Build and features

This is the most expensive of our quartet (although it comes with a gigbag), but it’s the one that nails that stripped-down Les Paul Junior look. Its body is solid mahogany with a vintage-style two-tone sunburst finish.

But it’s not all traditional. The SE has PRS’s more shapely contouring across the belly and ribcage, and the controls are offset and placed closer to the bridge pickup than the traditional Gibson style.

Pickups comprise a pair of PRS Treble and Bass soapbar single-coils with vintage-y off white covers; and are controlled by a three-way toggle with master volume and tone. The Soapbar features PRS’s wide-fat neck profile married to a dark rosewood ’board that offers an excellent playing platform for the modern rocker, yet provides enough meat in the palm for traditional players.

The PRS-designed two-pin self-intonated stoptail bridge is present as usual and offers easy action-height adjustment. The PRS tuners are accurate, but a more vintage-y looking set might have been a better way to cap off a seriously well-built and cool looking guitar.

Next: PRS SE Soapbar sounds, pros and cons