Paul Reed Smith Studio Special Pearl White

1988 Paul Reed Smith Studio Special in Pearl White finish.  Specs:

• Mahogany body
• Mahogany neck, Brazilian rosewood fingerboard
• Wide/thin neck profile, mother-of-pearl bird inlays
• Vintage Treble humbucker, original Fralin single coils
  
• Phase I locking tuners
• Original case
• Weight = 7 lbs, 12 oz

This is truly a rare guitar!  1988 was the first year of the PRS Studio but this guitar also has features from the PRS Special.  It has the recessed tremolo route, wide/thin neck profile, Brazilian rosewood fretboard, mother-of-pearl bird inlays, and the coveted Pearl White finish.  The pickups include 2 single coils (by Lindy Fralin) and a Vintage Treble humbucker, which is a medium output humbucker that was exclusive to the early Studio models.

As awesome as this guitar is, it came with some electronics issues.  The volume and tone pots were damaged internally and the single coil pickups had some cut coil windings.  The pickups were sent to Tom Brantley for a re-wind.  Tom, who is a well-known pickup maker in his own right, used to work for Lindy and Lindy suggested to have Tom do the re-wind work on these pickups.  Originally, these single coils would have been on the thin/bright side, but we asked Tom to slightly overwind these single coils so they sound more full and match the humbucker better.  They sound great!  The volume and tone pots were replaced with the same J-taper CTS pots that PRS has been using in their guitars since the early 1990s.

As for the condition, this Studio looks stunning considering its age.  There are a few minor dings around the edges of the body, and a mark on the back of the neck that is very shallow (you hardly know it's there).  The tremolo and hardware is free of oxidation, pitting, or rust.  The frets are in great shape as well.  Finally, the pearl white has not faded or yellowed over time - it's still got strong hues of pink, purple, and blue.

This is a really nice opportunity to own a very unique piece of PRS history.  Plus, with the electronics work that has been done, it's a collectable that you will enjoy playing!