$900 SE vs $3500 PRS Silver Sky | Sound Comparison 

I can’t tell the difference. I’m more impressed on how you recorded both guitars and your timing was flawless. I know when I play any song I never manage to play it exactly the same. Great job. It makes the comparison easier to listen to. And I emphasize that the lower priced version sounds as good as the other.

Best side by side comparison video I’ve ever seen! The quick back and forth over the same song is so much better than the usual gratuitous soloing you see on other channels. Well done Mary! Love your style!

I honestly couldn't tell the difference in the performance. Stunning quality, especially considering the price range!

You're a great professional! Not all pro are able to repeat same performances between two takes, I mean both your guitar sound and your voice are outstanding and on the mark on both takes! Thank you for sharing your personal experience, great things to know for musicians with low budget like me. Cheers from Italy!

Such a cool vid Mary! Rad that you could do a side by side comparison, loveee! 🎸

The way you compare them {color changes) is the best I ever saw.

Great playing as always. And I'm floored how similar they sound. I was disappointed that life got in the way and prevented me from buying a Silver Sky last year, but now I'm really stoked about getting an SE instead.

The SE models from PRS have always been an incredible value and this seems not exception. I have heard of bands who actually tour with SE models even though they have an American model, because they really are good enough and they don't have to worry as much about looking after an expensive guitar on the road. It is really great to also have an affordable guitar which doesn't make big compromises, which aren't difficult to play and could put off beginners to the instrument.

Honestly, the SE actually fixes a couple of the things I didn't like about the US model when I tried one, particularly with the slightly flatter radius. I liked the US model, but definitely not enough to buy one for the price they are. SE might be another story entirely!

You gave the absolute best side by side comparison I've seen yet. And , I love your music. Best of both worlds in this video. I look forward to more videos and possibly tour dates here in the USA.

The side by side song context was crucial. Bravo for going that route. Excellent demo!

Both are beautiful instruments and I'm very impressed how there isn't little differences. Amazing

It really does play and sound remarkably close to the SS. Well done

Excellent comparison Mary! I have a few PRS models in my collection form SE models to a Core wood library model. I recently sold my Core Custom 24 and purchased an S2 McCarty 594 Thinline. Just so impressed with all of them and you are so right that the difference between the SE to S2 to Core models is a matter of diminishing returns. Anyway, I just pre-ordered my Silver Sky SE in the same Moon White color and loved how it looks white in the monochrome black & white videos. You've also convinced me to practice more using my thumb over the Low E string instead of contorting my hand and fingers to those wrist numbing C-shape bar chords! Thank you!!!

The nebula sounds a little bit brighter. I’d probably hold out for a used USA model but I think the SE will fly off the shelf. Really great side by side demo. Great playing as always Mary.

Aww, that final phrase of the song where you harmonized with yourself - magical!

Well I must say Mary, I think this is the best review / demo of this guitar I’ve seen and I have not stopped watching half way through. Not forcefully pushing the hype, just a clear comparison between each guitar, and very well done it is too. It is hard to tell the difference between the 2, a great demo of the sound. Great recording on your part too.

I’m partial to blue but what I loved is the chord progression you opened with.👌 The tone is slightly brighter on the nebula. Great demo Mary.

honestly prefer the sound of the se especially in the 4th and 5th position it has a nicer bassier sound to me without getting muddy, not as bright as the silver sky but i like that its warmer, more mellow and to me feels more present and impactful.

I'm just impressed that you actually synced the comparisons perfectly with any flanging or latency. Well, you're right. The differences are subtle. But they are there for sure. Then again, I'm an Audio Engineer so I'm probably likely to hear nit picky things that the average player doesn't care about. You're quite a talented Musician, and so young. Very cool. All the best. 🙂

The biggest difference that I noticed was that you seemed to be having more fun with the SE. Great vid and lovely playing, Mary.

Im in love ... I was diggin for the guitars but stayed for your playing and singing! You are very talanted!

Great video Mary. This demonstration was very clever and great way of comparing the 2 guitars.Thank you very much.

this is how all side by side comparisons of guitars should be done - fantastic

REALLY is refreshing to see a side by side playing a song. So few do it this way and I appreciate your honesty that the cheaper one may actually be well worth the buy. Given that I purchased 4 new guitars in the last month- I will admire it from afar. Thanks for doing this- my interest has certainly perked up.

I'm blown away the consistent performances for each guitar! It's one of the measures of pro level skills isn't it? Imagine what you can get with the 2400 saved! Amp, pedals, cables, monitors, time from mixers, etc.

Such a clever way to review the guitar. Loved that Mary.

Both great guitars. PRS doesn’t skimp on the SEs

I just pre-ordered one from Sweetwater. I got the guitar and a bone nut installation with set up option based on your review. Thanks!

Wonderful comparison video. Beautifully done. I honestly feel that they are pretty indistinguishable sonically. (I think that I would also prefer the 8.5" radius from past experiences...). Thanks for your demo version..... very enjoyable!

It's nice to see your love for the instruments coming through

I thought they both sounded great! Generally speaking, the things that normally set the American version vs import apart is pickup sounds and playability. What I got from this video is that Mary did not notice a significant difference between the two. However, she did preferred the SE neck over the American made.

Us mere mortals may never be able to get the SE model. The first time I heard you was on Anderton’s now I look for everything you do. Thanks.

The American made sounds like it has a more pronounced top-end and perhaps a bit more depth. It's a subtle difference though. The position 4 on both is to die for! What I am most impressed about is your timing Mary. It is really hard to nail two performances down to a t so you could make the seamless switch between them. Very nice!

Very Very well done. The very best comparison video - SIDE by SIDE I have seen. Having both comparisons up, perfectly times and then the switch of gray to color indicating which is playing is perfect. Love the duet at the end of your song. You area a talented, smart, clever human. Nice song too!

They sound very similar. They did a great job on the SE. That said, I can hear a clear difference in the bottom, low mids - the USA is more full. Both sound great!

Honestly couldn’t hear any difference without headphones. Without recording them and playing them side by side like in your video I would be hard-pressed to tell one from the other. Thanks so much for this video!

Great comp video! There is something about that SE Headstock and truss rod cover though that makes it look a bit cheap, but I guess it's okay for the price point!

Another fabulous and informative video Mary. I'm 68 and realizing how many more videos that you've made that I need to watch in order to educate myself because you post so many informative videos on so many issues that I have always wondered about. I loved the fact you kept saying "I can't believe I'm saying this". Thank you once again!!!

They do sound very similar! The top end sky has a sparkle in the highs that distinguishes it from the SE. In the lows and mids I can hear a little bit more of a tightness in the regular sky. Overall the SE sounds killer too!

I appreciate the detailed feedback on the neck. (It's something I'm very particular with when I'm watching guitar reviews) great songwriting too🖤

Absolute respect for the discipline and skill involved in that opening demo. Shows your skills as a player, really well done. Tonal difference is minimal in my opinion, especially in the song context. PRS onto a winner here I think. All this video was missing was the original version of Last Train before JM covered you

They sound so similar... not to say the same. Fantastic sync work !! Great video ! Thx

To my ear the PRS Silver Sky has a bit more of a dynamic sound. The SE sound isn't quite as full. But it's a slight difference - not over-the-top obvious. Quite an accomplishment for a $900 guitar. I wonder what Rick Beato or Rhett Shull would think of the SE? 😉

Loved that. Beautifully played and sung. Thank you for a balanced view, based on ACTUAL PLAYING EXPERIENCE rather than the speculative hysteria I’ve been seeing on ‘social’ media 🤓

Nicely done Mary. Guitars sound remarkably similar. I thought the lower register sounded a little more stout on the USA version. From the mid register up indistinguishable. All that being said, pretty damn good song as well! Greetings from New York.

Mary your video editing is terrific. Switching black and white to colour was inspired. Great audio...great content...and great singing. :)

I was quite surprised to see which was the more expensive instrument. I prefered the tonality of the $900 model and was expecting it to be the other one. I do see where the $3500 unit could give an engineer more to work with in some cases, especially with delicate parts.

Thank you for singing! Once I realized the guitars sounded exactly the same I was about ready to stop the video... but I needed to hear the rest of the song!

The Nebula has more high-end clarity, but otherwise, they both sound amazing.

One of the better comparisons I've seen today. And I've seen A LOT. 🙌

The nebula is much brighter & full, actually very noticeable

Thank you for this video! I've wanted a Silver Sky for a while and was having trouble deciding between the Core and the SE. Mind you, I'm not really a player, more of a hobbyist, but I wanted a nice guitar to play poorly :) I was about to go all in and buy a core model, but your video showed me that the SE is a great guitar and well worth my money. I bought the SE in Stone blue and I am impatiently awaiting delivery.

Liked your review wish more creators were as honest as you. Ordered your CD also.

The only real difference I heard was that the pickups in the SE were slightly more noisy (or maybe they're lower output and you had to up the gain for uniform volume). Either way - it's fantastic!

I bought an SE some time back and have to say I was blown away with the build quality. Really a great platform and something PRS should be very prod of for the price point. The fret work was of a quality I've not see in any other guitar at the price point.

The whole PRS SE line of guitars are the absolute best guitars made in that price range. I'm not surprised at all that the Silver Sky SE is an absolute gem. I think I'm gonna get one. I've thought about it long enough.

I'm sold, I ordered one. thanks for your honest opinion. Peace from Canada.

Cool video, Mary! Through my headphones (Bose) it seems like the core version has more sparkle or presence, but not $2600 worth! I’ve felt that the US model was overpriced since they were introduced, but the SE changes all that. I have a Fender Custom Shop Strat, so I’m not looking for another Strat, but if I were, the SE would be at the top of my list. I’ll bet these will cut into sales of the core version, but maybe not-there are plenty of people who want the top of the line and are able to pay for it.

I came here for the PRS review but it was your voice that blew me away.

It was interesting to hear the difference in sound. It was even more interesting to conclude that I prefer the sound of the SE. There's a little less top end on the SE, but the midrange sounds more full, more complete. Every time you switched to the core model, it sounded hollow.

Came here for the guitar comparison, stayed to listen to your amazing performance

Both sound nice and both still way out of my budget! 😂

Great vid 👍 thanks for taking the time to do it.

I have been listening to 'reference audio' for two decades now and I can't detect a single tonal difference between those guitars. Paul Reed Smith is one of the few people who truly understands the science of sound.

Just bought the same silver sky se you are using, I am actually a strat guy, and it took me a couple of days to get used to the sound, but now I just love it

Perhaps I’m biased on the SE, but it sounds warmer (especially fingerpicking) and something I’ll put on my shopping list. Thanks Mary! 💞🎸

This is probably the BEST side by side guitar comparison video I have ever seen. Well done!

The SE with a maximizer pedal could sound about the same. When you factor in pedals and PA systems you wouldn't be able to hear the $2600 difference.

Random thought speeded up your song 1.50 and the chorus sounded awesome. Great video wonderful singing. I just got Silver Sky yesterday. All about labor cost US versus Indonesia I’m thinking!

Diminishing returns indeed. You can hardly tell them apart, and I'm willing to bet that, had this been a blind test (consider it for next time!), most people would have had a 50% chance of getting it right. And this is on the solo portion. Throw it in the mix and the differences are going to get lost. As a long time acoustic-only player, it is my opinion that in *that* market, where everything is more expensive, once you get past the 2.5/3k mark or thereabouts, it becomes a matter of taste rather than quality of the instrument. As I recently got back into the electric world after a 15 years long hiatus, I'm impressed with the quality even a modest amount of money can buy you. Ultimately a guitar is worth however much money you are willing to throw at it. Nothing wrong with wanting the expensive option, pretty things are desirable, and if you have the cash go for it, I say. But all these years the quality of cheaper instruments has been steadily increasing, to the point where there are acoustic guitars that cost around 1k and sound waaaaay better than they have any right to do. Like, ridiculously better. And in the electric world it's even more obvious, also due to the simpler build process. If you are the sort of person that has to save forever to afford the 3.5k one, I'd say don't bother, because the returns are not really worth the 3x+ in price. Plus, you can put so much stuff in between your guitar and the amp that the difference is going to be even smaller. On top of that, with electric instruments you can upgrade so many parts and radically improve/change how they sound. If you go for the SE you can buy a few upgrades here and there when you can afford them to make it even better, and in the meantime you still have a killer box. Cheap-ish nut? Swap it out. Locking tuners? Buy them 6 or 12 months out. Seems to me like the sweet spot for your average electric guitar is anywhere between 600 and 1500. Past that you're probably already in diminishing returns territory.

I'm so pleased to hear that the SE has almost the same bass response. So full. Love it. Thank you.

Actually I enjoyed the cheap one more for your style of playing, it sounds a bit warmer, a really lovely guitar =) Perhaps when you play high gain lead solos the cards will be new mixed? Great video, thank you!

Very interesting and well produced video. Mostly I liked your honest appraisal of the sound and value of the products. Finally snagged one last week. Your video was what helped me find my "Moonlight" in moon white. Thanks Mary

Shows how great and 'Close' to the US models PRS has got with their SE models. The 'changes' they make are sensible changes to ensure they can meet the Price point but they don't compromise on the 'feel' and playability. There is a 'small' difference in the sound, more like a 3D audio over surround sound - more 'hi def' sound to the US made... But that's the 'compromise' to hit a Price point and they are perfect to gig with too and stand up to the beating a tour has which you may not wish to do with your 'Nebula'. Zach Myers uses his SE's as does Mark Holcomb too and in the Studio. I think the SE's are the 'best' bang for buck, best in price guitars you can buy. Therefore I had NO doubt the SE Silver Sky would be any different. It was the same when PRS released their SE Pauls a few years back, they proved as 'different' from the Cores as this is from the SE's too. I think the 8.5" radius was because they wanted it to be a 'bit more accessible' for all as the 7.25" is the most rounded and not 'modern' so compromised with 8.5" to fit between the 'modern Fender' and its 9.5" and the Vintage Inspired Silver Sky's 7.25"

So this is going up against the player series I guess. Sounds amazing

I guess I'm confused. I have an American made PRS and it is a borderline perfect guitar. It's fantastic. My confusion however lies in the price difference between these two models. They both have the exact same electronics(yes all 3 levels of this guitar incluide the 635 JM pickups) so they sound the exact same. They're both made using CNC machines to the exact same specifications, they both have the same finish. So what makes the price so vastly different? Simply because it was CNC routed in a building in America instead of Indonesia and they added locking tuners and a real bone nut? Where does the almost 2.5k price difference come from? The 850 USD one seems to me like an amazing guitar for the money, and the more expensive one seems extremely hard to justify when it comes to price. I guess I'm at a loss but it seems like the only difference here is the ability to say you have the more expensive one. It's almost like they were competing against themselves with this cheaper model, it's the no brainer choice between the two.

Have a Custom 22 SE semi hollow & a Sinle cut SE PRS. Amazing tones & playing stability. For the cost that is a winner 🏆

Love the way you did the side by side - made it very clear. They sound pretty close to me - but I’d still pick up the American made just given the quality of materials will make it a “better” guitar.

You are so honest in your assessment. You helped me make a decision on my next purchase. Thank you for your honesty. Peace

RIP colour-blind people during the comparison 🙃 great vid anyways Mary!

Obviously if you want a "Strat" by PRS, this is the contender. PRS builds typically offer low action/good fretwork, but the user experience for many folks is 1)neck 2) pickups which really must be a hands-on test. SE's always models have dumbed-down higher output pickups that are less sensitive to dynamics; thats life in the PRS pecking order. But the good news is if you like the neck/action then for a bit over $100 you can swap in some real Strat pickups (eg Tex Mex). Hopefully we can check these out in stores soon.

There's actually a very pronounce difference, that being said the SE version seems very production friendly with it's mild tone

Just laid away that exact guitar….it just arrived at a local dealer….I’ll be picking it up next week 👏….can’t wait🤗…..by the way Mary, love your stuff🥰….very cool song ☝️🎸

thanks Mary always enjoy hearing you thoughts

Love your honest opinion. Totally sold me on the SE.

What can be better than Mary playing guitar? Two Marys playing guitars ☺️

Great review! Love the presentation of the actual guitar and not the stomp box. BTW, just got the the Silver Sky SE (Black) and find the neck so easy to play, you are certainly right there! Loved the guitar so much, I just had to get a Custom 24 SE.

Lovely Review and what a beautiful song. I am a huge fan of yours Mary.

I’m not surprised by this at all, the SE’s have been phenomenal guitars for years!

Beautiful song Mary. I played my first gig with my new silver sky last night. Great value.

Hey great job with this video!!! I've seen several similar but this is the best format I've seen.

Good Morning Mary. Sat at home poorly, Covid test came back negative but defo got some sort of Lurgy. Watching you play and listening to your tone is cheering me up. I love the way you play guitar. You have got your own style and such great taste in playing - excellent timing ! I’m a Fender guy at heart and wasn’t into the SS when first came out but… I am starting to really dig them. I’ll get on at some point but would have to be second hand unless I suddenly come into some cashish. Thanks for the vids and wonderful music you create.

I thought I came here for the guitar comparison but honestly I am absolutely loving that song! I replayed it a few times just to listen to it again! Absolutely beautiful! ♥

As always, beautiful song Mary. Keep them coming. Great review that underscores how great American brands like Fender and PRS are managing to produce stellar instruments at attractive price points overseas. My Mexican-made, Fender Vintera Road worn 50's Strat is by far the finest I've owned, and I've gone through a bunch of American Fenders over the years. One head-scratching thought: The nut in the SE isn't fixed? That's somewhat disturbing. I've never come across a guitar with a removeable/floating nut.

They did a great job matching the voicing of the cheaper pickups to the originals. I prefer 7.25" radius, but I understand why they went flatter with a budget model. Good job. Nice demo too.

Great comparison and review. Ty!!!

They’re both great guitars, I had no doubt the new Silver Sky SE would be a winner,I have a few of lower cost guitars that I love, and pick up all the time,, Reverends and partscasters being a fav ,just depends on your economic situation, but I do love that Nebula color, it’s hypnotic , lovely playing and singing Mary , and I love your voice , it’s so British 😊

I just bought the SE over buying a Strat and I am ecstatic I did. Thanks for your review. I do plan on upgrading the bone nut and adding locking turners at some point.

I like honest comparison like this. I really appreciate your effort. Cheers from Indonesia.