. You play with distortion, they all start to sound alike.
You know what I think ? I think that people in the music industry especially players are so constantly exposed to higher dB sound that a LOT ARE DEAF, Therefore they need these ridiculous volume levels to heart differences in pickups!
@@54tristin You'd be wrong my friend. I've been a pro. rock/blues lead guitarist for a bit over 50 years, been playing for 55 yrs. The 3 piece band I'm in our bassist is 66 and our drummer is 62 as I am, we all hear Purfectly, HOWEVER our bassist and I use hearing protection. I also am in an acoustic duo, my partner John a guirarist/vocalis is almost 70!!! He's had 2 knees and 1 hip replaced but he's still an awesone musician and can hear a pin drop. My third duo im in the guitar/vocalist is 50 and has lymphoma and pretty sick at times but his hearing is purfect. All the people I play music with have done this since we were pre teens and we can ALL HEAR CRYSTAL CLEAR!!! I know a LOT of old musicians and NONE of them are deaf!! I'm not sure why you made that coment, I'm guessing your a troll thats jealous because you can't play guitar just video games. I can tell you this you dont know shit about guitarists and deafness, you are completely totally incorrect! Stick with your video games, maybe you know what your talking about on that subject and can even soud moderately intellegent but your knolledge on musicians pure armchair expert spectulation! YOU ARE TOTALLY 💯% INCORRECT BRO!!
Whenever I look at guitar factories and see the builders, I am instantly reminded that in a way....they are sweat shops. Picture working all day every day on one build piece of a guitar over and over and over.
I have the head. It's very good. Reminds me of a JCM800 with great cleans. Live though, I found that it lacked the headroom of my tube amps. It had a hard time cutting through the rest of the band.
@@bemean2037what tubes were used.? And also wattage.? Just curious if they are EL34s or 6CA7s, and if smaller wattage 6L6 or EL84s. It sounded very 80s glam metal which i like, but most of them 80s style and type arena amps lacked much headroom, unlike amps of today with the right speakers with mega SPL factors. I still loved the sound of both amps tho.😊😊😊😊
I am the same age as PRS but I was never that dorky looking a that age...lol! The only guitar tweaking I did when I was a teen was putting a 57 P bass - I got for free - back together and or trying to make guitar necks out of hard ass locust wood. One feature of a PRS I will never understand is the raised edge all around the front that chips like a MF if hit against anything. I have a natural finish on top of ash so it is more prevalent. Never will I understand it.
Prices vary widely. I think it would depend on the model, condition and whether it has a "10 top" and bird inlays. It can range from around $1000 or more for CEs, maybe 1800 or more for a CU24. Standards, maybe 1200 plus. The old Studios are rarer. Hard to give a good estimate for those.
I think that's an old blue CE with a maple fretboard. Back in the day, I remember only seeing a couple of CEs with maple. I believe that color was called Seafoam Green.
For such an old shitty sound recorded video (yes i do know it is an old video), i could actually hear every suttle difference in sound and tone when Mr.Paul, was demo'ing the range of pick-ups, and really digging in to those strings (unlike many who lightly strum) to try to make the guitar sound soft.??! That was full testament to how incredible these guitars really are and how they are made, and apart from tone in the fingers, the tone is ALSO in the wood, materials and ingenious techniques he used. Excellent.❤️👏👏👏👏👌👍 Subbed.!
Un muchacho que construia guitarras en su cuarto y en un par de años ya tiene su empresa multinacional....esto solo puede pasar en EEUU Yo estoy haciendo una guitarra y ni siquiera puedo conseguir un potenciometro decente :/
Omg lol didn't notice this at first. He absolutely just ate the damn pick lmao what in the world. Did he ever even take it out of his mouth or did he seriously swallow it? And if so wtf lol
Kyle John I totally see what you are saying but there's a chance that Sean T might not have meant any malice by his remark, though it does come across as somewhat insensitive. Likely Sean T never thought in a million years PRS would ever see his comment (and odds are *probably* against it happening), but famous people are still people, and I hear when they do read publicly-posted 'mean' or insensitive things about themselves it *can* be a rough experience for them, regardless of the fact that everyone knows at some level that there is someone, somewhere writing something public and nasty right now about every famous person in the world. I hear when it's about you it's different. On the other hand, there's a chance that someone somewhere who idolizes PRS and identifies with his personality a lot will see Sean T's remark and perhaps realize that they themselves are on the spectrum *because* they identify with PRS's so much (whether PRS is actually on the spectrum or not). Some people struggle to see themselves as they truly are, so sometimes odd things like this remark are what turns on a lightbulb for one aspect of a person's self-discovery. --But still, I would agree with anyone who says Sean T's comment comes off as insensitive. While we are on the subject, I watched the TH-cam video yesterday of the speech given by PRS when he accepted his honorary doctorate from U of Washington (2013 I believe). In that speech, I'm pretty sure I heard PRS mention having personally done a lot of therapy (or counseling, can't remember which term he used), so I can reasonably at least hope that PRS knows and loves himself well enough to not have his feelings hurt too badly if he does stumble across that comment. If PRS did happen to be on the spectrum, he would have to be about the highest-functioning person on the spectrum I have ever heard mention of. In that same speech he said his dad was afraid for him if he became a guitar builder that he would focus on the non-social side of it and become a hermit. But his legacy is now as someone who is anything but anti-social. To the contrary, his legacy includes being someone who orchestrates people as much as the technical side of what he does. I've never met him in person so it's hard to say if he is "nice" or what, but he truly seems like a remarkable, driven force, and he seems like he is concerned with people. The doctorate from U. of Washington was for Public Works by the way, not music or math or anything you might guess. That speech is interesting but 'long' 'by TH-cam standards, if you have time to watch it.
I think so too having been around it my whole life. Very high functioning aspergers, perhaps. And so I find it incredibly annoying and unfair that so many people target him in interviews. Any video you click on where someone chats with him, all the comments are about the way he talks or the way he behaves. It kinda makes me sick, this dude is obviously a genius with a rare level of expertise and attention to detail, and everyone shits on him any time he opens his mouth. It's lucky his guitars speak for themselves
Cool video, but if you want to compare pickups, why would you do that in a heavy distorted sound? Now there is really not much difference to hear isn't it? But Paul rules ofcourse..
![[UNCUT] บอสพอล แผลงฤทธิ์ บอสพระ-นักร้อง ก. โดนแฉยับ! I คนดังนั่งเคลียร์ I 21 ต.ค. 67](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/XKf6HeftoPI/mqdefault.jpg)
I met Paul as a kid in his small 1 man studio when he was making my dad's double cut away Santana model back in I think 1983. Paul was poor and told my dad he helped him by buying that Santana model. 10 years later when I was living in Los Angeles, I went to the Hollywood Guitar Center and saw Paul with his band, and he remembered me and went up to me and said hi....he wasn't poor anymore...lol
Love this man thank you
I bet! i bet also that your dads guitar is super valuable now.
I feel like you simply can't find anyone on the net who had a bad experience with Paul. And many, many like you who share great stories about how he connects to the people who play his gear, like they are old friends.
Awesome! What a cool dude.
This guy is a player, manager, engineer, artisan and entrepreneur - Respect !
He obviously had access to some serious capital at some stage.
@@rjlchristie KKK jo
@Nickhead87
No, its an observation on a significant factor in his success.
As for code, is that the way your QAnon buddies communicate with you?
He’s a pioneer of the industry
@@rjlchristie Stop watching the news. It rots your pea-brain.
I had fun helping Paul on the amplifier video. Hard to believe it was almost 30 years ago.
Mike, your playing is just tremendous! Time does fly.
Great playing!
Mike, how many years of combo experience have you gained since this video haha! Love this video and the place in time it puts me.
Sure dude
That was great versatile playing that is for sure!
Thanks for posting this. I worked there from '88 through '91 so it's good to see all the old friends from back in the day.
You're welcome. It must have been a great time to work there.
I have a 1990 EG4, from when you were there. It has the initials RM written in white on the black finish under the trem springs. Are your initials RM, or do you know who was? (You probably can't tell us the name but I'm interested to know the history!)
@@martinbullivantart The only RM I can think of was Rob Martin, but he worked in the woodshop cutting and gluing bodies at that time.
@@0megalul309 There were two guys who did the buffing just before final assembly and they both had the initials BS- Bob Spore and Brian Selph. Brian still works there AFAIK.
So cool that he mentioned the HFSII pickup. I came up with that pickup one day. While I worked there, I used to listen to Jason Becker and Marty Freidman and Paul Gilbert in my headphones - so I was into all that really high gain stuff. I took an HFS pickup that was already hot (and sounded great as-is) and wound as much wire onto the bobbins as I possibly could. I put it together, waxed it and had somebody put it in a guitar. The next day Paul comes over with the guitar and says, "did you make this pickup?". I thought I was in trouble for wasting materials. I said, "Yeah". He smiled and said, "I love it, sounds fantastic!". About a month later he handed me a certificate with my name and the "HFSII" on it and said we would be making them for guys who wanted that really hot metal sound. It was probably one of the best days of my life.
It just occurred to me that I have never seen a video from other big guitar companies where the founder actually straight up plays.
I was just a kid when PRS came out and they were always really expensive guitars that old guys bought to hang on a wall and not play to me. Now that I'm an old guy I finally tried one again and bought it on the spot. Wish I gave them a chance sooner. Mine won't be an art piece on the wall though, it will be in my hands as much as possible!
Decades ago when I first discovered PRS guitars I sold my 2 Gibson Les Pauls and bought my first Paul Reed Smith,... which of course I still own and play regularly. PRS and Leo Fender's G&L guitars have long ago become my favourites due to their build quality, playability and tone capabilities. Thanks to you both for the passion, dedication and expertise that is engineered into your products. RIP Mr.Leo Fender,... Paul, don't you dare leave us for for at least a few more decades.
Paul playing with that 80s metal tone is hilarious.
I just received my PRS Custom 24-08. What a beautiful instrument. And I also own a Mod Shop Strat and a Les Paul Tribute. After playing the guitar for one day, I have to say I am now a certified PRS fan boy.
This is such an impressive video, primarily because of the way Paul describes every step in such a knowledgeable and sincere manner. I was lucky enough to go on a factory last summer (2018) in Stevensville and let me tell you, everything you see here is true. Unfortunately, I don't own a PRS at the moment, but that will change once I find the right one for me.
I've owned a PRS for 20 years. I never realized the 5 way switch was wired this way. Mind blown. The details about it start at 18:30. Wow.
Buying my first PRS. Dgt Wood Library. Best gtr I have ever played.
Enjoy it, Jimmy!
with that price i hope so...i just picked up a core model 24 after years of using gibson and fender..it is my new number 1
This was an awesome and interesting watch for me. Paul seems to be a special kind of guy who really knows his product. I have allot of respect for him and his staff for building the PRS brand into what it is today. I hope to be lucky enough to own one in the future. Beautiful throwback video.
I like these old recordings
Thank you for posting this! The sheer amount of experience, R&D, and design - clearly Paul has settled for nothing less than passing along an excellent guitar to the masses. When someone complains about the price of a great guitar, let's share a link to this video. Hopefully, a light bulb goes on.
You're welcome. Glad you liked it Chris.
I’ve been playing the HFS/vintage bass pickup set for almost 20 years now and still consider it to be the best humbucking setup on the market. Yes...Bare Knuckle, Fralin, Dimarzio and Duncan have put out some killer stuff but every time I plug in my ‘02 cu24, my brain goes “yup, there it is 🤤”. It’s the sum of its parts (and the guitar’s entire system contributes in some way or another) but that pickup set just takes the sonic perfection and delivers it down the cable perfectly...a solid, unbroken connection between brain, fingers and speakers. And that’s what you’re looking for with any tool. The lowest amount of resistance between your creativity and the finished product. So this isn’t total PRS “propaganda”, I’ll state for the record that Fender’s Fat 50s pickups perform the same function in my strats.
Just purchased my first PRS a couple of days ago, a stunning Hollowbody I 10 top 20th anniversary, just the most beautiful and the best guitar I ever had. On this video he looks almost like a kid, but this dude knows how to build guitars !
Paul sounds like a proper late 80s/early 90s surfer dude here.
23:16
I agree with the peak years assessment. I have owned many PRS guitars, but the one still in the stable is a 1990 Custom 24 with brazilian board and birds. It's not a 10 top, but it howls. Mine has a somewhat rare deep dish neck pickup, that's tonally where I believe they should have stopped tweaking the neck pickups.
I love watching and listening to people who are so into their subject; we need more Paul Reed Smiths in the world. The geeks shall inherit the world and the quicker the better.
The tremolo demo at 22:02 literally made my jaw drop.
Paul loved it that much after the demo he ate a pick lol
Nice to see PRS in the early days. Love the guitar he is playing to demonstrate the pickups (the blue one) - that’s the style of PRS I would love!
What an absolutely amazing video...I play guitar now, the virus left me no choice with lock down and for me it has been a minor miracle and a revelation. I have been learning on a 2000 Squire Strat and though a rather cheap guitar when talking about the hardware and material construction, I love it...It has a great neck on it, never goes out of tune and always playable however in Jan 2021 I certainly plan on purchasing one of PRS guitars, they are Beautiful guitars and sound amazing
Glad you enjoyed the video Paul!
Lol I wonder how many of us began really learning guitar during this fiasco. We should call ourselves a world wide guitar gang/band known simply as Outbreak haha lol. Seriously though I feel ya, while this is all been very scary and devastating to so many people, have to thank God for small miracles I finally have had the time to focus on something I've wanted to learn for so long. Cheers mate.
Simple times, I miss the old days.
I think Paul was a better player in 90 then he is today..Ive been with PRS since 1987. Thanks Paul for me having to field questions all night !! What the hell is that thing. I never left PRS. Owned around 200 and my fav since 2012 the NF3. I owned Vernon Reidsville C24
I disagree about Paul’s playing. I think he’s improved over time.🎸🇺🇸
You owned over 200 PRS's? I don't even have that many bottles of cologne...
I was a music store today trying out a Quad Cortex and a Helix, and not digging them at all. I spied an old PRS Harmonic Generator head nearby, so I plugged into it. It totally smoked the modelers. For fairly old solid state technology, it actually sounded damn good. It didn't have any of that fizzy, buzzy overdrive that a lot of solid state amps have. It was fat and punchy sounding that cleaned up when rolling back the guitar's volume. It had pretty decent dynamics for a SS amp. I ended up taking the amp home. It reminds me a bit of the old Lab series amps. I know these amps were a big failure in the marketplace, I remember a store sitting on a half stack for over a decade. I don't think the world was ready for a high end SS amp in 1990. Dan Pearce also found out that lesson the hard way with his expensive Pearce amps.
I'm with ya - the HG70 is a total sleeper amp. I still have the head version - used to have one with the matching 4x12 back in the LA days. The Solo side does a hell of an excellent impression of a good Marshall when it drives the speakers hard enough. Sounds killer through old 25 watt Greenbacks. I really like the amp, too - AND! - what a cool light-up front panel!!!
Wow Paul's just a kid here. I sold PRS when this video was made, and had no idea he was that young, nor such a good player! Very cool vid 👍
a kid ? he was in his 30's wtf are you talking about he was 34 almost 35 when he did this.. That isn't a kid.
Rickey Ryan Yep just a kid .. when you start gettin up there in age you'll understand (and realize the immaturity of cussing) enjoy your youth 🎹🎸
Sorry but i am up there in age , and he was not a kid sorry.. 31 is not a kid no matter how you like to see it..
Rickey Ryan No need to get butt hurt my friend .. lifes short .. chill .. that'll shorten your life man 🙄 Its slang commonly used here by myself and peers in the old studio scene (and elsewhere) when we see old photos from back in the day of people we've known for decades i.e. Dave Smith called ->himself
@@rickeyryan303 Take a chill pill and go out in the real world. People use "kid" that way all the time. It's called tongue in cheek, you waffle.
Brazilian Rosewood. Those were the days.
A very interesting & enjoyable piece of modern history to watch. Thanks for posting :-)
You're welcome sir. Glad you enjoyed it!
I have a 1994 old Anapolis shop McCarty 10 top. Freakin sweet. Nicest thing anyone ever gave me.
I love Paul. He such an encredible connaisseur of guitars and music. We are lucky to have him build these sweet instruments.
Thank you for posting this. Man that amp and guitar combo sounds amazing.
You're welcome.
Paul's guitar tone in this video is freaking off the charts good.
They were on the right trajectory
Love the guy with the Old School "Rainbow" Tee shirt.
Just incredible guitar insights
Thanks for posting this video! It's cool to see the older factory location.
I have a 1990 CE Bolt-On (in Tortoiseshell) that I bought that year, and at so many points here, I felt like I was having that guitar explained (not that I needed that, but it was still fun to hear).
Finally, Paul was, and is, a great player, too. Nice touch. It's very rare in my experience to find the namesake of a company being quite that good.
You're welcome Larry. They've always made great guitars but those old ones really have something. I really enjoyed his pickup demos.
what is weird i own that same guitar in seafoam green and own that combo and 4x12..
22:31 "I wanna go through them with you piece by piece (*Eats pick*), first the tuners..."
Yeah I noticed that too, lol!!
at 40:39 him telling us to stack the 2x12 on top of the 4x12. must've been amazing to play at a time where people didn't get mad at you for that
I use a Marshall DSL40CR combo on top of Marshall 4x12. And it works exactly as Paul described it. It's great to have the flexibility. Why do people get mad about that?
@@no3rdseat mad at the volume
@@iwillnevergetone5 Oh, I see, he he. Understandable, great power comes with great responsibility. :)
@@no3rdseat lol absolutely. harnessing a full stack of cabinets is some serious power. i love it
Damn. He came across as completely focussed on amazing guitars even back then.
I bought a 2002 ten top after 20 + years of wanting a PRS and it did not disappoint.
Amazing guitar. Sounds so musical and coherent. Hard to describe.
Feels like home.
I was coming from an Ibanez 91 RG570 which was an amazingly well built guitar.
The PRS felt more homely.
The neck is a little narrower but I can adjust.
It just sounds more right.
Very hard to explain.
Just a more Coherent Guitar.
Through and Though more musical.
Play one and you'll know what I mean.
I was wedded to my RG570 for 20 years.
I bought it in 1993 with my student loan.
I put a new pickup in it in about 94 (Multibucker) with a Micro switched Coil tap on both coils.
Very versatile pickup.
The neck on the RG570 92 variant is epic.
It's wide and flat and has Jumbo frets the make bending easy as pie.
Without a doubt it's the fastest neck I've ever played on.
I can play faster on that neck than anything including the PRS.
What you compromise with the Ibanez is tone.
Tone but also some subtle things like bend a note on the Ibanez and the whole Floyd Rose will bend down.
Bend a note on the PRS and the bridge is stable.
There's certainly a horses for courses argument here. My Ibanez is a magnificent guitar and there definitely things it will be better at than the PRS.
I'm just surprised there aren't more of them.
Honestly these PRS guitars survive the hype.
Luv and Peace.
Cool comparison/experience between Ibanez and prs
What tone on this video. DANG!
Man, thank you so much for sorting this. I was born in 94' and just bought a 94 CE-24 and it brought me back seeing this video style and a video how PRS did things back then. Back when Paul was more the face of the company.
You're welcome Tyler.
Tyler He is still the face of company. Not sure why you think he isn't.
Just, when you see factory videos he's not the face of them. Paul's an awesome guy though and I'm not trying to cut him down.
Tyler I didn't think you were bad mouthing him. Its all good. I don't know, I guess I watch too much youtube because I have seen hundreds of videos with him in it. Even some from his website.
You may already know but if not, Sean at PRS has a thread going with PRS employees where they're building a guitar. I can't think exactly what the title is but, you might like to follow it.
It's 31 yrs ago now. Amazing footage.
Wow I’ve never see Paul this young , he was so ahead of the curve i31 years later this video shows why PRS guitars are worth the money 💰 and a pipe under the road ? haha
thank you for the video. how i wish the guitar/PU demos had better audio quality. it all sounds the same to me, makes me wonder how they really sounded
Thank you for sharing this video, it’s awesome!!!
You're welcome! I'm glad you enjoyed it.
I love the factory luthiers with mullets. "You want a nice guitar? It's comin out of your paycheck"
just got a 91 CE24 similar to that red one paul uses...great tone
I bought my '91 PRS CE24 #174009, (I'm not sure what the 7 means in the number) in the summer of '91 from Rhythm City, Atl., Ga.. It took me a couple of weeks to figure out every sound the pickups could make with a JCM 800. It is the finest guitar I've ever played, and I've played them all, (yep, even a Hagstrom), the only guitar that could be indistinguishable from my Mosrite. After 26 years it plays as well, or even better, as the day I bought it. I agree that the 89-91 years were the best! The Pearl White paint job looks like it was done yesterday,
Nice! Those old CE's are hard to beat.
@@bemean2037 YES!!!
I own a 92 PRO CENTER 24, KILLER GUITAR!!!!
@@normcote270, Nice!!!
@@bemean2037 Thankyou. 😀👌
Your welcome 👍
the legend . Paul Reed Smith .. man id like to meet this guy someday . i currently own 9 core guitars and hope to buy at least 5 more before i am 40 years old
I have an early 1990 Custom 24 and the way he should have demonstrated the pickups was to play them clean. Between the 5 position rotary and the sweet switch, you get 10 very distinctive sounds when played clean. You play with distortion, they all start to sound alike.
thanks a lot for uploading this!
You're welcome!
Great video and incredible instruments!
That blue guitar is gorgeous!
When I see a employee wearing a Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow T-shirt , that is enough right there to show me that these guitars are in good hands!!!!
Indeed!
When vintage gear was new
Thats right, I remember the Nut name. The name PRS gave the material it was made of was Unobtanium LOL Thats Great LOL
“Virtually blow up proof”, I guess that’s a good thing to look for in an amp.
The guitar at 10:19 is awesome!!! I wish they still made those
Yeah, blonde neck is AWESOME!!!
Have a 90' fire red Blonde neck , uffff 🔥
They hand signed their headstocks?? wow.. love the 80-90s.
Only the highest high end guitars. (At that time) not sure if he still hand signs them today the same way.
What a little gem!
Just bought a 1992 PRS. CE24, AWESOME GUITAR!
You know what I think ? I think that people in the music industry especially players are so constantly exposed to higher dB sound that a LOT ARE DEAF,
Therefore they need these ridiculous volume levels to heart differences in pickups!
@@54tristin You'd be wrong my friend.
I've been a pro. rock/blues
lead guitarist for a bit over 50 years, been playing for 55 yrs. The 3 piece band I'm in our bassist is 66 and our drummer is 62 as I am, we all hear Purfectly, HOWEVER our bassist and I use hearing protection.
I also am in an acoustic duo, my partner John a guirarist/vocalis is almost 70!!!
He's had 2 knees and 1 hip replaced but he's still an awesone musician and can hear a pin drop.
My third duo im in the guitar/vocalist is 50 and has lymphoma and pretty sick at times but his hearing is purfect.
All the people I play music
with have done this since we were pre teens and we can ALL HEAR CRYSTAL CLEAR!!!
I know a LOT of old musicians and NONE of them are deaf!!
I'm not sure why you made that coment, I'm guessing your a troll thats jealous because you can't
play guitar just video games.
I can tell you this you dont know shit about guitarists and deafness, you are completely totally incorrect!
Stick with your video games, maybe you know what your talking about on that subject and can even soud moderately intellegent but your knolledge on musicians pure armchair expert spectulation!
YOU ARE TOTALLY 💯% INCORRECT BRO!!
Whenever I look at guitar factories and see the builders, I am instantly reminded that in a way....they are sweat shops. Picture working all day every day on one build piece of a guitar over and over and over.
PRS was not the only manufacturer in 1990 using Brazilian Rosewood fretboards.....
Incredible
Now I want to find one of those amps.
I have the head. It's very good. Reminds me of a JCM800 with great cleans. Live though, I found that it lacked the headroom of my tube amps. It had a hard time cutting through the rest of the band.
@@bemean2037 tube are indeed the best at this.
@@bemean2037what tubes were used.? And also wattage.? Just curious if they are EL34s or 6CA7s, and if smaller wattage 6L6 or EL84s. It sounded very 80s glam metal which i like, but most of them 80s style and type arena amps lacked much headroom, unlike amps of today with the right speakers with mega SPL factors. I still loved the sound of both amps tho.😊😊😊😊
@@Rikk_Klaww777 That's the thing. It's a 70 watt solid state amp.
@@bemean2037sounds pretty good for an old solid state
The best guitar builder in the world.
14:39 this has the tone of Judas Priest's "You Got Another Thing Coming" :)
22:35 he puts the pick in his mouth like EVERY guitarist does hahaha :) :)
A+
6:54 that is my guitar!
lots of sizzle in PRS pickups
22:35 Paul eats a pick
lol
🤣
Wow a young Paul!
AWESOME !!!!!!!!😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁
Paul has a great vibrato.
Great guitars!!!
What model is that light blue guitar Paul plays to demo pickups? That guitar sounds amazing!
I believe that's their original CE, bolt on model. At that time the CE bodies were made of alder.
@@bemean2037 Thank you! Were those already 25" scale?
@@dvkerner96Yes. I have one with a 24 fret rosewood board from '89.
@@jim4588 I bet it sounds great!
@@dvkerner96it's a little thicker sounding than I prefer these days, but still an awesome guitar. 🤘
I am the same age as PRS but I was never that dorky looking a that age...lol!
The only guitar tweaking I did when I was a teen was putting a 57 P bass - I got for free - back together and or trying to make guitar necks out of hard ass locust wood.
One feature of a PRS I will never understand is the raised edge all around the front that chips like a MF if hit against anything. I have a natural finish on top of ash so it is more prevalent. Never will I understand it.
Mississippi Queen.....Yah know what i mean!
all of the pickup demos sound the same, i just hear ultra high gain..................
sam hamdan shut up.........
Just curious how much a 90' model PRS would be to pick up these days on the used market?? anyone?
Prices vary widely. I think it would depend on the model, condition and whether it has a "10 top" and bird inlays. It can range from around $1000 or more for CEs, maybe 1800 or more for a CU24. Standards, maybe 1200 plus. The old Studios are rarer. Hard to give a good estimate for those.
Thanks for replying, so really it's not too far off a higher end SE model of today.
You're welcome.@@Airtrooper719 True.
Just bought one, awesome guitar, mint cond. $1600.00
Worth EVERY penny!!!
3:07 I'm here after seeing what happened to Herman Li's PRS.
Loooove that maryland accent
OMG he had hair!! Haha. Cool stuff tho.
he's very wise
Cool Video. loved it haha :)
HI, what the song is at 20:46, please? nice video!
It's Free Ride by Edgar Winter. Glad you liked the video! th-cam.com/video/7GjYlTwWQHI/w-d-xo.html
Great, everything is just. I wish paul could be inmortal.
@17:52 a third of a what?
Cuck or slight notch of the wah tweedle on the wah pedal.
i dont remember these amps back then i guess they didnt sell too well?
What's that first blue model he's playing? Were those ever sold?
I think that's an old blue CE with a maple fretboard. Back in the day, I remember only seeing a couple of CEs with maple. I believe that color was called Seafoam Green.
i own one, i also own the combo amp with a 4x12, i bought them just because of this video, i did have the head but traded it like 2 years ago..
I've got one too. Deep Dish II and a vintage bass.
For such an old shitty sound recorded video (yes i do know it is an old video), i could actually hear every suttle difference in sound and tone when Mr.Paul, was demo'ing the range of pick-ups, and really digging in to those strings (unlike many who lightly strum) to try to make the guitar sound soft.??! That was full testament to how incredible these guitars really are and how they are made, and apart from tone in the fingers, the tone is ALSO in the wood, materials and ingenious techniques he used. Excellent.❤️👏👏👏👏👌👍 Subbed.!
Just subscribed 🎉🎉🎉
Thanks, Alan👍
Bubbles?
good stuff, Miss the old one room factory on third floor!
hbrookes Me too. Those were the days of yore.
Un muchacho que construia guitarras en su cuarto y en un par de años ya tiene su empresa multinacional....esto solo puede pasar en EEUU
Yo estoy haciendo una guitarra y ni siquiera puedo conseguir un potenciometro decente :/
22:36 YO PAUL ATE A PICK
Omg lol didn't notice this at first. He absolutely just ate the damn pick lmao what in the world. Did he ever even take it out of his mouth or did he seriously swallow it? And if so wtf lol
You know after watching his abysmal interview with Phil McKnight and this I'm convinced He is on the spectrum. He could easily have Aspergers
Sean T As somebody that has Asperger Syndrome I can honestly say he's on a higher level.
So? Let the guy live his life
Kyle John I totally see what you are saying but there's a chance that Sean T might not have meant any malice by his remark, though it does come across as somewhat insensitive.
Likely Sean T never thought in a million years PRS would ever see his comment (and odds are *probably* against it happening), but famous people are still people, and I hear when they do read publicly-posted 'mean' or insensitive things about themselves it *can* be a rough experience for them, regardless of the fact that everyone knows at some level that there is someone, somewhere writing something public and nasty right now about every famous person in the world. I hear when it's about you it's different.
On the other hand, there's a chance that someone somewhere who idolizes PRS and identifies with his personality a lot will see Sean T's remark and perhaps realize that they themselves are on the spectrum *because* they identify with PRS's so much (whether PRS is actually on the spectrum or not). Some people struggle to see themselves as they truly are, so sometimes odd things like this remark are what turns on a lightbulb for one aspect of a person's self-discovery.
--But still, I would agree with anyone who says Sean T's comment comes off as insensitive.
While we are on the subject, I watched the TH-cam video yesterday of the speech given by PRS when he accepted his honorary doctorate from U of Washington (2013 I believe). In that speech, I'm pretty sure I heard PRS mention having personally done a lot of therapy (or counseling, can't remember which term he used), so I can reasonably at least hope that PRS knows and loves himself well enough to not have his feelings hurt too badly if he does stumble across that comment.
If PRS did happen to be on the spectrum, he would have to be about the highest-functioning person on the spectrum I have ever heard mention of. In that same speech he said his dad was afraid for him if he became a guitar builder that he would focus on the non-social side of it and become a hermit. But his legacy is now as someone who is anything but anti-social. To the contrary, his legacy includes being someone who orchestrates people as much as the technical side of what he does. I've never met him in person so it's hard to say if he is "nice" or what, but he truly seems like a remarkable, driven force, and he seems like he is concerned with people. The doctorate from U. of Washington was for Public Works by the way, not music or math or anything you might guess. That speech is interesting but 'long' 'by TH-cam standards, if you have time to watch it.
I think so too having been around it my whole life. Very high functioning aspergers, perhaps. And so I find it incredibly annoying and unfair that so many people target him in interviews. Any video you click on where someone chats with him, all the comments are about the way he talks or the way he behaves. It kinda makes me sick, this dude is obviously a genius with a rare level of expertise and attention to detail, and everyone shits on him any time he opens his mouth. It's lucky his guitars speak for themselves
I find the spectrum useful as hell.
Cool video, but if you want to compare pickups, why would you do that in a heavy distorted sound? Now there is really not much difference to hear isn't it? But Paul rules ofcourse..
I thought the same thing, it's a carryover of the late 80s heavy rocker tone mentality
22:38