Experience PRS Guitars 2012 Shows 408 Standard and MT Models

By: Staff

PRS 408 Maple Top (MT)

PRS  guitars is proud to offer a new voice with the 408 MT and 408 Standard. These inspiring new instruments, offered in both maple top (MT) and all mahogany (Standard) configurations, bring the versatility and voicing of PRS Guitar’s proprietary Signature/408 pickups (previously featured on the Private Stock Signature and the Signature Limited Edition) to PRS’s Core line.

PRS 408 pickups were designed to extend the guitar’s tonal spectrum by narrowing the field of the bass pickup to increase its focus and widening the field of the treble pickup to increase its sound field (hence their asymmetric appearance). This pickup configuration (comprised of four coils and offering eight sounds) stems back to Paul’s experimentation on the Sorcerer’s Apprentice guitars in the early 1980’s.  Thanks to the simple but versatile switching system featuring mini-toggle switches that provide numerous combinations of humbucking and singlecoil tones, the 408 Maple Top and Standard provide stunning articulation and musical clarity.

“We get phone calls [from session players] who say, ‘I picked up a [408-equipped] guitar, and I didn’t touch anything else—I didn’t need anything else,’” says Paul Reed Smith. “I’m not hearing anything except good feedback these days about what’s going on.”

Additional specification include a 25” scale length, 22-fret Pattern or Pattern Thin mahogany neck (rosewood neck option) with rosewood fretboard, bird inlays (moons optional), PRS Phase III tuners, PRS Tremolo (stoptail option), and nickel hardware with gold or hybrid option.

Check out the demo video at: http://www.prsguitars.com/408 or http://www.prsguitars.com/408standard

Switching Details

3-Way Toggle Pickup Selector:

Toggle up- bass humbucker

Toggle middle- bass and treble humbuckers

Toggle down- treble humbucker

Mini-Toggle Pickup Positions: (one mini-toggle for each pickup)

Up- slug side coil activated

Down- fulle humbucker activated

Pickup Switching Combinations:

• Bass humbucker
• Bass and treble humbucker
• Treble humbucker
• Bass single-coil
• Bass and treble single-coil (hum-canceling)
• Treble singlecoil
• Bass and treble humbucker
• Bass and treble single-coil

About PRS Guitars:

Paul Reed Smith Guitars is a leading manufacturer of high quality instruments in Stevensville, Maryland and has provided some of the world’s most renowned musicians with instruments since 1985. The PRS team of highly skilled craftspeople produces over 1,000 electric guitars each month, as well as acoustic guitars and amplifiers, for worldwide distribution. In the fall of 2011 PRS introduced import SE acoustic and amplifier lines to complement their import SE line of electric guitars. Carlos Santana, Linkin Park, Orianthi, Opeth, Tim Mahoney of 311, Mark Tremonti of Creed and Alter Bridge, Ricky Skaggs, Cody Kilby, Martin Simpson, Tony McManus, Warren Haynes, and Derek Trucks are among the artists currently playing PRS instruments and/or amplifiers.