PRS SE A60E
first play
Fishman GT-1 preamp and under-saddle
pickup. Yes, you’re looking at a pair of well-
sorted electro-acoustics here.
There are differences to ponder, too.
While the T50E comes spec’d with figured
maple back and sides, the A60E finds its
solid Sitka-spruce top partnered with
sheets of finest ziricote. Obviously, at this
price we’re talking laminates, not solid
wood. But, er, stop the bus for a second.
Ziricote? Now, we don’t imagine for a
second that you’ll care that this timber’s
scientific name is Cordia Dodecandra. You
might even shrug when confronted with
the fact this stuff is grown in Mexico and
South America. What should grab your
attention is what this wood looks and
sounds like. Ziricote is a denser and more
highly figured alternative to the CITES-
protected Brazilian rosewood.
Feel & Sounds
Both the T50E and A60E play host to PRS’s
much-loved and fingered Wide Fat neck
profile. At just under 43mm at the nut, this
shape isn’t actually all that wide and it’s not
quite as chubby as the name suggests, either.
Judging by the satisfying amount of beef
slapped into our palm we’ll chalk this shape
up to a full C. A low action and sensibly
spec’d 0.012 to 0.053 gauge strings help
achieve a maximum score for the playability
in both SEs.
Being newborns, these guitars will take
a bit of encouragement before they reach
tonal adolescence. That said, the use of X/
Classical hybrid top bracing hasn’t half
given them a great start in life. This setup
offers the string tension resisting strength of
traditional X-bracing, the format you’d find
on, say, a dreadnought, with the flexibility
of a classical guitar top. The more that top
vibrates, the greater the tonal sweetness
and output.
It only bloody works. There’s a huge
bottom-end twang in the T50E’s delivery.
It’s that ‘piano-like’ thing that acoustic
junkies are always going on about. The
top-end is bright of course, yet there’s an
There’s a warmth
that doubles up when
you switch from a
pick to the fl eshy
tips of your fi ngers
2
3
4
19
February 2019 Guitarist
PRS SE T50E & SE A60E
3. The beauty is more
than skin deep here.
PRS has spec’d a hybrid
X/Classical bracing on
the underside of these
solid Sitka spruce tops.
This arrangement offers
the perfect balance of
strength and fl exibility
to boost volume and
tonal output
4. Both feature ebony
bridge plates, as
well as bone top
nuts and saddles
VIDEO DEMO http://bit.ly/guitaristextra
GIT442.rev_prs.indd 19 16/12/2018 21:21