# Article on the PRS SE line and it's move to Indonesia



## HeHasTheJazzHands (Jul 8, 2019)

https://www.musicradar.com/news/the...6mt0plqElaf0KBCeqdBB5czql1VpDvGlUvW97Fe4qN2MQ

TL;DR: They own their own facility at Cor-Tek that builds nothing but PRS SEs. The move was because of WMI getting too crowded with other brands. Some guitars will still be made in Korea in the meantime, but it looks like a lot of the newer models have already switched to Indo, like Paul's Guitar.

Also, this little tease:



> So, when is the John Mayer Silver Sky coming over to the SE line, we ask? Jack laughs and says: “I like the way you did that: ‘When?’ Maybe you’d better turn off your voice recorder...”


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## gunch (Jul 8, 2019)

No matter how good SEs are and will get you're still a dingledorf in the eyes of people that have Cores if you try to schmooze with them


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Jul 8, 2019)

gunch said:


> No matter how good SEs are and will get you're still a dingledorf in the eyes of people that have Cores if you try to schmooze with them



I actually ran into a dude that thinks that, to this day, it was a mistake for PRS to release the SE line.


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## budda (Jul 8, 2019)

gunch said:


> No matter how good SEs are and will get you're still a dingledorf in the eyes of people that have Cores if you try to schmooze with them



Only if those people were already assholes


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## spudmunkey (Jul 8, 2019)

People who shit on lower-end PRS are the same people that would shit on a high-quality Epiphone, just because it's not a Gibson.


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## Dyingsea (Jul 8, 2019)

Interested in how this will play out. Korean SE's are easily some of the best guitars out there for the money. We all know some of the bumps Ibanez has had with some of the Indo QC (and still have depending on who you talk to) so it will be an interesting case study between the two.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Jul 8, 2019)

Dyingsea said:


> Interested in how this will play out. Korean SE's are easily some of the best guitars out there for the money. We all know some of the bumps Ibanez has had with some of the Indo QC (and still have depending on who you talk to) so it will be an interesting case study between the two.


The SE Standard line has been Indo made from the start. And there's some former-Korean SE's being made in Indo now. I'm curious if anyone here's given them a shot.


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## Glades (Jul 8, 2019)

Dyingsea said:


> Interested in how this will play out. Korean SE's are easily some of the best guitars out there for the money. We all know some of the bumps Ibanez has had with some of the Indo QC (and still have depending on who you talk to) so it will be an interesting case study between the two.


I have been blessed to own some high end guitars, but my $500 Indo Iron Label is every bit as good as the $2k prestiges I own.
If PRS re-releases an indo torero with fixed bridge, I would be all in.


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## MetalHex (Jul 8, 2019)

I persoally dont see how anyone could shit on any guitar. Just play and let play


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## diagrammatiks (Jul 8, 2019)

It’s incredibly easy to shit on guitars. 

I’ve fixed up a couple of Indonesian se for some friends. They are decent guitars. Enough differences so no one is going to mistake it for a core. But good solid guitars.


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## ChugThisBoy (Jul 9, 2019)

I owned Holcomb SE sig and it was fantastic. The only thing you should change after getting the axe is the nut. Everything besides that - pure joy.


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## Anquished (Jul 9, 2019)

My only complaint with the SE line is the lack of locking tuners. I've been lucky with the nut on my SvN, it's given me no issues so far. 

I hope the day that I can afford a Core is roughly the same day they produce a Core 7 string.


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## High Plains Drifter (Jul 9, 2019)

Some guy on another forum decided to school me on PRS guitars... 

"Don't want to offend, but I gotta ask...
PRS or Paul Reed Smith?
One is not like the other in anything but shape and form." 

To which I replied: 

"No difference. Paul Reed Smith is the owner of PRS guitars."

To which he replied:

"Yes, but one is made in Korea and one is made in a shop, here, by a guitar maker.
The difference is at least $2000. If yours didn't cost $2K+, it's a PRS. I'm not bashin' PRS; I shoulda bought one instead of what I ended up with but, when I put a used Paul Reed Smith in my hand (way out of my budget), I found out the PRS was a licensed knock-off or whatever. Still a very good guitar as I'm sure Mr. Smith ensures it is so." 

To which I replied: 

"As someone who's been playing for over 30 years I've never subscribed to the notion that a Core model is necessary for anyone besides an aficionado or a professional that makes a living from performing. Even then... a $5k instrument isn't necessary in the least jmo.

Add to that the QC of any company is what's paramount and at least in my experience, the PRS SE line sets their standards quite high. Doesn't matter if the product is being made in Japan, USA, or Korea/ Indonesia ( where the majority of production guitars are made). For me it's all about tone, comfort, play-ability, and affordability... not about wood libraries or Paul's signature.

Oh... and somebody better call Paul and tell him to get his name off of this MIK knock-off lol..."





I didn't hear back from him after that.


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## MaxOfMetal (Jul 9, 2019)

gunch said:


> No matter how good SEs are and will get you're still a dingledorf in the eyes of people that have Cores if you try to schmooze with them



Yeah, but for every one of those dickwads there are a couple of guys who lucked out with _one_ "amazing" SE and can't help but go on about how stupid folks are for "wasting money" on an "overpriced" Core.


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## Mathemagician (Jul 9, 2019)

Man there will always be someone trying to justify an expensive purchase. It’s 50/50 whether the type of person who would shit on a PRS SE for being “fake” is 

1) Even an actual guitar nerd at all whose owned 20+ instruments (like many of us money wasters lol) and at least thinks they can explain why they bought it. 

2) Just another old dude who bought like ONE $5k PRS/Gibson, and needs everyone to know it. 

Does anyone actually need to explain what they spend their own money on? No not at all. But people who shit on other’s things are usually not fun to be around imo. 

So it works out as a great people-filter.


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## thedonal (Jul 9, 2019)

It's just like when all the 'budget' ranges moved from Japan to Korea. I've got a few Indonesian made instruments- Faith Neptune and two Sire Marcus Miller basses. They're all fantastic. With Paul Reed Smith's attention to quality, I've got no worries about this move at all.

I'd love a Core one day- just like I'd love a Les Paul (especially now Gibson seem to be aiming in the right direction with the range again- recent errors I'm giving them as a learning experience!!). But my SE is bloody wonderful and will keep me happy for some time yet.


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## Descent (Jul 9, 2019)

Initially IN instruments were awful, especially the Ibanez range, bad frets, sloppy paint jobs, etc. 

Now the quality has improved but I still feel somewhat cheated paying upwards of $500 on IN guitar. The Korean SEs were indeed great and their move will definitely make me rethink if I want to own anything from that range.


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## Xaios (Jul 9, 2019)

A friend of mine bought an Indonesian Custom SE earlier this year. Initially I was a little blindsided because he'd been asking me advice on which to get, and I told him to go for a Custom SE over a Standard SE specifically because QC on Korean guitars is, as a general rule, a bit better than Indonesian guitars. It arrives and, lo and behold, it is itself Indonesian. Took me a while to figure out what was going on, that PRS had left WMI in the dust switched everything over to Cor-Tek, apparently over recent QC issues with WMI. So much for my general rule. 

It's a fine guitar though, perfectly up to snuff with my Korean Custom 24 SE 7.


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## Ordacleaphobia (Jul 9, 2019)

thedonal said:


> With Paul Reed Smith's attention to quality, I've got no worries about this move at all.



This is the only reason I'm not concerned at all.
Paul knows the reputation his brand carries is his most valuable asset. He wouldn't be ok with jeopardizing that to save on production costs, I'm pretty sure of it. So while I still don't trust the Indonesian Ibanez lines, I'm confident that the QC on the SEs are going to be held to the same standard they were in Korea and thus not too concerned.


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## MAJ Meadows SF (Jul 10, 2019)

High Plains Drifter said:


> Some guy on another forum decided to school me on PRS guitars...
> 
> "Don't want to offend, but I gotta ask...
> PRS or Paul Reed Smith?
> ...



Dude what a total knob! That's hilarious. The "licensed knock-off" and "I'm sure Mr. Smith ensures it is so" have got to be in the 2019 top 10 "douche-bag of the year" comment awards. I'll bet he cringes whenever someone uses "PRS PS" to shorthand "Private Stock". Like I do on eBay and Reverb searches. 

After watching makers start out with WMI and get a consistent line going anyone can tell they are busy as hell. Probably a very sound move by PRS, and I'm sure "Mr. Smith ensures it is so". I have never picked up a bad SE, and still will pick up the Holcomb SE 7 whenever it comes out. They're good enough that I've held back on paying too much for the Core Holcombs floating around (and addressed in another thread). I wouldn't expect the brand to allow a popular line to take a dive through a factory change. Obviously this has been game planned for a while and proper COA selected to go with.


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## High Plains Drifter (Jul 10, 2019)

MAJ Meadows SF said:


> Dude what a total knob! That's hilarious. The "licensed knock-off" and "I'm sure Mr. Smith ensures it is so" have got to be in the 2019 top 10 "douche-bag of the year" comment awards. I'll bet he cringes whenever someone uses "PRS PS" to shorthand "Private Stock". Like I do on eBay and Reverb searches.
> 
> After watching makers start out with WMI and get a consistent line going anyone can tell they are busy as hell. Probably a very sound move by PRS, and I'm sure "Mr. Smith ensures it is so". I have never picked up a bad SE, and still will pick up the Holcomb SE 7 whenever it comes out. They're good enough that I've held back on paying too much for the Core Holcombs floating around (and addressed in another thread). I wouldn't expect the brand to allow a popular line to take a dive through a factory change. Obviously this has been game planned for a while and proper COA selected to go with.



It took me by surprise as we weren't even debating anything. We were simply talking about our meager guitar collections and out of the blue, he seemingly decided that he needed to slam the SE line. I never even [previously] referred to the SE as a "Paul Reed Smith SE" so no idea what his deal was. I understand what he was trying to say regarding the PRS high-end stuff vs low end but his argument came across pretty ignorantly as well as provoking... and again, no one was even discussing nor debating anything about top tier instruments. Had I been trying to pass off the SE as a core model then by all means... fire away but otherwise, yeah... douche move. 

All this being said... I'm starting to GAS for a high-end PRS now!


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## Vyn (Jul 11, 2019)

Fuck. People need to spend more time playing than masturbating themselves over how expensive/inexpensive their instruments are.


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## MAJ Meadows SF (Jul 11, 2019)

High Plains Drifter said:


> It took me by surprise as we weren't even debating anything. We were simply talking about our meager guitar collections and out of the blue, he seemingly decided that he needed to slam the SE line. I never even [previously] referred to the SE as a "Paul Reed Smith SE" so no idea what his deal was. I understand what he was trying to say regarding the PRS high-end stuff vs low end but his argument came across pretty ignorantly as well as provoking... and again, no one was even discussing nor debating anything about top tier instruments. Had I been trying to pass off the SE as a core model then by all means... fire away but otherwise, yeah... douche move.
> 
> All this being said... I'm starting to GAS for a high-end PRS now!



No joke, I keep floating a Private Stock idea and almost emailing Brian's Guitars, but geez. The used market doesn't help either because there are a lot of good ones out there.


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## MaxOfMetal (Jul 11, 2019)

MAJ Meadows SF said:


> No joke, I keep floating a Private Stock idea and almost emailing Brian's Guitars, but geez. The used market doesn't help either because there are a lot of good ones out there.



Yeah, unless you have a very specific set of specs or a theme it's hard to justify getting a fresh PS build. Especially with how many shops are putting in PS orders these days. 

I remember when they only made a dozen or so a year.


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## MAJ Meadows SF (Jul 11, 2019)

MaxOfMetal said:


> Yeah, unless you have a very specific set of specs or a theme it's hard to justify getting a fresh PS build. Especially with how many shops are putting in PS orders these days.
> 
> I remember when they only made a dozen or so a year.



Outside of picking up an instock or used, yeah I agree. But I do have a back-pocket design to basically take a Holcomb Core model (FB radius, scale and finish) and make it a P24, do a transparent black w/ top matching grain fill stained swamp ash back, some kind of exotic neck, all satin finish, and a Joker to Northern Lights fade on a sick flame maple top, ebony fret board with fade matching birds, and a top stain matching head stock and tuner buttons. But I dunno, $10+ is a lot but a man can dream...


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## MaxOfMetal (Jul 11, 2019)

MAJ Meadows SF said:


> Outside of picking up an instock or used, yeah I agree. But I do have a back-pocket design to basically take a Holcomb Core model (FB radius, scale and finish) and make it a P24, do a transparent black w/ top matching grain fill stained swamp ash back, some kind of exotic neck, all satin finish, and a Joker to Northern Lights fade on a sick flame maple top, ebony fret board with fade matching birds, and a top stain matching head stock and tuner buttons. But I dunno, $10+ is a lot but a man can dream...



Yeah, that five figure mark is a tough barrier, even if you have the money. I've played with spec'ing out stuff that expensive and it _feels_ a thousand times more expensive than some of the $3k stuff I've bought.


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## MetalHex (Jul 11, 2019)

MAJ Meadows SF said:


> No joke, I keep floating a Private Stock idea and almost emailing Brian's Guitars, but geez. The used market doesn't help either because there are a lot of good ones out there.


I'm about 20 minutes from Brian's and I can guarantee you, whatever custom build options you have in mind, it already exists and he has it


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## diagrammatiks (Jul 11, 2019)

need this


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## MAJ Meadows SF (Jul 12, 2019)

MetalHex said:


> I'm about 20 minutes from Brian's and I can guarantee you, whatever custom build options you have in mind, it already exists and he has it



I've conversed with him about it, I'm just too chicken shit to pull the trigger. Yet.. That shop is like minutes from my Aunt that lives off State Street. I have an excuse now to come and visit! LOL


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## Riffer (Jul 23, 2019)

We just released this video. I know a lot of people worked really hard to make this thing. I think it turned out awesome. If you have some time and were interested in how the SEs are made in Indonesia, take a look!


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## littlebadboy (Jul 24, 2019)

I've been GAS'ing for a PRS for the longest time. Actually, I've wanted one since I was younger in a 3rd world country when I saw a PRS ad in a Guitar Magazine back on the 90's.






But, they were way out my means. So, they were just wishful thinking for me. When I came over to state side, I still couldn't afford a PRS core, so I excitedly bought a used Singlecut SE at GC without even trying it. I didn't like it. It wasn't bad, it's just that there was nothing exceptional or anything that stood out. It had a shape pf a PRS, but it sounded just like my other "affordable" guitars. I returned it and was turned off with PRS and stopped GAS'ing for one.

Then, I found out about the more affordable S2 line. A used one was fairly affordable for me. I'm poor and this was the most expensive guitar I would own. It's not 100% US but at least the body was made at the same place where the cores were made. I love it! I may upgrade it little by little with Mann parts to make it fully US, but I don't see any fault with what's on it now. I loved it enough for me to dispose all my other guitars. Well, part of it was so that I could pay for it. I just left a back up guitar.

My demo:


So, for me, I'd rather go for an S2 than an SE. I would like to apologize to the SE owners here. I am not bashing at the SE line, I am just sharing my experience.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Jul 26, 2019)

Riffer said:


> We just released this video. I know a lot of people worked really hard to make this thing. I think it turned out awesome. If you have some time and were interested in how the SEs are made in Indonesia, take a look!




I just saw this video pop up in my feed. Really makes me wanna try an indo PRS.


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## astrocreep (Jul 26, 2019)

None of the lefty SEs I’ve seen have been brilliant on the quality front, all had different minor things wrong with them. Still not bought one yet?


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## USMarine75 (Jul 26, 2019)

I


MaxOfMetal said:


> Yeah, unless you have a very specific set of specs or a theme it's hard to justify getting a fresh PS build. Especially with how many shops are putting in PS orders these days.
> 
> I remember when they only made a dozen or so a year.



Exactly. The only reason I have my PRS PS guitars is because I bought them used for far less than what they originally sold for. One I got from GC and one I got from Brian. Both sold originally for $13k which just seems silly to me as the owner. They’re nice. But they aren’t that nice. No guitar without a substantial history is IMO. The Artist/Wood Library (it’s a one-off, but I can’t remember what it is) Tremonti Baritone Limited which was $4k is easily as good as they are.

And I think there’s a loss of fun factor at those prices. I find I never play those guitars. Maybe because they’re so expensive, but also because I find I own cheaper guitars that sound and play just as well.

But I’ve had friends that preferred my MIK Schecter Loomis which was $800 over any of my other 7 strings including an EBMM Petrucci. And I’ll put my $600 Peavey Limited SSS against any Suhr. So you’re absolutely able to get killer guitars for reasonable prices.


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