Altering or modding guitars of this level

[Paralax View]

No flames please. I have often chuckled at the folks on the FDP, of which I have been a member for many years, when they post about all the mods they do to their instruments.

Some can't even wait until the thing gets to room temperature before the pickups come out, and all manner of parts are changed. The questions sometimes verge on the comical: "does XYZ pickup sound better than ABC pickup"?? "What pickup did Dwain use to get his tone at the Mar, '74 Fillmore show"?

Doing this to a Strat, a Tele, a Squire might be an ok thing, I myself have installed VanZandts in my own strat, but I waited 14 years to do it!

I guess I am a bit taken aback that with an instrument in the price and quality range of PRS, people still want to tinker with them, take them apart, put in other parts etc...

[RandyO]

It's cool to put a personal touch on any guitar; pickups come to mind.
We customize our homes, cars, and clothing. Why not our PRS guitars?

BTW, unless you're REALLY out of control, you won't be flamed on this board.

Welcome to BAM. :)

[badfinger]

There are very few guitars I won't tinker with (check that, I don't think I've ever had a guitar I didn't tinker). Even my PS PRSi, I've done 'minor' changes like Tone-Pro's locking studs (on an $11k guitar!), and on my other PS (which I didn't spec, bought used) I'm changing out the hardware to gold, locking Tone-Pro studs and Strap Locs. My Lester has had a couple of different sets of Wagner pickups. I guess the only guitar I haven't touched is my Rory Strat, which serves a purpose without mods (not that I haven't thought about a set of Bareknuckle Irish Tours in it).

Modifying a guitar that you play is natural, I don't care how much it cost. Now if I had a low number '85 Custom, I would probably keep it original, but then again I wouldn't necessarily buy one of those to play.

[Chiba]

Tastes change over time. I played the same Strat from 1990 through 2005 - it probably had 30 different pickups in it.

Instead of getting a new guitar, I'd just get new pickups.

If you have a guitar that you love playing but the sound isn't quite right yet, what harm does a pickup swap do?

Plus - you know these people. They want to be just a little different than everybody else :)

--chiba

[Serious_Poo]

The only really predictable mod I like to do is to put Tone Pro's bridge studs on my stoptails. I usually listen to a guitar acoustically & amplified for a while before deciding to make any other changes. When I do, it's usually pickups to tweak the instrument's voicing a little. Other than that, it's just the usual volume knob replacement every 6 months or so.

[Bruce O'Donnell]

I don't think there is anything wrong with modifying a brand new guitar, no matter what the cost. To get exactly what I want in a guitar I'd have to order them custom built. Doesn't make $$ sense to me to order a Private Stock PRS just to get the pots, switching, and pickups I like when it costs me less than $50 to do it myself. The only guitar I don't see ever messing with is my 2003 LP 58 Custom Historic. Not because it's got a BRW fretboard or because I'm worried about the collector value, but out of the box it nailed the Les Paul tone I've been chasing for 32 years. Nothing I can do to it to make it better, and that's the acid test I apply to everything.

I tinker with everything - my house, cars (also perform all my own maintenance), boat, computers, amps, pedals, etc. If I can make it better, stronger, or faster, it gets done. PRS pots spin way too easy for me, so I normally replace them with CTS and install a treble bleed resistor and cap across the volume pot if it doesn't already have one. I haven't replaced the pots on my CuRo24 or BRW Singlecut, but only because I don't gig with them. But all my BRW and IRW McCarty's, CE's, and 87 Standard have had the pots replaced. I just got my first set this week, but the new custom superpots that RS Guitarworks have made for them by CTS are just kick-ass cool. It's a hybrid taper - a cross between logarithmic audio taper and linear taper. Just installed them on my Guild Blues 90 last night - really, really like it with the P-90s.

I haven't done many pickup swaps on my PRSi - RP's for McCarty's is about it. I swap pickups (and necks) in Strats like I change underwear. I've got 4 loaded pickguards - one with Bardens, one with Kinmans, one with Fralins in an 8-hole vintage pickguard, one with Custom Shop 69's with the bridge slant reversed ala the Hendrix Voodoo Strat, and I'm working on a fifth for my new-to-me Jeff Beck Sig. Not a big fan of the Lace Sensors, although so far I'm not hating the Gold Laces in the JB like I did the Red, Silver, and Blue that came in my Strat Plus Deluxe. On two of my road warrior Strats I wired in quick disconnects to the input jack and to the lead wires on two of the pickguard assemblies, so it takes me all of a couple minutes to swap them out. I've done it in between sets when the tone just wasn't happening. The Kinman has a blender pot instead of the lower tone control that blends in the neck in any switch setting.

Nothing more dangerous in life than a geek engineer who learned to weld and solder as a teenager and got his first Craftsman Stack toolbox at 16 :D

[ChrisCst22]

Not for nothing but I think PRS is the least modded guitar I see being played. The most common mod being pickup change which is not always obvious.

Look at Ibanez guitars, man those are usually so heavily modded sometimes only the neck wood is original.

[Macman]

Modding your guitar being flamed??? then I should have been locked out of all the forums... :D

Here's a run down of what I did. I saw Dan Estrin play when Hoobastank was in town and he had a Camo Topped CU24 with a 5 way rot and PIEZO!!! Yup a baggs piezo like those you'd find on the HBs. So that set me off thinking since I don't have money to do a PS and am not an AR material guy to do my own Piezo Mods.

For my first 22CE I transplanted LR Baggs X Bridge saddles onto the PRS trem and put in the control x preamp as well.. Drilled holes for the toggles, took out the D2s for D1s, put in a mini toggle giving me inner/full hum/outer coil options with my 3 way... that was insane.
Here she is.
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e229/veryloudah/IMG_2575.jpg

She got stolen a year ago along with a CU24 20th with I modded as well. D1s and the saddle/preamp transplant, took off the tone knob and put the mini toggle for the pickup mode there and replaced the 5 way rot with 3 way.

Finally saved up enough money to get myself a CU22 20th to replace the 2 that got stolen and did the same Baggs transplant, dropped in #10s replacing D2s and the mini mode switch. It now has early 90s D1s in them.

All the baggs things were done coz I couldn't afford a HB with piezo (singapore has very few of them anyway... I prob have the 2nd of 3 here) and it being #2 on my list of Dream PRS guitars to own. Friend of mine was letting go some gear and made me a deal I just couldn't refuse.... I so I sold kidney for a HB1 with piezo...

Posted in another thread that I dropped the #10s I had and put in a mini mode switch...
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e229/veryloudah/DSC00180.jpg

Mod your guitar????Go Ahead!!!!! Have fun as long as you know what you're doing.. if you don't, hand it to someone who does..

[btdvox]

I dno im like you- I dont beleive prs' should be heavily modded.

I would rather sell my Guitar then mod it- Because it keeps the Guitar what it was.

That being said I never buy modded guitars. Ever. Period.

Pickup changes and Strap locks and string changes to me arent mods.