PRS SE Silver Sky Review
Towards the tail end of 2021, I decided to take a leap and try the Silver Sky, despite not being a huge John Mayer fan or a fan of strat-style guitars in general. I ended up loving the Silver Sky and was very excited when PRS announced the SE version; so much so that I preordered one the first day it was possible to do so. The prospect of having something as close as possible to the Core model I’d fallen in love with for about ⅓ of the price was definitely intriguing, and this is what all the marketing seemed to promise. Marketing promises and reality frequently differ, but I’m pleased to report that the SE Silver Sky I purchased is a very good guitar with the spirit of the Core model. It is not, however, a perfect guitar.
Construction
Poplar body
Maple Neck w/ Rosewood Fingerboard
8.5” Fretboard Radius
Width of Fretboard at Nut: 1 20/32” (or 1 ⅝” because that’s how fractions work)
Neck Depth at Nut: 53/64” (21mm)
PRS SE 2-Point Steel Tremolo
Vintage-Style Tuners
Synthetic Bone Nut
635JM “S” Pickups
Much like its predecessor, the SE Silver Sky takes the classic strat design and adds some extra refinements and changes. The infamous headstock is still present in this iteration, this time with a plastic truss rod cover and non-locking tuners. PRS’s signature treble horn scoop as well as a rounded neck heel have also been carried over to this more affordable model.
All hardware and electronics function exactly as they should, and overall the guitar seems to be solid. Tuning is incredibly stable, the neck is secure with no unwanted movement, and the guitar arrived perfectly set up with a fairly low action.
The thing I was most impressed with in terms of the guitar’s quality was the fretwork. Every single fret and fret end is polished and rounded to perfection, and the frets are perfectly level with 0 spots where notes choke out. This is especially surprising given that the fretboard radius is much more round than many production guitars, which typically means there is much less margin for error when leveling. Thankfully, this SE Silver Sky features some of the best fretwork I’ve ever seen on an Indonesian made guitar.
This particular guitar does have a few flaws, but they in no way affect functionality or playability. There are several black dots on the front of the body underneath the clear coat and one pinhole indentation near the neck pocket. There’s also a small patch on the neck where it feels more textured than the rest of the neck, which is sanded/finished smooth, and the nut on the treble side hangs over the side of the neck just a hair.
Feel
Even with the aforementioned minor flaws, the guitar still feels fantastic to play. The neck is finished in a tinted satin that, aside from the small patch I mentioned, is incredibly smooth and doesn’t hinder left hand movement in the slightest. The fantastic fretwork ensures bends share that same smooth feeling, and all the notes are as intonated as possible from the 1st fret to the 22nd helping chords and lead lines sound their best.
The SE model still has a vintage-inspired neck profile and fingerboard radius, but as I mentioned in my review of the Core version, this has not hindered me in the slightest despite my previous avoidance of guitars with similar necks. Thanks to the PRS treble side scoop and rounded neck heel, soloing and chording on the upper frets is, thankfully, much more comfortable than your standard vintage-inspired bolt-on guitar.
Sound
In my review of the USA Silver Sky, I said that the pickups sound like an idealized version of 60s strat pickups, and these 635JM “S” pickups warrant the exact same description. Each of these 3 pickups are incredibly clear without being overly bright, and output-wise every position on the switch is well balanced. The in between positions also have the very same level of clarity with the addition of the trademark strat quack you’d expect. If you enjoy vintage strat tones, this guitar can provide you with an excellent example of them.
Conclusions
The PRS SE Silver Sky I purchased is a great feeling and sounding guitar that also unfortunately has some minor finishing flaws. Aside from these flaws though, this guitar is a testament to how far import models have come. The neck, fretwork, and pickups would all be at home on a guitar that cost nearly two times as much. PRS and Mayer’s goal was to distill as much of the original model as possible into a guitar that was considerably cheaper, and in that venture they succeeded.
For me personally, this guitar plays and sounds better than a lot of comparable guitars I’ve tried from competitors at this price and just beyond it. Assuming the finishing side of things receives the same attention to detail as seen on the frets going forward, or assuming my guitar’s flaws are atypical for the line as a whole, I think the SE Silver Sky would be one of the best value for money propositions for a strat-style guitar in this price range. Then again, when a guitar feels and sounds as professional as this one, perhaps it already is at the top of the heap for some, in spite of its minor imperfections.
