PRS SE Zach Myers review

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PRS SE Zach Myers

Body

Bridge

You can't take more than six million sales away from Shinedown, whether or not the US rock troupe, powered by Zach Myers' guitar, float your boat. A PRS signature artist since the launch of his first SE model in 2011, Myers opts for the Singlecut as his axe of choice - like the majority of SE signature players.

While his first signature was a solidbody with three humbuckers, this new version is a semi-hollow with twin humbuckers - PRS tells us it's the highest-demand SE since it introduced the classic Custom to the Korean-made range in 2005.

Myers' latest isn't the first semi-hollow SE - the double-cut Custom Semi-Hollow takes that award - but it is the first semi-hollow PRS Singlecut, period. The expensive USA Singlecut Hollowbody II (that'll cost you around £3,500) is, apart from a block that connects the top to the back directly under the bridge, completely hollow.

A solid two-piece centre-joined mahogany back is routed out, leaving the bass-side pretty hollow - including the area behind the bridge. The top is solid maple with a bevelled edge that simulates the USA PRS's violin-like contouring.

It's faced with a flame maple veneer, giving some PRS-style bling, while the natural edge of the maple is stained and merges with the light brown of the mahogany. The Trampas Green stain on the top is a little misnamed: it's closer to a faded stonewash denim - more blue-green.

Another neat change is the satin neck back on the chunky but not over-big wide fat profile. Myers likes to sand his neck finishes; here, it's done for us, but a light rub with a fine wire wool or sanding pad makes it feel smoother still.

Then we get the old-style bird inlays, well-fitted frets and a setup that's slinky - although we did up the string gauge to 0.011s, which work well on this slightly-shorter- than-a-Gibson, 622mm (24.5- inch) scale. Heavier strings are catered for with Myers' favourite bridge, the adjustable PRS Stoptail. It makes for an attractive well-priced package, that also includes a durable PRS gigbag.

Whether or not you want to emulate Shinedown, this is one superb-sounding guitar. Okay, the SE 245 humbuckers don't have the breathy edge of, for example, the USA 57/08 'buckers, but from cleanish, bluesier styles through indie jangle to aggressive modern metal, there's little it can't handle. And it's highly feedback-resistant, unless you want to lean into your amp and evoke some.

The individual pickup controls are laid out differently from a Gibson, but they're easy to get to grips with, and the shoulder-placed pickup selector toggle is positioned perfectly - turn off the neck pickup and you have an instant kill switch.