of the parts was both humbling and exhilarating to learn about. By the time the Modern
Eagle II arrived, I was ready and excited to
check it out.
Features
The reviewed MEII features a highly figured
curly maple top with mahogany back and
a high gloss nitro finish in what PRS calls
“Faded Blue Jean.” It sports a 25” scale
length (right in between Gibson and Fender)
with a black rosewood 22-fret neck and
fingerboard that is decorated with green
abalone bird inlays and iridescent paua heart
centers. The neck profile is both wide and fat,
giving the neck substance and comfort with
easy access all the way up to the 22nd fret.
The bridge is PRS’s own stoptail that allows
for individual string intonation adjustments,
as well as two screws for overall adjustment.
Tuners are 14: 1 Phase II low mass locking
grommet style, and the pickups are the newly
introduced 1957/2008 treble and bass pickups, which are wound at PRS with original
pickup wire used in 1957 on our favorite humbucker from that era. Finally, there is a volume
and tone control with 3-way toggle pickup
selector and nickel hardware. This is a nicely
appointed guitar.
If first impressions count, PRS made sure they
hit a home run. Right out of the shipping
box, I was blown away when an ultra-sexy tan
suede guitar case revealed itself. There are
guitar cases and there is art, and this case is
a work of art. I mean, it could be the perfect
companion to a nice tan suede jacket I have
in my closet! The inside was no less impressive with a crushed red velvet interior and
snug fit for the MEII. Pulling the guitar out of
the case I was struck by the impeccable quality and beauty, right down to the last detail.
Everything was tight and balanced. Though
the MEII has a rosewood neck and fingerboard (yes, a rosewood neck!), the balance
is dead-on. Usually with a wood as heavy as
rosewood I’d expect a neck-heavy instrument
that didn’t hang properly on a strap or continuously dropped when sitting down to play.
That was certainly not the case on this one.
First Play
The build quality of the MEII was the highest I’ve ever encountered in a guitar—there
wasn’t a flaw to be found anywhere. From the
perfectly cut nut to the fret installation and
dressing to the design of the bridge, everything has a feeling of solid quality. It’s clear
that every part of this guitar was planned
and tested to create the ultimate instrument.
With a rosewood neck, rather than the typical
mahogany or maple, I expected a neck-heavy
and dark sounding guitar. Nothing could be
further from the truth, but I’ll get to that in
just a minute. The finish was impeccable and
revealed all the beautiful figuring in the curly
maple top just like I’d seen before in other
PRS guitars. The only thing that was different
this time around is that I had time to hang out
with the guitar and admire the workmanship
and killer finishing.
I had a chance to run the MEII through its
paces in a variety of settings, including the
studio I’ve used for the past several years
on all of the Guitar Hero sessions (Crush
Recording). At this point, I know that room,
the cabs and the amps and how they respond
to guitars very well. It was evident from the
first note that the MEII is a winner. The first
amp I plugged into was a 1965 Marshall JTM
45 with EL34s and a late-sixties Marshall
4x12 cab with original GH12-30 speakers.
This is my starting point for all my tests these
days because I can always get a reliable and
killer tone out of it. Compared to the more
pronounced midrange bite of a Les Paul, the
MEII has a very evenly voiced sound that can
swing widely in tone just by working with the
three basic components (volume, tone and
pickup selection). I actually found myself rolling back the volume and tone to settings I’d
never dream of normally choosing because
they were so reactive. The classic “woman
tone,” achieved by rolling the tone off and
using the neck pickup, still had a clarity on the
lowest notes (that seemed impossible), and
with the tone and volume on full in the bridge
position, even the highest notes on the neck
didn’t bite my head off.
Something very special is going on with the
1957/2008 pickups. They offer the classic PAF
tone with just a bit more beef and fullness
while still retaining great clarity and string-to-string definition. It was scary to admit that
these pickups sounded better than the real
’ 58 PAF that was in my Les Paul. Sure, they
were in a different guitar, but it was clear that
they offered every bit as much of that elusive
silkiness and fire, but with just more of everything that is good. When I asked PRS about
building the pickups I was informed that not
only do they have one of the original winding
machines from that era, but they also have
the same material and wire with enough to
make these pickups for decades! No doubt
when word gets out about the 1957/2008’s
there will be a secret society of those who
were able to find a loose one pulled from one
of these guitars. One could only be so lucky.
The neck feel was perfect for me. It had the
familiar thickness of a late-fifties Les Paul but
with a flatter radius that felt very comfortable
in just about every position. The intonation
was also dead on—in fact, the guitar was in
tune when it arrived! I particularly admired the
stoptail bridge, another work of art that was
functional and toneful. Most of the time with
that style of bridge, I find there are areas that
just aren’t in tune; no matter how you adjust
them, they don’t work for everything. The one
thing I noticed that was a little odd was that
the volume pot seemed looser than the tone
pot. It had an easiness to it that felt too slick,
while the tone pot had just the right amount
of resistance, making it feel solid. I wonder if
that had anything to do with the type of pot
they used for both, or if it was just an anomaly
with this guitar. Either way, it had no effect on
the sound or taper, so it’s not a big deal.
With a list price of $7000 this guitar does not
come cheap. That said, you get what you
pay for, and I think this may be the first time
I’ve felt that a guitar was worthy of a price
tag in that range. Because of the incredible
attention to detail, flawless construction, killer
tone and a case that should be on display,
it’s hard for me to find anything but good in
the MEII. For those who have been awaiting
this updated Modern Eagle, start saving your
money, because this will most certainly fulfill
your expectations and desires.
Buy If...
you want beauty, top-notch
construction and killer tone.
Skip If...
ou need to start putting money
away for a new car.
Rating... 5.0
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MSRP $7080
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