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 | Download Example 1 Acoustic tone is DI on the Piezo setting, electric tone is bridge pickup through iGTR. |
| Recorded with Waves iGTR | |
The SCHS I reviewed looked nearly identical to the one on PRS’s website. It came in a gorgeous Vintage Cherry satin finish with accompanying black and chrome accents and cream pickup rings. The neck is the standard 25” PRS scale length with a wide/fat neck carve and 22 jumbo frets. Tuners are PRS’s own 14:1 low mass locking tuners and the bridge is their fantastic adjustable stoptail, which also included an optional LR Baggs/PRS Piezo pickup system. The pickups are SC 245 treble and bass humbuckers. Across the board, everything was beautifully designed and implemented and the guitar was a nice departure from the normal solidbody design that I typically play.
After reviewing the Modern Eagle II, I was much more familiar with PRS’s high caliber workmanship and design, and the SCHS didn’t disappoint. The guitar is incredibly light, yet still feels substantial and expensive in your hands. By the way it looked in the case I expected a much heavier guitar, probably because of the mahogany top. The neck harkens back to the feel of the good old days when necks were substantial and you could really wrap your hands around them and squeeze out big tone. Too many times I’ve checked out a potentially great guitar only to find that it had a scrawny neck and lacked the tone we all know and love—tone that only comes from a neck with some heft to it. And even though the body is very light due to its construction, it isn’t a neck-heavy instrument at all. The balance is spot on and you could sit or stand for hours of playing without ever experiencing weight fatigue.
The SCH In Action
Playing the SCHS felt both familiar and new at once. You can easily dig into tones ranging from Gypsy Jazz territory to old school amplified blues to modern, lush chordal expanses and articulate melodic runs. I particularly liked the fact that this guitar came with the optional LR Baggs/PRS Piezo pickup system because it added another layer of versatility that would be well suited for both live and studio work. Because of the piezo pickup, you end up with two output jacks on the guitar: one that feeds the direct output of the piezo, the other (called “Mix/Mag”) that lets you blend all of the pickups out of a single jack. This is definitely a handy feature if you prefer a simple, single chord setup. However, since piezo pickups tend to sound best when using an acoustic guitar amplifier, I’d imagine those with an ear for traditional acoustic tones would prefer to use both outputs and make the most out of the system by routing each output to the appropriate amp. Using the Mix/Mag mode you have the following controls to work with:
Blend Control: a knob that balances the output between magnetic and the piezo
System Selector Switch: Selects between magnetic, piezo, or both
Guitar Tone Control: Master tone control for magnetic pickups only
Guitar Volume Control: Master volume for whole guitar
Pickup Selector: Switches between neck, bridge or both magnetic pickups as in a traditional setup.
The piezo system sounds good, yet is fairly typical of piezo pickup sounds. As I mentioned, it’s difficult to jack straight into the board and expect to get a shimmery and full acoustic sound, but with some manipulating I was able to get a convincing acoustic tone that would work in a pinch if there was no acoustic amp on hand. Mixing the signals together opened up a larger tonal palate, and over time I found myself blending a little piezo in to get some additional definition and clarity when using the neck pickup.
Tones out of the magnetic pickups ranged quite widely from deep and clear to jabby and woody. There were times when the SCHS required more fiddling with the tone controls on my amps due to the fact that my typical settings were not meant for this type of guitar. It was pretty cool to stray from the regular vibe of a solidbody guitar and play a fully hollowbody instrument, though. By nature, it’s so different that it can’t be compared to the typical or familiar. It’s not a jazz box per se, nor is it a semi-hollowbody or an acoustic guitar, yet it would work well in just about any situation outside of the heaviest of styles. This is not a guitar that loves super high gain amps, but it does have its way with small tube combos. Playing through an early-fifties Supro Comet (similar to Page’s amp on the first two Zeppelin records) with just an 8” speaker and volume control, I was able to generate a really wide variety of usable and inspiring sounds. It’s hard to put a finger on the sound unless you hear it, but that’s what makes it a nice departure from the familiar. I’d say it sits nicely in the somewhat mellower side of the tonal spectrum but it still has plenty of clarity. I spent a lot of time revisiting acoustic songs I’d written as well as new songs inspired by the sound of a wound G-string, which the SHCS comes setup with (11-52).
The Final Mojo
The SCHS is an adventurous instrument created for adventurous guitarists looking for new sounds. During the time I had it there were many new places that I found good use for it. From subtle additions to completed songs that needed a new texture, to entirely new music created simply by the inspiration of a sound that didn’t borrow from anything, I thoroughly enjoyed it. This is a special guitar that has a voice that should be heard; in the melting pot of modern music, the SCHS is a welcome addition to our tonal palate and one I hope to hear a lot more of.
Buy if...
you’re looking for a high quality and unique sound that doesn’t come from a solidbody or semihollowbody guitar.
Skip if...
rockin’ is your only business… and business is good.
Rating...
MSRP $4770 - PRS - prsguitars.com |
Diamond Pedals Dark Cloud
True to the Diamond design ethos of our dBBD’s hybrid analog architecture, Dark Cloud unlocks a new frontier in delay technology which was once deemed unobtainable by standard BBD circuit.
Powered by an embedded system, the Dark Cloud seamlessly blends input and output signals, crafting Tape, Harmonic, and Reverse delays with the organic warmth of analog companding and the meticulous precision of digital control.
Where analog warmth meets digital precision, the Dark Cloud redefines delay effects to create a pedal like no other
Epiphone Firebird I
When Gibson debuted the Firebird I and Firebird V in 1963, the design was as innovative as it was radical. Like the Flying V and Explorer, the Firebird seemed Martian—or at least like a work of futurist art, with its offset body shape, extended lower and upper bouts, reverse headstock, and through-body neck.
Firebirds came in three versions: The single-pickup Firebird I, the two-humbucker Firebird V, and the three-pickup Firebird VII, with the latter two featuring a Vibrola tailpiece, trapezoid inlays, and neck binding. The first time I saw a Firebird in action, it was in the hands of Johnny Winter, who gave no quarter as he ripped conflagrant solos from its fretboard, but Brian Jones, Clapton, Allen Collins, Paul Stanley, and Phil Manzanera also helped make the model a legend. Original ’60s Firebird V’s sell for as much as $35,000, and reissues peak at nearly $10,000 for the Gibson Custom Shop’s ’63 Firebird V. That’s a lot of dough to look badass on stage. But now, Epiphone—in collaboration with Gibson’s Custom Shop—has taken high-quality reissues of the 1963 Firebird I and V into a more affordable realm. They’re still pricey for an Epi’, at $1,299 and $1,699, respectively, but undeniably brimming with panache.
“I was surprised by how sweet and heavy Gibson’s Firebird Mini Humbuckers sound. There is nothing mini about their tone.”
An’ a I, an’ a V
Our review Firebirds arrived impeccably set up, with action low enough for speed, but high enough for slide—my comfort zone, coincidentally. They are handsome guitars too. The I is finished in gleaming cherry, while the V is decked out in vintage sunburst and a shiny Vibrola tailpiece.
The necks are the not-so-secret weapons on these models. They are 9-ply mahogany and walnut (original Firebirds have a 5-ply neck), sandwiched between mahogany wings, but both guitars are still fairly light. The I is 7 1/2 pounds and the V weighs about 9 pounds due to the additional pickup and bridge hardware. There are 22 comfortable, medium-jumbo frets, which allow easy navigation and elegant bends, a Graph Tech nut, dot neck inlays on the I and trapezoids on the V, a classic Gibson-scale neck length of 24 3/4", and an Indian laurel fretboard. The banjo-style Kluson Planetary tuners, as well as the reverse headstock, take time to get to use to, but contribute to the instruments sleek, clean lines. The Firebird I’s electronics are simply a master volume and tone, with CTS pots and Mallory caps inside, in service of a warm-to-cutting single alnico 5 Gibson USA Firebird Mini Humbucker. The V offers more ways to shape your tone: The Vibrola is cool and vibey and there’s a classic four-dial Gibson control set (also routed through Mallory caps and CTS pots), a 3-way pickup switch on the lower bout, and a pair of those Gibson USA Firebird Mini Humbuckers.
Epiphone Firebird V
Trial by Firebird
I was sure I would prefer the Firebird V playing experience, because I am typically a neck-pickup player, but both guitars revealed sonic charms through Carr Vincent and Telstar amps running in stereo, my vintage Marshall Super Lead, and a Positive Grid Spark.
Low-action setups on both accommodate everything from campfire chords to screaming single-note playing past the 12th fret, with the perfectly smooth fret ends and comfortable neck making it all a pleasure. The neck broadens to 2 1/4" at the body, from 1 3/4" at the nut, making it easy to hit high notes accurately. But what really excited me, besides how artful these guitars look, is the power and sound of the pickups.
I was surprised by how sweet and heavy Gibson’s Firebird Mini Humbuckers sound. There is nothing mini about their tone, whether slashing and growling through the Marshall or pouring thick honey out of the Carrs. And through the Spark, a highly pleasing snarl and juicy warmth were all on tap. Despite my predilection for neck pickups, I became really excited by the Firebird I. The simplicity and elegance of its look, streamlined controls, clean surface, and light weight made the I a joy to play, especially with the treble rolled to near-zero. There, early Clapton-esque tone was a cinch to find, and for blues and pseudo-jazz-licks (the best I can muster in that genre), the warmth and clarity were delightful. Despite its basic construction, the Epiphone Firebird I is assuredly more than a rock machine.
Sure, having the addition of a neck pickup on the Firebird V provides a wider selection of tones, but the voices achievable on the I were no less winning and, honestly, I could not find any pickup-and-dial configuration on the V that sounded all that different or better than those available on the I. But, ah, a Vibrola is a very nice appointment—not just for its grand appearance, which is like some antiquarian treasure, but for the subtle bends its enables. If atmospheric guitar tones from the Ventures to Hermanos Gutiérrez are your passion, you’d want the Vibrola, which stays remarkably in tune, given its relatively primitive design.
The Verdict
Make no mistake: With their uncommonly proportioned offset bodies and reverse headstocks, guitars like the Epiphone Firebird I and V require time to get acquainted. But if you’re unafraid to stand out from the crowd, these instruments will serve you visually and sonically. Both play well and offer a good scope of vintage tones—from aggressive to dark maple sugar—with simple dial adjustments. And while many other Epiphone models sell for less, these well-crafted copies of original Gibson designs provide custom-shop or boutique-builder quality at a much lower price. PG
