I'll write a review in a few days...when I get mine. I'm going to compare it to an actual PRS...side by side.... One of my close friends happens to be the #1 PRS dealer in the country and we are going to compare the two.
Should be interesting.
I was in at Mike's Music the other day and saw the Korean ones. They look really nice and felt very good. The only thing that caught me was that the top looked a bit like a 'photo-flame' (is that the way they're making them?).
the top of the prs-a-likes doesnt look atall like a photo, look at something like a dillion and you'll see a bad looking photo top, the tokai's have real maple tops.
I took one of our TOKAI NLP-40's to one of top selling PRS stores in the USA , so the owner & I could compare the two models. I'm not that familiar with PRS except for the fact that they are beautiful, expensive & well made. The closest PRS model to the TOKAI was the McCarty model:
Our comparison model was a KOREAN madeTOKAI NLP-40 was a "Tigers Eye" mapleon the Bottom)
Fit & finish on a 2500.00 PRS guitar is what you expect...stunning! Bob (the PRS dealer) & I were very pleased & impressed with the fit & finish of the TOKAI as well. The Tokai's fit & finish were exceptional..even down to the bird inlays.
We plugged them into an Orange amp stack and traded licks for about 10 minutes or so and we were equally impressed with the meaty sound. I think if the Tokai had a better set of strings on it....it would have completed the sound.
Honestly....If I had 2500.00 to blow......I'd get the PRS because it is one well made instrument (not knocking the Tokai by any means) but if I wanted the look & sound and still be able to pay the bills without worry and without the wife getting mad & the kid going without braces....I'd definately recommend the tokai for a quarter of the price. It is at least a bridge to the real thing adn its depreciation is much less. I'd like to think of the Tokai version much like the Japanese fenders/Tokai Fenders or the Love Rocks to the Les Pauls. The tokai is a contender...especially with the current U.S. job market these days.
You can see the obvious finish differences and the thicker bridge on the PRS as compared to the Tokai. According to Bob....the blue finish is very very rare in PRS's.