PRS Mark Tremonti -A stunning singlecut guitar

In the year of 2001 PRS challenged the much larger Gibson with a Singlecut model, and it was a bit like "David meets Goliath" in a way. Gibson's board sued Paul Reed Smith and a four-year-long feud began, a feud that Gibson eventually lost.

Maybe it wasn't so strange after all. The differences between the two guitars becomes clear when you have them side by side, and if you call them more closely, you realize that it´s actually two different kinds of animals. It´s like comparing apples with pears or Mac OSX with Microsoft Windows, they just taste differently. Gibson's mainstream versions, Standard, Classic, Traditional, etc., are not at all comparable to the PRS singlecuts, you have to step up to the Custom Shops to find the same quality.

PRS Tremonti Signature
The copy I have bought for this article is manufactured in 2013, and purchased at Deluxe Music in Stockholm, one of the stores that have great knowledge regarding PRS. It is dressed in a stunningly beautiful Fire Red Burst, not 10 top but still very nice. The First impression is that it has everything you wish for in a proper rock guitar, just as a Custom Shop Les Paul. What sets them apart is that Tremonti Signature essentially follows the special concept that PRS has built its name through, namely 25 "scale length, 10" radius, high output pickups and a detailed quality that impresses.

SPECS
Body: Mahogany
Top: Maple
Finish: Fire Red Burst
Neck: Mahogany
Neck Profile: Pattern Thin
Fingerboard: Rosewood bird inlays
Band: 22
Scale Length: 25 "
Tuners: PRS Phase III Locking Tuners
Bridge: PRS Tremolo with Trem-Up Route
Hardware: Nickel
Neck Pickup: Tremonti Bass
Stable Pickup: Tremonti Treble
Switch: Three-way

When you pick it up you immediately get the feeling of "high end quality". Every detail of this guitar is stunnishing. 3500 dollars is lot of money one might think, but at the same time it should be set in light of what you get in both the short and long term. The price is all about the choice of wood, the quality of the hardware, but especially how much care and time they put into getting everything perfectly adapted to each other. A PRS and a Gibson Custom Shop is about investing in the long-term sustainability and reliability.

"The Tone Is In The Details" ...

We have to remember that the globalized world we live in, where low-wage countries produce large amounts of instruments at low cost, making the market flooded by cheap and "pricy and good enough instruments". The price has become a major factor for the buyer nowadays. The quality is, even in the cheaper guitars, much higher now than they were in the 80s. The market competition is cutthroat nowadays. The risk is that it affect manufacturers who makes really fine instruments. Gibson and Fender Custom Shop, PRS, Music Man and other "custom crafts" are instruments in a class by itself. I wish that more people could have access to this type of handcrafted instruments, it is easy to forget this when you see 10 000's of guitars on site after site.

Most of those who embraced the PRS concept testify that they are guitars for touring, and to be played often and a lot. There are of course many other guitars that also makes it and common to them all is that it is carefully crafted pieces.

The PRS success story lies in maintaining a high quality across the line over time regardless of the guitar model, duds are extremely rare and Tremonti Signature is no exception. Everything is "totally flawless".

Some interesting details:
Knobs sit differently than what you're used to, but at the same time a bit smarter in a way. The two upper and therefore closest to the right hand are two volume knobs.
The front volume knob is neck pickup and the rear is bridge pickup. Most would probably say that "they sit wrong", but I choose to see it as a matter of taste and you get used to it very quickly.

The pickups are Tremonti Treble and Bass, two pickups with the characteristics that Mark himself  was looking for, with a shimmering clean tone and rich distortion.

The bridge pickup is a very hot and pushy with an output a bit over 15,4K. It is built upon a large Alnico V magnet.

Despite the very high output, it is relatively quiet and, above all, delivers a great deal of sustain. They are very similar to the PRS other high-gain pickup, the  "PRS \ m / Metal Pickup".

The neck pickup with 7,8K is more vintage dark, so to speak, and delivers a big clean sound. My impression is that it is not so muddy as many other neck pickups.

Common to both these pickups is that they "clean up" very well even at very high gain, and they are very "responsive" and reacts to how you play, a detail worth taking into consideration, I think.

Another very good thing is great "string separation", even at pretty high gain. If you listen to Creed, Alter Bridge and the band Tremonti, you can actually hear that Mark often punctuate with "open chords" even with pretty much gain. It would not be possible as easy with other pickups I think.

Below is a video where you can hear a sample of clean, crunch and high gain. To remember is that gain is aprox at 5 (10) on the amplifier. The recording was made by a Marshall JVM Satriani and The Box of Doom isolation cab.

The bridge, PRS Tremolo with Trem-Up Route, is a is a great tremolo system. In combination with the PRS Phase III Locking Tuners it´s basically as reliable as a Floyd Rose and you can sway up and down without any problems with the tuning. It also stays in tune under heavily aggressive playing, such as dive-bombing and so on.

How is it then to play then?
One important thing with good guitars is that they are not prohibitive, they presents themselves without being noticed. Tremonti Signature is very well balanced and not particularly heavy, it makes it comfortable over your shoulder without weighing one way or the other.

The neck is "Pattern Thin" which means that it belongs to the thinner necks in PRS line-up. This makes it well suited for solo playing without losing the stability i chordsplaying.

The fretboard, made of Rosewood, creates a bit warmer and softer touch than ebony. Normally, guitars for hard rock genre is made of ebony because ebony produce a bit harder character, but I think Rosewood in this context still is the the right choice.

The inlays are beautifully crafted "Bird Inlays"

The final verdict
The big question was whether the PRS Tremonti really compete with a Gibson Les Paul Custom Shop?

The answer is in a way yes, and in a way no. If you look at it from a strictly instrumental perspective, it's a completely different guitar. Both have their unique characteristics, but aesthetically yes. They should definitely attract guitarists who identify themselves as  "Singlecut Players".

I would however say that the similarity stops there, I see really no reason to compare the two in general.  PRS Tremonti is a rock monster, just as good Les Paul, but offers the unique PRS craftsmanship and unique feeling that can not meet at a Gibson. It does not mean that it is better, but they are different and a matter of taste.

It may sound a little strange, but despite the price tag, just over 3500 dollars, this is a very affordable guitar, regardless if you are a picky Weekend Warrior or a touring musician  and seeks something that stays in tune most of the time. One should of course see these guitars as an investment for the future to give joy for 30-50 years, but it is of course a lot of money for most people.

But what the heck "Buy Quality, Cry Once".

Buy here !

Ratings:
Zombies 5 (5)

Review of Marshall JVM410HJS, Joe Satriani model - Best Marshall amp in years...

A while ago I made a "rig rundown" with Fredrik Åkesson from the progressive metalband Opeth. The rundown made me interested in his amplifier, the Marshall JVM410JS "Joe Satriani model". After buying it a couple of days later I realised that it´s the best amplifier Marshall have made in years. Now don't fall into the trap to think it´s the same amp as the first JVMs, because this is something completely different.

Maybe it has to do with increased experience at Marshall's development department, or that more efforts are required from the market in these "digital times" or that they finally started to look at what all the "modders" has done since 1980 or so. Most of the great guitarists have had modded Marshalls through the years and it feels like the focus now has shifted at Marshall, to once again take the customer perspective. A perspective they were so good at until 1973 or so, when the forces of customer demand took over and they had to compromise.

Anyway, this amp is a collaboration between Santiago, amp developer at Marshall, and Joe Satriani. Now, don't fall not in the next obvious trap, namely, the conclusion that this amplifier "just replicates Joe Satrianis tone". It can certainly do that, but the outcome of this collaboration has accomplished more important things than that. It´s a very versatile amp for pretty much every kind of guitar genre, from sparkling clean blues to heavy chunky riffs and outrageous high-gain lead tones.

The front panel probably scares the shit out of many vintage purists with its 28 knobs, but it's really not complicated at all. It´s actually quite intuitive, and I didn't  have to use any manual at all.

I've recorded a short demo for those of you who want to get a hint about how it might sound. Clean Orange mode with little effects, Crunch in Orange mode and OD in Red mode. I have shorten it down focusing on how the amp sounds. My suggestion is that you read this full review before you listen.

4 channels
The amplifier has 4 EL34 and 5 EC83 hard working tubes and delivers 100 watt pure guitar tone. It has 4 channels: Clean, Crunch, and 2 identical OD channels.

Noise-Gate
Each channel has its own noise-gate, which has replaced the reverb in the origin JVMs. These noise-gates are really good, Fredrik Åkesson pointed out it´s "musicality" and that they doesn't "eat" any tone at all, like many other amps do. The tone becomes tight and completely studio-silent. If you don't like it, just turn it off.

Green, Orange & Red modes
Furthermore, all channels has 3 modes: Green, Orange and Red. This means that the amplifier actually has 12 channels, which can be controlled from the pedalboard (foot-switch). Green is the starting position and the other puts each channel a step forward in to a different character.

There are also two master volume-sections with "resonance" and "precense" knobs, very handy.

Clean
The starting point for the clean chanel is the nice clean sound in the Marshall Anniversary 6100 and it´s just  incredibly good in the "Green mode", and it takes distortion pedals in an excellent manner. In "Orange mode" the clean is a bit more gained without cracking up and in Red mode it cracks up in a brilliant way without falling over in to distortion.  It all lands in one is exceptionally good tool for anyone who needs a clean sound with variety. This variation in clean tones makes it very easy to take advantage of different types of guitars and brings the best out of them.  Everything is controlled from the supplied foot-switch.

Crunch
The Green mode sounds like a JTM Plexi and Orange as a JCM800. Red mode turns it into a hot-rodded JCM800. This is the amplifier's most exciting channel, I think. Orange mode with the gain at 2-3 a´clock should fit any classic rocker and with the right effects it grows brutal.

OD 1 and 2
These channels are identical, which I think is a brilliant idea. Instead of adding another hi-gain characteristic chanel it gives the guitarist an ability to vary their own sound in the same "personal tone area". Maybe a bit more gain in OD 2 or some different EQ, it´s "sick clever" based on the ideas of individual tone consistency. Another great thing obut the ODs is that Marshall has found a really good metal amp here, which should attract even the most modern metalheads. There is more gain than you ever need, and the fact is that it sounds best when you are not utilizing its full gain capacity.

Mid Shift
Another great feature is the Mid Shift, a function that was developed to let Sammy Hagars vocals cut through better in Chickenfoot, but its allows you to compress the tone a bit, it allows your metal sound in to deliver really good "Chucka-Chucka-down-strokes".

Effects Loop
Another very nice feature is the incredibly great effects loop. I have never experienced such good effects loop before and pedals appear flawless compared to loops in other amps.

The fact that there is no reverb may seem strange, but given the extremely well-functioning effects loop it doesn't matter. The thing is that a mediocre reverb, or other modulation effects, actually sounds brutally nice in this amplifier, thanks to the new effects loop technology and the amps great "basic sound" in general.

Summary
This is one of the the best Marshall amps ever, for reasons as:

1. The basic sounds in the channels, which are spot on, and especially Crunch Orange Fashion
2. Effects loop, one of the best I've ever heard
3. The versatility that basically allows you to sell every other amplifier

The variety of sounds you can get out of this amp to and how easily you can switch between them is actually quite stunning. From shimmering cleans to cocky crispy Plexi-Crunch and powerful high gain makes it´s suitable for virtually all music genres.

An additional nice gesture from Marshall is that this tone monster doesn't rob you of 5000 dollars, as it actually should be worth. It´s yours for 2600 dollars. A bargain considering the value this tone monster will bring you.

A bestseller .... Period!
Buy here

Rating:
Zombies 5.0 (5.0)