PRS SE Santana SY

Paul Reed Smith's PRS guitars are among the most versatile and reliable instruments ever made. Thanks to their great sound and playing comfort, they have been favoured by Santana and Mark Tremonti, for example. In addition to the tried-and-tested classics, the 2018 model range also includes left-handed models, seven-string, baritone and semi-hollowbody guitars and signature models from famous guitarists.

SE Santana guitars are the signature model of this famous Mexican-American guitarist. It features a classic PRS shape with two cutaways, a mahogany body with a fancy flamed maple top and a rosewood fingerboard fitted with twenty-four frets and traditional mother-of-pearl bird silhouettes. The shorter 24.5" (622 mm) gauge will suit players who prefer a more compact instrument shape with frets closer together.

A pair of humbuckers gives the guitar a warm, concrete sound that will conjure up both typical Santana solos and a thick, rockin' overdrive. The tone color can be controlled with the volume and tone control. There's a three-position switch to select between the pickups or plug in both. Strings are housed in a factory single-turn tremolo, tuning stability is guaranteed by quality PRS drives. The figured maple fretboard is complemented by a cream binding, and the headstock is adorned with the company logo.

Guitars with SE marking are made in Korea and are thus much more affordable than American-made instruments. In the case of the PRS brand, however, there is no need to worry about the quality of the instruments - production standards and careful output control are a matter of course.