PRS SE and MIK Tokai NLP-40

[ScottA]

The Tokai PRS my buddy bought has the recessed knobs and such. His is quilted. I'm pretty sure its Korean, as it has the printing on the back of the headstock. I think it has a made under liscence disclaimer and it might even say "made in Korea".

About P90's:

They positively rock!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I recently picked up a "player" '68 SG Special with original P90's. It is huge! These pickups can do anything. While they won't quite crunch like a hot humbucker and they won't quack like a clean single coil, they definitely bridge the gap and come pretty **** close to either. It's my first P90 guitar and it will absolutely be a major force in my arsenal going forward. It is defintely something that can handle your entire set. Unfortunately it is now in the shop getting a refret.

I also looked at a NOS PRS McCarty Soapbar from a few years back (shop floor model) which was around the same price. I just figured why not go for the real thing.

 

[hans-j?rgen]

By the way, does the original PRS version have a one-piece bridge/tailpiece as well, or does it come with a tremolo? The one on the Tokais is from Wilkinson, so probably a good version.

 

[Hutton Steel]

For what it's worth I have played a PRS SE Soapbar 11 in my local store. I was mightily impressed by the guitar. Two P90s (lovely) give out plently single coil volume and tone. This is a well-made guitar for ?399 BP. It comes with a sturdy and useable PRS gigbag. OK I haven't compared it to a MIK Tokai but I would certainly be happy to own a Korean PRS.

Can I now be controversial. Yes, we all know that Tokai guitars are brilliant, superb, sound great etc. However, other manufacturers make great guitars too. They very often are also great value for money. It just doesn't ring true when we compare every Tokai with its american counterpart and the Tokai comes out miles ahead. If we stay blinkered to only consider Tokai then we are in danger of becoming like G****N!

Hutton

 

[hans-j?rgen]

Right, but who did this in this thread?

 

[Hutton Steel]

My point was made after Chu71 remarked that the PRS was a rip-off etc. Ok that is his opinion. I have stated mine.

Hutton

 

[chu71]

exactly where s the problem?

i agree with u hutton obvioudsly there s life outside tokai.

but dont get me wrong, i didnt mean the se is a crap guitar, but i do think it is a rip off for 850 eur which was the ret price i saw it at. for that price i think u can get much better guitars in the used mkt, and not just tokais....

same for the highway series from fender, supposed to be assembled in the us...they sell for arnd 900 eur where i live, and that is a plain rip off. those things are not even worth half of that...tried a few ones, stay away from those

mind u , i think we europeans get ripped off on new electric guitars...i cant buy guitars in madrid, they just dont compete with -retailers from japan or the us, even including shipping costs...

 

[hans-j?rgen]

I agree that most guitar shops in Europe have too high prices if you compare them to direct imports from Japan or e.g. the United States. But this is probably caused by this relatively new situation for them and their customers that in fact everyone with internet access can buy a guitar in the country where it's manufactured very easily and with moderate shipping costs. Not too long ago you just had to buy a Gibson from your local dealer, and he could ask what he wanted for it and got it if you had to have that name on the headstock, because all the shops in your town or even country asked the same price.

With Tokai guitars the situation is even "worse", because they are only distributed officially in a few countries, and Germany and Spain do not belong to them (rather the UK and Canada besides Japan), so you have to go this way (direct import or ebay) if you want a Tokai. I'm not sure anymore that this is a disadvantage for them...

Of course it's always better to test a guitar in a shop before you buy it (and accept the higher price for that service), but if you can't anyhow, then it doesn't matter anymore if someone sends it from 500, 1000 or 5000 miles away directly to your door (except for the shipping costs).

Back to the PRS prices: I think they were always very high from the start (at least in Germany), i.e. with the first Santana guitars in the early '80s, and this has probably influenced the pricing of their Korean models, too (similar to Gibson and MIJ Epiphone). But I never really compared them, so I may be wrong.

 

[togps]

With Tokai guitars the situation is even "worse", because they are only distributed officially in a few countries, and Germany and Spain do not belong to them (rather the UK and Canada besides Japan), so you have to go this way (direct import or ebay) if you want a Tokai.

Ask me

 

[hans-j?rgen]

OK, which shops in Hamburg have Tokais?

 

[togps]

None!
Purchase from me instead. :wink:

 

[Jim Jones]

They are P90 pickups, I never actually played them myself, but I hear they are like a cross between a single coil and a humbucker - a fat singlecoil almost. They are meant to be very nice for cleans, and for some distortion but I dunno how much they could handle!

P90's are friggin' awesome! The clean sound is fantastic and so is the cranked up sound. You won't be getting modern metal tones out of them but if you consider Tony Iommi used them on the first few Black Sabbath albums you get an idea of what they're capable of.

Jim