PRS SE 24-08 vs 35th Anniversary S2 Custom 24

https://www.guitarworld.com/reviews/prs-se-custom-24-and-24-08-review

EDIT: I shouldn't have put this here, it's not comparable really.
Note that this review actually includes the SE Custom 24, not the 35th Anniversary S2 Custom 24 I'm asking about.
The SE Custom 24 has a 3-way blade switch and a push-pull tone control.
The 35th Anniversary S2 Custom 24 has a 3-way toggle and 2 mini-toggles, more combinations, and easier to use.
 
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Hmmm well yes I replied to my own question, but it's not "the answer".
I'm not just looking for facts, I'm also looking for opinions and experiences.
GW's perspective is one view, only.

And yes your reply is off (this) topic :)
You'd probably do better starting your own thread, in a more appropriate section of the forum.
 
Steinberger said:
You got it Dave. And of course, getting varied opinions is the best, aggregate and determine your own view, especially if you haven’t played it yet….can I ask something though? Should I put it up for sale on here? Or is that frowned upon ?
Click to expand...
There's a For Sale section in the Classified area here.
Take a look, Fractal and other stuff for sale.

But maybe don't give up just yet :)
If you're having trouble making tones from scratch...
  • Did you check out the factory presets? Many different styles there.
  • You could check out one of Cooper Cart's courses. They cover lots of topics, including designing presets.
  • If you're still feeling stuck, maybe pick up some commercial presets from Austin Buddy, Fremen, or others. Most have video demos.
  • Have patience with yourself! These are complex devices with tons of options, you may not feel at home right away. But these are really good!
  • If you really don't want it, it's really new to you, and you bought it new, you can return it.
 
Some differences I found:
SE 24-08
Neck profile: Wide Thin​
Pickups: TCI “S” Bass, Treble​
Weight: 7.5 lbs - 8.3 lbs​
35th Anniversary S2 Custom 24
Neck profile: Pattern Regular​
Pickups: 85/15​
Weight: 8.1 lbs​
SE Paul's Guitar
Neck profile: Wide Fat​
Pickups: TCI “S” Bass, Treble​
Weight: 7.2 lbs​
 
The s2's are very much a core model and I think of them as kind of the les paul junior line or special in many ways. I did a demo for PRS on the SE line and they are also really great guitars. They feel just like a PRS all around except the finish surely feels more like what you would expect from an off-shore guitar. BUT, that really is the difference other than some of the outside features and maybe next options. To me, the s2 line is the sleeper. They are not crazy expensive and honestly they play as well as any PRS makes. As far as guitars and sounds, paul's guitar, the custom 22, or anything with 22 frets/25 inch scale all have a certain uniqueness to them. The McCarty feels close to all of those, but is much more LP inspired and with the way they do their necks, I do not feel to much of a difference other than the chunkier neck (which is not really chunky) and slightly less modern tone. The SE/S2/Core custom 24 is a whole different guitar in terms of sound and feel. It has all the aspects of a custom 22/25inch scale and some flavors of paul's model, but it is brighter because of the pickup placement. Depends on what kind of music you really play but on the Fender/Gibson Scale you have a dial with all the PRS guitars as to where they fall. The CE24 being the highest on the strat scale and the McCarty 594 being the highest on the Gibson scale. Of course if you like strats the silver sky is a good option and that is just Fender. The 85/15S and USA pickups are really fantastic pickups as well as the 7's you find in some of the Custom 22's. The TCI's are very special and if you are into P90s and teles they are great. They are not really the same sound as your les paul, but they are cool as well.
 
Dave Merrill said:
Some differences I found:
SE 24-08
Neck profile: Wide Thin​
Pickups: TCI “S” Bass, Treble​
Weight: 7.5 lbs - 8.3 lbs​
35th Anniversary S2 Custom 24
Neck profile: Pattern Regular​
Pickups: 85/15​
Weight: 8.1 lbs​
SE Paul's Guitar
Neck profile: Wide Fat​
Pickups: TCI “S” Bass, Treble​
Weight: 7.2 lbs​
Click to expand...
Not sure which profile my SE24 Standard has, but it is very comfortable to play, and with a couple minor tweaks, punches well above its weight. I reach for it as often as for my USA Custom 24....
 
Thanks Bruce, super helpful.

I'd really like the 3-way toggle pickup selector, and the 2 mini toggles instead of the push-pull coil tap. That rules out the s2 line, from what I've found, but that may be an accident of where I've been looking. Those are also more money than the SEs

I've been leaning towards the 24-08 for the thinner neck and the switching I want, but that's just theoretical, haven't played one.

Opposite that, I generally go for a fuller tone (says the guy currently mostly playing a strat these days, phhht), which points towards the 22 in scale and 85/15s instead of TCIs. Haven't found a model like that with the switching I'd like though. The three models I've been asking about are different tradeoffs of those options.

I really should try them in person, but there aren't a ton of these in the area right now. Kind of have to pick a model and go where it is. Not a work-day project, should have done some of that yesterday, but stuff got in the way.

Thanks for the info, I'm still open to ideas.
 
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The s2 line has the 3 way and the two minis in the custom 24. It is in the 35th anniversary model only. They are getting harder to find but still around.
 
Dave Merrill said:
Thanks Bruce, super helpful.

I'd really like the 3-way toggle pickup selector, and the 2 mini toggles instead of the push-pull coil two. That rules out the s2 line, from what I've found, but that may be an accident of where I've been looking. Those are also more money that the SEs

I've been leaning towards the 24-08 for the thinner neck and the switching I want, but that's theoretical only, haven't played one.

Opposite that, I generally go for a fuller tone (says the guy currently mostly playing a strat these days, phhht), which points towards the 22 in scale and 85/15s instead of TCIs. Haven't found a model like that with my switching though. The three models I've been asking about are different tradeoffs of those options.

I really should try them in person, but there aren't a ton of these in the area right now. Kind of have to pick a model and go where it is. Not a work day project, should have done some of that yesterday, but stuff got in the way.

Thanks for the info, I'm still open to ideas.
Click to expand...

I added the two switches to my SE24 Standard, but did series/parallel instead of coil split, as it is always hum-cancelling. Were I to be able to go back in time, I would have arranged the switches the same way they are on the 24-08, but they work just fine as-is. Had to replace the pull-pot for the split, as while trying to get the knob off to align it better (so it would read 10 when full up instead of 8.5 or so), I managed to pull the shaft out of the pull pot. Eventually I replaced the pull pot, but in the interim while using a regular non-pull pot and waiting for a replacement to arrive, I also decided to do the two switches for s/p instead of split. Even managed to find the same short bat-handle switches, so it looks close to factory. When I got the pull-pot replacement, I decided to do a phase switch, which works really well (and differently!) with the 85/15S pickups in all 4 combinations of series/parallel switch settings. Also upgraded to locking tuners and what might be the last set of Wilkinson locking saddles in the world (not sure what happened, but they seem to be made of unobtanium the past couple years). This guitar gets picked up as often as my Custom 24. Oh, one other thing - the Indonesians who wired this one did a better soldering job than whoever wired my Custom 24. I found a neck pickup wire that was not through the hole in the lug on the 5-way switch, and solder-blobs and extra length of pickup shield braid past the solder connection where the wire was soldered to the tone pot to ground it. Should've got a picture of that, methinks....
1114211844_HDR.jpg
 
I emailed PRS support:
So the only difference between the SE 24-08 and SE 35th Anniversary is the available colors?

They said:
That would be correct. The 35th Anniversary Custom 24 models were released in 2020, whereas the SE Custom 24-08 models were released in 2021. They share many specifications, such as PRS Tremolo, Wide-Thin neck profile, and 85/15 S Treble & Bass pickups.
 
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