PRS 70th SE McCarty 594 SC QuiltBF

First of all, I was in search for a replacement of a very old and cheap Epiphone Les Paul Special II, which I have modified extensively over the last 20 years. This is a worth replacement but it's not a Les Paul, just to set the expectations here.

The guitar out of the box (and the gigbag) comes in a quite good state. Of course strings always need to be changed. My first impression is that it's heavier than my Epiphone, so I am still getting used to it.

Body: The veneer on top looks great to me. Not super amazing, just great! No spots on the body (3 piece mahogany). The stoptail is nice although I prefer stoptails that the string is secured within an opening like in typical les pauls. On this one, the string passes first from the side during string installation and you have to be sure that it will stay in place until you tune. After that, it will not move at all. On the typical stoptails, you fit the string in the opening and you're done. The saddle is secure and the brass saddles look good as well. Action was set from the factory according to PRS standard.

Neck: Very smooth and comfortable. The profile reminds me a little the 50's from Gibson but slightly different. Rosewood fretboard with minimal to zero glue residues. It was very dry when received but it is always like that. No sharp frets as expected, but they needed extensive polishing. In my case the frets were too rusty. I took care of the fretboard and frets during the setup. Nothing to worry about. The tuning machines do their job, low profile and turn smoothly. No reason to change. After all, this guitar does not have tremolo arm so no worry about losing tune. Fun fact: As I have experience with another PRS SE, PRS guitars hold their tuning very well. They are well build and have a reputation for that. The nut is also very well cut. No need for adjustment as well.

Electronics: The back covers are plastic and they are not even/flush with the body. This is a small detail that I don't like. I would prefer to make it flush and it would not cost anything to design it differently. Inside the cavity, Alpha pots. Wiring is tidy with tie wraps. Pots turn smoothly.

Pickups: This is the topic of discussion. They are ok but... Neck pickup reminds a little the PAF style pickups but it's not there. Bridge is also the same. I feel that they are missing something. They match with each other but what they deliver is not what you expecting. I am not going to swap them because this is the voice of this instrument and I want to maintain it like this.

Overall sound: Unplugged and plugged, the sound I get to my ears is a well defined, clear and somehow ''fragile" sound. The coil tapping just makes it sound a little weaker, not like a single coil of course. When I play clean, I can use the coil tap for a different sound than humbuckers. In distortion, coil tapping is useless to me. The humbuckers are giving their full when overdriven.

Important note: This is not a Les Paul guitar. Les Paul is a trademark of Gibson and Epiphone. This is a singlecut. I compared those in a shop and I can say that these are different instruments. I am not saying that this is a bad sounding instrument. There are no bad sounding instruments, only different. Good and bad are subjective. I kind of expecting that as a singlecut will have the same volume and depth as my Epiphone had. It does not. The guitar sings/rings in a different sound. And in the end I am glad it does because I hear something that I was not used to in the past and I will experiment with it. So, for me it was worth the price. Not only for the sound but for the quality of the guitar. Stays in tune, good materials and looks great!

If you're interested, order it and have fun!