PRS JA 15 Review

By: Dr. Matt Warnock

Jazz guitarists have long been associated with archtop guitars, especially Gibson series big-body guitars. Though there have been several luthiers that have risen to the forefront in recent years, such as Buscarino, Benedetto and Dan Koentopp, the big-name manufacturers have pretty much steered clear of the archtop market. While PRS has become known for building some of the best solid-body guitars around, they are now directly challenging Gibson with their line of archtop guitars, including the all-new JA-15 model. I was able to take the JA-15 for a test drive at the Experience PRS 2010 event this past weekend, and the guitar was impressive to say the least.

The first thing I noticed when I picked up the JA-15 and plugged it into a PRS “30” amp, was the weight and feel of the instrument. One of the main reasons that, as a jazz player, I don’t play an archtop is that I have issues with the size, weight and balance of many of the big-body guitars that I’ve owned over the years, many of them very expensive instruments. Immediately after plugging in the JA-15, I noticed how light and balanced the guitar felt. Even though it’s a big guitar, I felt comfortable playing it and could see myself using it on a 3-4 hour gig, something that almost destroyed my back and shoulders with the L-4’s, Buscarino and other archtop guitars I’ve previously owned.

From an aesthetic standpoint, the JA-15 is a great looking guitar. The design is “cool” looking and it doesn’t look like your grandfather’s old Gibson archtop that he played in the ‘50s. It’s got a more, modern vibe to it than traditional big-bodied guitars tend to have. As well, the JA-15 uses PRS’ new V12 finish, which the company describes as “the midpoint between acrylic and nitro, but it has a classic feel all its own.” I don’t know much about the chemistry behind designing the new V12 finish, but from a player’s viewpoint, I can say that I really liked the look of the finish. It was bright, yet not too glossy, and I felt like it accentuated the design of the instrument, rather than drew attention away from it.

Though the guitar is geared towards jazzers, the JA-15 is remarkably versatile with both tone and playability. During my time with the guitar, I focused mostly on playing jazz and Brazilian standards on it in a bebop vein, all with a clean tone on the neck pickup. Then, just a few hours later I witnessed Derek St. Holmes take the stage with the PRS Band, using the JA-15 in a rock-blues-RnB context, blowing me away with the range that this guitar possesses. Whether it was ripping on a distorted solo, or laying back on a clean Bossa Nova groove, the JA-15 stood its ground and delivered on all fronts.

While PRS may not be the first brand that comes to mind when you are looking for a new archtop guitar to add to your collection, the JA-15 goes a long way in establishing the company as a player in the big-body guitar market. It may take a while for word to spread on this guitar, but once a few jazzers, and rockers, get it in their hands and feel the high level of craftsmanship and thought that went into this axe, we could see quite a few people in clubs around the country with this guitar in their hands.

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