The more I play Paul Reed Smith guitars, the more I am impressed with them. Superb construction, great tones, fabulous looks—what more do you want? Well, maybe, a lower price point because these puppies are expensive. But then, you get what you pay for. . . .

The Paul Reed Smith McCarty solid-body electric guitar is named after ex-Gibson president Ted McCarty, one of the most important designers in electric guitar history. McCarty crossed over to the dark side some years ago and is now working at PRS and got this guitar named after him for his troubles. This is a premium instrument of the highest quality that can play a wide range of music ranging from jazz to hard rock, although I think that hard rockers who need a guitar with versatile tones will find this most to their liking. It will run you over $2300 at Musicians Friend with the hard shell case included.

The McCarty was introduced in 1994 and was based on ideas from McCarty as well as Austin session-man David Grissom, who was looking for an axe that could deliver a massive “Duane Allman live at the Fillmore” sound. What PRS delivered was a guitar that is in many ways a souped-up Les Paul, the model that it is clearly intended to compete with. Yet, at first glance the double-cut McCarty body looks more like a Strat, although no one would ever mistake the McCarty’s superb paint jobs for a garden-variety Fender product. The acrylic urethane finish is beautiful. These things really are works of art.

The McCarty’s mahogany body is thicker than the run-of-the-mill PRS. Equipped with a maple top, the instrument provides bright tones and excellent sustain. It comes in over twenty colors. The 25” mahogany “wide/fat” neck has a rosewood fingerboard and 22 large frets and a massive heel joining the body. The neck is slower than a Strat but still fast. Access all the way up the neck is fine. Abalone bird inlays are optional, although the stock dot inlays look just fine. The guitar is lighter than a Les Paul and frankly easier to play.

The hardware is of the top quality you would expect at this price: vintage style tuners deployed on the characteristic PRS headstock along with a one-piece PRS stoptail bridge. The guitar holds its tune well.

OK, so the guitar looks and feels great. How does it sound? The electronics are two PRS humbuckers (neck and bridge) with alnico magnets and nickel-silver covers. There is a three-way pick-up selector, a volume knob and a tone knob to control both pick-ups. Here is one of my few beefs with the guitar: at this price and quality, we really should get separate volume/tone controls for each pick-up. However, there is a cool added feature in that the tone pot is a push-pull that will cut the inside coils of the pickups to deliver a single-coil sound. So it’s got that going for it.

Tone-wise, well, you really have to be the Grinch not to love this guitar. With the volume controls dialed down you get silky smooth, clean jazz tones. The neck pick-up is ideal for country and rock rhythm. Pushed, the bridge pick up gives a nice growl and stinging leads. The tapped-single coil sound won’t compete with a Strat or Tele but is still very crisp and stinging albeit with less power. Let’s be clear here: some players will believe the guitar doesn’t give enough bottom end chunk or the grind of a Les Paul, and I think there’s merit to that. Hence, metal heads and really hard rockers may wish to look elsewhere.

Obviously, I like this guitar a lot. It plays great, isn’t too heavy, and is performance suitable so you don’t have to keep changing guitars. Jazz, standards, country, rock and hard rock: it’s got it all. Now, before I wax too eloquent about this, it’s not perfect. I don’t like the single volume/tone control concept at all. Moreover, guitars like Les Pauls, Teles, 335’s and others will deliver tones that this guitar can’t. But those guitars don’t have the versatility of this axe.

If I had the time and was inclined to take the trouble, I would give serious consideration to dropping my Les Paul Black Beauty and investing in either this or the PRS Single Cut, another superb guitar, it’s that good. In sum, then, I would recommend this guitar to the professional or serious amateur who demands quality, powerful tones, and physical beauty in a guitar that will last forever. Guitarist who are really picky about their tone should listen carefully to this guitar to make sure they are getting what they pay for, and I’m speaking to metal players specifically along with some country guys. This isn’t an active-pickup Ibanez or a twangy Tele, but it’s just about all points in between.


BODY:
Carved East Coast figured maple top with thick mahogany back
Option: 10 top flame

NECK:
25" scale length mahogany 22-fret neck with rosewood fretboard and moon inlays
Neck carve - wide fat
Option: Abalone bird inlays
Option: East Indian rosewood neck

HARDWARE:
PRS stoptail
Vintage style tuners
McCarty truss rod cover
Option: Gold hardware

ELECTRONICS:
McCarty treble and bass pickups with covers
Volume and push/pull tone control with 3-way toggle pickup selector

Schechter Diamond C+1
PRS Single Cut
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