Episode 76

Paul Reed Smith Ends the Tonewood Debate

Published on: 21st November, 2022

Paul Reed Smith drops in to dip a rig and unpack the facets of tone—and why he unwound—and destroyed—a set of $10k vintage Fender pickups. Plus, all the fun stuff: What’s it like working with John Mayer? Does Santana’s guitar sound like a tenor sax? Why does David Grissom need every PRS on a music-store wall to play great? And the dudes argue over the big question: What’s better a cheap guitar and an expensive amp, or an expensive guitar and a cheap amp?

Big thanks to StewMac for sponsoring this episode. Head to http://stewmac.com/dippedintone to get 10% off!

8:20 Shill of the Week

14:49 Paul Reed Smith Interview

16:59 Paul Dips a Rig (Kinda)

29:04 I Can't Afford a Real Marshall, Paul

32:27 The HDRX Amp and Old Marshalls

38:44 Seriously, do tonewoods even matter?

47:35 What does Paul look for in a piece of wood?

50:56 How do you make a good guitar great?

53:20 Paul talks about how PRS is making saddles better

59:18 The Silver Sky SE

1:04:58 The magic of a 1963 Stratocaster