Thought John's tone with this guitar was the best he's uncovered for this music. So crisp and clean but full bodied. Would love to see a future release outside the 1000.
All of the magic begins with that pre amp switch with the toggle up, that's what makes the dead spec sound so good, so much midrange and it sounds perfect! Wow! Like, like, like! I played a 513 in person in the music shop in the past, need a PRS instrument like the Mira dating all the way back from 2008, I've played that as well.
From the ashes of the 1970' s ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Alembic Strato-Blaster !I got mine in a 1974 Les Paul Special Reissue that had P90s but somebody had put the StratoBlaster in and BOY! A wraptail rocket ship.
Sounds better with the preamp off, imo. Also, no disrespect, but that string retainer looks like it was thrown on by a clerk at a pawn shop to correct some issue that shouldn’t exist.
The dead spec has a even richer sound than the regular core silver sky's. The alembic blaster is so good and it makes all the difference. I see those awesome finish detail marks just adds something more looking a bit more vintage or like a faded relic maybe. Though their $3,000 more. It's a far better guitar. I definitely prefer the back not being open like the regular cores with the springs, that's the way one thing I didn't like about the Sky's.
Dan Healy: “other than testing Jerry never used any ready made buffer, 3 db boost; or not”, “buffers with gain don’t make it”. Steve Parish: “no battery in Europe 72”.
While the Alembic pre-amp helped, especially with positions 3-5, I thought it sounded a little dead. Almost like something is keeping the strings from ringing out. Kind of the opposite of what you'd want out of a strat type guitar.
@@jtingg yeah, it's definitely for people who want that Dead/Dead & Co sound, which is a much more hi-fi sound. Personally, I love it, and if I had the cash I'd be all over one of these, but it's certainly not for everyone.
@@daniellowry660 ofcourse, i am aware...what i am saying is that burying the whole bridge in the guitars add more brass mass i guess which will in turn add more sustain.
@anmolatwal yeah I'm assuming that's the logic although I'm always confused by alot of that stuff in general. I have a gen 1 and gen 2 tremonti and unplugged the Stop Tail gen 1 rings out far louder that the gen 2 with the body route for the trem however through an amp or di it's hardly noticeable. I can definitely feel a difference in the body but I can't really make out a noticeable difference once I go through my rig.
@@daniellowry660 i think that stop tail guitar will be a good subject for experiment with lower output style pickups to see if the acoustic qualities translate into plugged in sustain. 😀
I am a huge PRS fan and I own three core and two SE's, but I have got to be honest. It seems like PRS is getting to where they're becoming more and more gimmicky with limited addition runs, special artist editions, etc. It also seems like every few months, we're getting a new SE model. Seems like a great guitar, but I can't help but think that at the current asking price of almost 3k for a normal SS, that these wouldn't be astronomical. I assume FoMo will set in and these will get snapped up fast and quite a few resold for outrageous amounts like the Lunar Ice and Nebula finishes.
They've done limited edition signature models for decades. Tremonti Tribal, Santana Anniversary, SE limited runs, Joe Walsh limited run, Neal Schonn limited, SE dealer runs etc. It's nothing new. I'd be more annoyed if they started just reissuing a bunch of their older models with only minor cosmetic differences to differentiate them
Standard halo effect sales technique, absolutely nothing wrong with that and as said already, nothing that fender and Gibson don’t already do and PRS are tonnes better
so not a hardtail right ?but no back cover for that brass block spring thing...? if need to adjust the spring tension, then need to take the whole pick guard off to do that..? edit :ok its hardtail , i thought he said the tremolo arm is screw down one.
I don’t get the string tree on the headstock. With the PRS design, you don’t need one so what purpose does it serve really? Don’t say tone please because it is after the nut so…
Thanks for a releasing another round of scalpers/flippers gold. So frustrating. Just release these versions that run for a year or two, and allow people the proper chance to pick one up at a fair price. The way it is now, these 1000 guitar runs only profit and benefit the greedy and rich.
I'm glad you released this. One of my issues with signature models is that they rarely are the actual spec or build quality used by the artist- which is one reason I didn't buy the prior Silver Skys.
@@willowtree4450 You aren't making sense. The standard Silver Sky isn't this "dead spec" one in this video, or they wouldn't have released this. The standard Silver Sky was supposed to be John's signature model, but it isn't what he plays on stage generally.
Is anyone surprised they haven’t made a silver sky with a flame or quilted maple top ye. It’s kinda PRS’s thing. Also, can’t they make at least one silver sky with a flatter radius. Not a fan of this neck.
I'm sure its a great guitar, and its specced for/by a demanding artist, but I'm baffled by some of these specs, and why they would be useful a regular guitar player 🤷♂️
Well the guitar was made for a certain purpose - to replicate the sound of Jerry Garcia as closely as possible whilst still allowing John to sound like John. This is a limited run and so isn't intended to be used by every regular guitar player. It's made to do a job, and by this demo it sounds like it achieves it! The bridge and middle pickup combo with the blaster engaged sounds really close to Jerry's Aligator strat sound from the early 70s, which is one of my favourite clean sounds of all time.
No matter what’s new in John Mayer signature items, I still haven’t heard a tone as immediately impressive as the first run on JM strats Fender released. I bought one immediately after hearing that. Plus it quadrupled in value! This PRS is nice, albeit a bit vanilla looking. Pickups sound nice, but not outstanding. I wonder how closely they’re profiled on big dippers. Hate the colour, looks like ikea made it. I don’t like that bridge system at all either.
What in the what is this? Interesting indeed but I’ve been more than happy with my Silver Sky for a few years now. I’m a slide guitar novice who admittedly needs to practice more. Might as well with winter coming!😅
If that spec is really the essential shiz, then the Mayo would have put it on his signature Axe the 1st time around wouldn’t he! This is just marketing spin/guff to eek out sales.
Not really. The OG Silver Sky is the spec he uses solo, this is the one he's used on the last D&C tour, for which he wanted a tone more along the Garcia lines, which is a brighter, more hi-fi one.
@@nintendonut100 That much of a real world difference to warrant a production run? It seems to me the same as Lamborghini releasing various slight tweaks to the same basic car…guarantees fresh column inches / more social media reviews / brand awareness. Each to their own though…if undercoat grey does it for you, do go buy! 😊
7.25" radius equals not so great string action. The treble strings have to be set high so it doesnt choke out on bends. Like the core Silver Sky model, it will most likely play like crap. No thanks.
Don't get me wrong - I'm a huge PRS fan and already have three US-made models, but lately, PRS offering looks more like a rip-off. This guitar costs in Europe almost 4k EUR! Do you even realize that's the price of the custom shop Fender? That's 1k more than regular SilverSky - which was supposed to be John Mayer's "signature model" Is this one MORE signature? It's definitely not "custom made", so you are asking 1k EUR for a brass nut and string retainer? How the hell is it possible? PRS staff is simply becoming greedy and this is just another example. Do you need another one? How is it possible that PRS tele is more expensive than PRS strat? Apart from the fact that the latter is the older product.
How about people who are already selling them successfully at 6-10000$ range on reverb? There’s obviously demand, but scalpers and flippers are destroying the guitar same as many did for clothes, graphic cards; you name it..
This is just a bubble. Both PRS & these scalpers are going to regret this - sooner or later. I own a SilverSky & Fender Custom Shop - and there is still a gap. While SilverSky is a nice guitar, I really doubt anybody having his hands on a custom shop would prefer the PRS. PRS looks oblivious to the fact that THIS strat costs only 200Eur less than EricClapton signature Fender Custom Shop?@@djolenis3
It would have been nice if they modernised it with a 12" or higher radius. 7.5" is truly a Boomer generation baseball bat curved fretboard. But it's limited edition so not production.
That was one of my big worries with the original SS but so long as they're set up well they play like butter. But I'm preferential to the 10 in radius on most PRS as opposed to flatter fretboards. That was one of my main gripes with the Mark Holcomb model
@@daniellowry660 classical and modern guitars are generally flat. I genuinely think it's thumb placement that assists in working both. Classical guitars have thick as hell necks but Ibanez/Strandberg/Kiesel has skinny necks, but both flat boards. Both classical and modern electric would be a very different experience to play. Plus if you like bending strings like a country player you can do so without frets choking off your notes without having an absurdly high action. No benefits for round boards when there are so many neck shapes.
Too bad you didn’t limit one per person and control the sale. Wholesalers bought the first 10 and immediately flipped them for inflated prices. Two guys, got 5 each. Why didn’t PRS try to avoid this?! I mean 5 to one guys… that’s pretty crappy
Very few people can make a guitar sound this good completely dry.
You need to listen to more acoustic players
very true
Love the specs! Sounds great too!
Love the playing @bryanewald, would love to hear an album of you jamming to dead tunes like this...
This is like Signiture guitar inception. Based on an artists guitar that was played by another artist.
Like any signature Les Paul
Spelling. Check your SPELLING!!!
I’m the guitar, playing a guitar, disguised as another guitar.
@@DanielSchim exactly. Les Paul even had signature Gibson Les Paul models ironically.
@@DanielSchim touche
I think that’s the nicest middle pickup sound i ever heard
Thought John's tone with this guitar was the best he's uncovered for this music. So crisp and clean but full bodied. Would love to see a future release outside the 1000.
Brian's use of triads is top notch
That was some very nice playing, Bryan. Love it.
Hope this gets a wider release down the road...
And an SE version 🤞
and a lefty, oh wait.. PRS don't care
@@blackstormer95nobody cares about lefty’s. Just learn to play right handed and stop complaining 😂
So much joy, so much fun, so powerful playing Bryane !
Wow, this demo is amazing!
All of the magic begins with that pre amp switch with the toggle up, that's what makes the dead spec sound so good, so much midrange and it sounds perfect! Wow! Like, like, like! I played a 513 in person in the music shop in the past, need a PRS instrument like the Mira dating all the way back from 2008, I've played that as well.
From the ashes of the 1970' s ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Alembic Strato-Blaster !I got mine in a 1974 Les Paul Special Reissue that had P90s but somebody had put the StratoBlaster in and BOY! A wraptail rocket ship.
It’s always a joy watching you play
Yet another piece of brilliance from Paul.
Bryan done sold me a Hollowbody II, now I want this...... well done
Love the stratoblaster input!
So glad you all released these!!!! I was loving that guitar the whole show and was hoping this would happen!
That last tour was unbelievable - a nice tribute.
This guitar with a rear route would be a dream.
I like the Taiwan Cat Sunflower intro ;)
Man, that Alembic Blaster circuit really captures the flavor of the Dead.
Preamp similar to the Alembic preamp Lowell George used on his Strat in the 1970's.
This is incredible! Positions 4 and 5 with the switch on ALL. DAY. LONG.
LOVE IT! But I just bought the PRS Silver Sky in "Lunar Ice" ....
Whoa this sounds good
I know right? The pre amp, that's what makes the "Dead Spec" sound so good!
Very, very cool.
Just need an SE version with a 1,000,000 run!!!
Fr
Man this guy can play…
Also makes me realize my gibson Epiphone strat copy from 1990 is actually a really good guitar. Im inspired to gut mod it
This is my next guitar, first i buyed the se, than the real Mccoy, and now i have to wait!
Poor me, this sounds like heaven! 😊
Sounds better with the preamp off, imo. Also, no disrespect, but that string retainer looks like it was thrown on by a clerk at a pawn shop to correct some issue that shouldn’t exist.
Sounds wonderful
Amazing!!!
Sounds great!
The dead spec has a even richer sound than the regular core silver sky's. The alembic blaster is so good and it makes all the difference. I see those awesome finish detail marks just adds something more looking a bit more vintage or like a faded relic maybe. Though their $3,000 more. It's a far better guitar. I definitely prefer the back not being open like the regular cores with the springs, that's the way one thing I didn't like about the Sky's.
alright. i need a bolted down trem for my silver sky. i love it, just dont ever use the wiggle stick and i prefer hardtails
Why does it still have a hole for the trem bar?
Ha ! love how they cant say Alligator 😆
Surprised that PRS used the Alembic preamp rather than developing their own version
its part of the Alligator lore...and good marketing to anyone looking at this guitar
He really pulled off the "Black One" twice :D
Sounds fine
❤
Love the slight renaming of the Alembic preamp 😆for obvious reasons ..
All that's missing is an Alligator sticker on the pickguard.
i love it
Dan Healy: “other than testing Jerry never used any ready made buffer, 3 db boost; or not”, “buffers with gain don’t make it”. Steve Parish: “no battery in Europe 72”.
why do you need to use the string retainer ?
Hey Bryan, did you just play the intro of Return To Pooh Corner at 7:11-7:42?
Oh man if money could ever just fall into my lap, I’d 1000 percent get one of these.
Would be nice to see a sonzera head version!
$3350, so it's this or a pretty decent used fender custom shop strat. That's tough cause i reaaaallllyy like this swamp ash and the finish!
If you want a new school feel, this is probably the way to go
Is PRS going to make an SE Santana LEFTY?
It's a shame that it's a limited run.
While the Alembic pre-amp helped, especially with positions 3-5, I thought it sounded a little dead. Almost like something is keeping the strings from ringing out. Kind of the opposite of what you'd want out of a strat type guitar.
The preamp thing to me took away the whole reason I like strats. It honestly sounded better with it off to me. Squishy like a strat should be
@@jtingg yeah, it's definitely for people who want that Dead/Dead & Co sound, which is a much more hi-fi sound. Personally, I love it, and if I had the cash I'd be all over one of these, but it's certainly not for everyone.
fan boys rejoice
100% Wow sounds like a strat.
Weird.
Hater boys swarm!
Fantastic playing showing off the tones... but I just can't get into the spray-can primer look. It's definitely one for JM die-hards and collectors.
Agree
Yeah...its blah
Beautiful playing. I hope you sell the boost option separately down the line
it’s just an alembic stratoblaster, you can buy it separately already!
Only 1000 is a huge bummer. Another guitar I’ll never have the pleasure of owning
Stay positive, hombre
Make more! And left handed. Please.
Sounds better with the preamp off, get a silver sky and an RC BOOSTER and tune it for this preamp EQ or a treble bosster, that's it.
What's the model of Amp you're playing through?
Sonzera 20
can someone please tab that demo so i can learn it 😂
Ok, now do a run with the maple neck like Gator. (in alegator green)
Jerry would thought the sliver sky was to light 😂
The idea of having a whole trem and block assembly sunk and screwed into the body gives a beter sustain i guess....!! Looks intersting!!
I think it's meant to reflect the spec of John's actual guitar
@@daniellowry660 ofcourse, i am aware...what i am saying is that burying the whole bridge in the guitars add more brass mass i guess which will in turn add more sustain.
@anmolatwal yeah I'm assuming that's the logic although I'm always confused by alot of that stuff in general. I have a gen 1 and gen 2 tremonti and unplugged the Stop Tail gen 1 rings out far louder that the gen 2 with the body route for the trem however through an amp or di it's hardly noticeable. I can definitely feel a difference in the body but I can't really make out a noticeable difference once I go through my rig.
@@daniellowry660 i think that stop tail guitar will be a good subject for experiment with lower output style pickups to see if the acoustic qualities translate into plugged in sustain. 😀
@anmolatwal ain't no way I'm swapping put those pickups. Absolutely love the tremonti set. But that would be a fun experiment. 😏
I am a huge PRS fan and I own three core and two SE's, but I have got to be honest. It seems like PRS is getting to where they're becoming more and more gimmicky with limited addition runs, special artist editions, etc. It also seems like every few months, we're getting a new SE model. Seems like a great guitar, but I can't help but think that at the current asking price of almost 3k for a normal SS, that these wouldn't be astronomical. I assume FoMo will set in and these will get snapped up fast and quite a few resold for outrageous amounts like the Lunar Ice and Nebula finishes.
Please point out one of the big three that hasn't gone that route.
How dare they innovate and create products that expand their consumer base!
They've done limited edition signature models for decades. Tremonti Tribal, Santana Anniversary, SE limited runs, Joe Walsh limited run, Neal Schonn limited, SE dealer runs etc. It's nothing new. I'd be more annoyed if they started just reissuing a bunch of their older models with only minor cosmetic differences to differentiate them
@@daniellowry660 Exactly. And what's fantastic is many of the limited run features eventually work their way around to regular core models.
Standard halo effect sales technique, absolutely nothing wrong with that and as said already, nothing that fender and Gibson don’t already do and PRS are tonnes better
silver sky dead spec semi hollow next 😦
what about a “dead spec” SE???
What about it? Ain't happening dude
Already on its way, the reveal trailer is coming out next week.
Have a feeling they're going to reissue 1000 isnt enough.
After this run, 3k will be the new price for a silver sky
why go to swamp ash?
Odd - this thing sounds so muddy and warm. Nothing like Dead/Jerry tone at all.
I’ll have to get one of these soon!
so not a hardtail right ?but no back cover for that brass block spring thing...? if need to adjust the spring tension, then need to take the whole pick guard off to do that..?
edit :ok its hardtail , i thought he said the tremolo arm is screw down one.
It's a hardtail. There are no springs, the block doesn't move.
Personally I will definitely get this guitar if only it had humbuker 😢
I don’t get the string tree on the headstock. With the PRS design, you don’t need one so what purpose does it serve really? Don’t say tone please because it is after the nut so…
I saw Paul say something about the added brass helps the sound
Thanks for a releasing another round of scalpers/flippers gold. So frustrating.
Just release these versions that run for a year or two, and allow people the proper chance to pick one up at a fair price.
The way it is now, these 1000 guitar runs only profit and benefit the greedy and rich.
@@drsrsv8884?
I'm glad you released this. One of my issues with signature models is that they rarely are the actual spec or build quality used by the artist- which is one reason I didn't buy the prior Silver Skys.
Who said the silver sky doesn’t match the ones John plays?
These are the same🤣
@@landoctor94 This video basically. Why make a special spec one if the standard off-the-shelf one is already the same?
@@willowtree4450 You aren't making sense. The standard Silver Sky isn't this "dead spec" one in this video, or they wouldn't have released this. The standard Silver Sky was supposed to be John's signature model, but it isn't what he plays on stage generally.
Huh... I didn't realize that with this model. That is odd for a Signature guitar - You'd think it'd be bang on to the spec of the artist.
Is anyone surprised they haven’t made a silver sky with a flame or quilted maple top ye. It’s kinda PRS’s thing. Also, can’t they make at least one silver sky with a flatter radius. Not a fan of this neck.
PRS is kinda like the Subaru of guitars. Never understood why their colors and paint finish are so drab.
I'm sure its a great guitar, and its specced for/by a demanding artist, but I'm baffled by some of these specs, and why they would be useful a regular guitar player 🤷♂️
Well the guitar was made for a certain purpose - to replicate the sound of Jerry Garcia as closely as possible whilst still allowing John to sound like John. This is a limited run and so isn't intended to be used by every regular guitar player. It's made to do a job, and by this demo it sounds like it achieves it! The bridge and middle pickup combo with the blaster engaged sounds really close to Jerry's Aligator strat sound from the early 70s, which is one of my favourite clean sounds of all time.
Can anyone tell me the song he's playing from like 7:08-7:42?
Sounds like he's riffing on Friend of the Devil
@@--udayah yeah I think you're definitely right. It was the way he was playing and the starting run that made me think it was something else.
@@willcook1530 no yeah this whole demo is royalty free versions of dead songs lmao
@@--uday true true I didn't think of that either haha
Every guitar wants to be Strat.
No matter what’s new in John Mayer signature items, I still haven’t heard a tone as immediately impressive as the first run on JM strats Fender released. I bought one immediately after hearing that. Plus it quadrupled in value!
This PRS is nice, albeit a bit vanilla looking. Pickups sound nice, but not outstanding. I wonder how closely they’re profiled on big dippers. Hate the colour, looks like ikea made it. I don’t like that bridge system at all either.
The switch makes it go to 11😂
String retainer looks stupid and serves zero purpose otherwise it’s cool
What in the what is this? Interesting indeed but I’ve been more than happy with my Silver Sky for a few years now.
I’m a slide guitar novice who admittedly needs to practice more. Might as well with winter coming!😅
If that spec is really the essential shiz, then the Mayo would have put it on his signature Axe the 1st time around wouldn’t he!
This is just marketing spin/guff to eek out sales.
Not really. The OG Silver Sky is the spec he uses solo, this is the one he's used on the last D&C tour, for which he wanted a tone more along the Garcia lines, which is a brighter, more hi-fi one.
@@nintendonut100 That much of a real world difference to warrant a production run? It seems to me the same as Lamborghini releasing various slight tweaks to the same basic car…guarantees fresh column inches / more social media reviews / brand awareness. Each to their own though…if undercoat grey does it for you, do go buy! 😊
china cat always plays
7.25" radius equals not so great string action. The treble strings have to be set high so it doesnt choke out on bends. Like the core Silver Sky model, it will most likely play like crap. No thanks.
"Wonderful finish..."... what we call "stain"...
Excellent guitar, but Brian always sounds like he is under water when he talks. IJS...
Don't get me wrong - I'm a huge PRS fan and already have three US-made models, but lately, PRS offering looks more like a rip-off.
This guitar costs in Europe almost 4k EUR! Do you even realize that's the price of the custom shop Fender?
That's 1k more than regular SilverSky - which was supposed to be John Mayer's "signature model" Is this one MORE signature? It's definitely not "custom made", so you are asking 1k EUR for a brass nut and string retainer? How the hell is it possible?
PRS staff is simply becoming greedy and this is just another example. Do you need another one? How is it possible that PRS tele is more expensive than PRS strat?
Apart from the fact that the latter is the older product.
How about people who are already selling them successfully at 6-10000$ range on reverb? There’s obviously demand, but scalpers and flippers are destroying the guitar same as many did for clothes, graphic cards; you name it..
This is just a bubble. Both PRS & these scalpers are going to regret this - sooner or later.
I own a SilverSky & Fender Custom Shop - and there is still a gap. While SilverSky is a nice guitar, I really doubt anybody having his hands on a custom shop would prefer the PRS. PRS looks oblivious to the fact that THIS strat costs only 200Eur less than EricClapton signature Fender Custom Shop?@@djolenis3
It would have been nice if they modernised it with a 12" or higher radius. 7.5" is truly a Boomer generation baseball bat curved fretboard. But it's limited edition so not production.
John Mayer apparently likes the 7.5” radius.
My Boomer hands can't play my Wide Flat anymore. 7.25 to 9 for me now, back to what I started with.
@@jfinester of course because it's what he grew up with
That was one of my big worries with the original SS but so long as they're set up well they play like butter. But I'm preferential to the 10 in radius on most PRS as opposed to flatter fretboards. That was one of my main gripes with the Mark Holcomb model
@@daniellowry660 classical and modern guitars are generally flat. I genuinely think it's thumb placement that assists in working both. Classical guitars have thick as hell necks but Ibanez/Strandberg/Kiesel has skinny necks, but both flat boards. Both classical and modern electric would be a very different experience to play. Plus if you like bending strings like a country player you can do so without frets choking off your notes without having an absurdly high action. No benefits for round boards when there are so many neck shapes.
4.000€ moñigas jajajjaaj menudo engaño.
Doesn't really sound like a strat to me.
A string tree? Lol but why
Too bad you didn’t limit one per person and control the sale. Wholesalers bought the first 10 and immediately flipped them for inflated prices. Two guys, got 5 each. Why didn’t PRS try to avoid this?! I mean 5 to one guys… that’s pretty crappy
What’s your source of information
Nitro cellulose a chemical compound so harmful it's outlawed in some states, and organic in the same sentence 😂😂😂😂