PRS 2021 Studio vs Strat, Les Paul, PRS DGT 

Eye opening! I didn't realize how good the Studio sounds. One thing to bear in mind with the single coil difference when comparing to the Strat is that most people will use different EQ settings on the amp to compensate for the thinness of the Strat. So the PRS is kind of doing it for you with a thicker tone and does it without forcing you to change amp settings.

The studio might have more clarity but the DGT has more "Mojo"..... I own both of them. No need to compare. If you don't have to give one of them away, just be happy with your guitars. We don't need so many of them but we love having them all.😊😊 The most important thing is that whatever you are playing, you sound You. It's all in the hands. And you have the right tone in your mind and hands. Rock on.👍🎸🎼🎵🎧

2 years later…still the best? I’m getting ready to pull the trigger on one😊

PRS studio = total clarity, articulation and brilliance. that is what I always look for on a guitar, with single coil or humbuckers. Perfect guitar for me. Thank you for a great and detailed review.

The tones and playing here absolutely stellar. The neck pick up of the Strat was just amazing.

PRS's luthiers sure know how to make beautiful and great sounding instruments. Currenrtly my favorite guitar brand even though I only have an SE version ❤️

Thanks for the video brother!! You convinced me to get a PRS studio as my third PRS since I got a 24 custom recently and already have a S2 custom 22.

what I was hoping for was a direct comparison of the Strat's "2 & 4" position to the same settings on the Studio.

To my ears, the PRS Studio is a way more pleasing sound than the Strat in both the neck and bridge. It’s also more clear than the Les Paul, which I personally prefer. It’s a close call between the DGT and the Studio to my ears, but I like the sound of the narrowfield pickups on the Studio, so that would be my pick. I think that’s why I would love a PRS 509 or Special, as it has a narrowfield in the middle, but splittable 58/15 humbuckers in both the neck and bridge. Awesome sounds. Thanks!

I really prefer the DGT. Way more character to my ear and IMO a more vintage sort of vibe that is unlike most PRS guitars which tend to have a slightly more modern voice.

Awesome video and awesome playing! The Studio kills it and being a Custom 24 player for 29 years, I may have to take the plunge! Thanks for the comparisons! 😉🎸

I have all of the guitars except the DGT. I just discovered your channel and subscribed. Great video, although I came to the party late.

I got the Studio early 2023 and now have gotten a DGT. I am always trading off the DGT, Studio and the McCarty as well as the McCarty 594 and not sure if I have a preference but I tend to lean on the side of the DGT but the Studio is extremely versatile as you stated and I think if I had to bring on guitar to a unknown situation, the studio would be a great option to cover a wide variety of sounds. One thing I'd mention is I sometimes have to do drop tunings and when it comes to that, you'd prob want a McCarty of sorts due to the hard tail. Great demo and awesome sound. Very inspiring. Cheers.

Thank you SO MUCH for playing the Studio with the dirt. Everyone always demos these guitars like their in the high school jazz band.

I just ordered PRS Studio (black gold burst) from Sweetwater after watching your video many times…Can’t believe I just did this.. 0% financing $213 a month for 24 months. I need to sell some other gear now lol

Just got a purple iris studio. Incredible sounding and playing guitar.

Whoa DGT is killer.

Both guitars are true gems for sure!! However, I am leaning towards the DGT in this case. It has so much character and also it comes in a wider range of finishes and colours than the Studio. In any case, you're truly fortunate to own both. Cheers!

I love the tones & guitars in this one, but I'm saving the video to pick up a couple of tasty licks from this one to try out on my PRS. Those type of riffs & phrasing are really nice, especially with that tone.

The PRS studio with the narrow fields sounds more modern but also encompasses aspects of the other guitars. It's also not a heavy guitar in order to get sustain like the Gibson yet it is tonally excellent! I have 2 PRS guitars and I no longer play my Gibson's or my Strat.

I’ve been waiting for this video. I own a DGT and had a McCarty 549. I didn’t love the 5815 LT as much. But I really do like DGT pups. They are very versatile and fun. If I were to buy another core it would be the semi hollow special.

Mate I watched this last week and managed to land a studio on Thursday. This review swung it for me even though I’ve been looking for a while. Great vid even though it cost me a small fortune, but hey can’t fault it ✌️❤️☮️

Man, the PRS Studio is so near to that original Fender single coil but I still love Fender's SC though PRS studio is so versatile and every PRS is like that just like my custom22. Every guitar has their own identity, love everyone of them. Nice review mate! Awesome guitars and so are you! Thanks!

That Studio is such an under recognized guitar. It’s perfect!

To my ears......the DGT in bridge humbucker position, overdrive.... sounds the best out of all of those guitars. DGT just has a thicker sound, which I prefer.

Thanks for the great review!

Well ,,,, I'm only a YEAR later to the party, But I was really torn between the Studio or the DGT.... I just bought a PRS Studio today , and I really appreciate This posting . I own both a Strat and a Les Paul and wanted to Bridge the gap... My Strat never stays in tune so I bolted the trem down to help . Its better but not even close to my favorite. My LP sounds so much better and I like the flat frets. The PRS Studio looks like what the Dr ordered. Glad I found one . There's a 9 month waiting list out there. Your posting helped between the Studio or the DGT and I was able to hear the difference between both the Strat's single coil and the Split pick up of the DGT . The narrow field pick ups were noticeable clearity while maintaining bit . I almost bought the DGT. I also liked that the Studio only has 2 knobs. I struggle sometimes with the 4 knob setup... And the Studio has the 5 way switch that I like and it looks like they set it back some so you don"t hit it when your playing ... Thanks again ...

Great playing! Love the look and sound of your new PRS.

Great work, thank you. All are excellent instruments, however, the clarity/warmth of the Studio, for me, is very convincing. Thank you for your expert demonstration. Bijan

my biggest takeaway is that those guitars all sound great and neither is remarkably better sounding than the other 🎸🤘

There are always going to be those who no matter what will say they prefer the sound of one over another. In my opinion they all sound amazing. But if there could only be one it would have to be a prs studio. The quality is second to none and way more versatile. I have owned all three brands but nothing plays like my custom 24.

THAT CLEAN TONE!! Absolutely amazing tone from the PRS Studio

The bridge pickup in the Studio sounds amazing. In the neck battle I think Fender was the winner. Overall they all sounded great and you are very skilled to get great tones out of guitars. Whenever I see a video here about PRS or Boss Katana I klick right away! 🎸

Just can say you have several really incredible guitars there, I think anyone would be proud to own any of them. But I agree the studio has a little bit more of that thing that grabs you. Nice job showing them off.

Wish they had the Studio with HSS (Proper singles) Love the Fiore. but hate the strat placement of volume tone. And love the astetic of an actual PRS looking guitar.

Nice playing. I really like the thickness of the LP bridge humbucker - great sound.

I am a PRS lover so I am likely biased wanting the PRS to be better than anything else you put it up against...but it really does sound outstanding, the color on the top is also quite beautiful, congratulations on NGD! Merry Christmas

Les Paul had more low end compared to the PRS which is what I expected...both are amazing sounding guitars. I just want that PRS for it's sheer sexyness.....the tone is a bonus LOL. Great job as usual Studio Rats!

As much as I love the DGT I think I could live with the Studio more easily for day to day coming from a Strat. I got a custom 22 soapbar, but the neck and middle are too muddy where my HSS strats shined. This is the one for me.

For the most part, I liked the studio better but the last riff you played was smoother with the DGT. That's why we have multiple guitars, right? Great video!

I had an older studio with narrow fields, the narrow fields just felt like too much compression, too much like a humbucker, I just did not feel like the three positions sounded very different, I sold that guitar after about a year. I also own a DGT, I put the bareknuckle mules in the DGT, for additional clarity and very vintage Les Paul tones, and definitely a less bassy less muddy neck pickup, I absolutely love the bareknuckle mules in that guitar. The split coils as you noted very telecaster ish, I feel like there is more different tones in the DGT. Seem more versatile to me, great video good playing, thank you. That Stratocaster sounds amazing.

That combination of the PRS Studio and that amp 1 is awesome. I’ve been gigging with a pair of katana artist Mark 2 amps and I’m convinced that they are the best bang for the buck stereo rig that you can buy. They are super light and don’t take up much space in the car.That said however I love the recorded sound of that amp 1, makes me really wanna try it in person. Great video and tone as always Paul. Thanks :)

Damn!! Such a beautiful guitar!! Prs always make the most beautiful guitars in my opinion

As other reviewers have said over the years, the Narrowfield middle and neck pickups were dissapointing for me in my Studio. They seem a bit bass heavy and lack a some sparkle. In your video they sound sparkly and not so bass heavy. I´ve played with height but it made not much of a difference, they are actually parallel to the pickup rings. I´ve considered a bass tight control by putting a capacitor in the circuit. The instrument itself is brilliant and plays like butter.

Hi Paul. I own both a 57 CS Les Paul and a CS Broadcaster and both sound absolutely brilliant in their own way, however, listening to the Studio with those narrow field pickups, it definitely sounds like it would be a great all rounder. It would also be easier carrying one guitar to a gig rather than two. Great demo. Cheers.

I have a PRS Special Semi-hollow - a bit like the Studio but with a humbucker in the neck - and that is my most versatile guitar. I kept thinking that maybe I was still in the 'honeymoon' phase but have since added a Cu24 Floyd and 594HBii to my collection (as well as my 594, 509, Cu24 & HBii) and if I could only keep 1, it would have to be the Special because of its versatility. I never understand why people have to pick just 1 guitar though. All my guitars have 'something' unique about them, even if its just the Solid vs Hollowbody type construction of my two 594's. If I was in a 'covers' band wanting a single instrument to give both Gibson and Fender type tones, My Special would probably be my first choice with my 509 as a back-up.

Ooh. Now it's OK so I've signed up. Huge thnx😊

I've owned a couple of DG t's and they're incredible guitars but after watching and hearing you play the PRS studio that's more my kind of guitar. Gotta get me a studio

The PRS Studio is a beast. They all sound high end with quality tone but the bridge pickup clarity on the studio is next level. I was just about to buy a custom shop Les paul? BTW you never dissapoint with your great playing. Excellent review.

The most interesting comparison for me was with the strat clean tones. The strat sounded more open to me, with the studio feeling a bit more muscular. In going for an airy sort of rhythm tone, I’d probably opt for the strat. It would be interesting to hear them side by side in a mix (hint,hint 😉). That studio bridge pup is by far the winner ( I’ll take that crappy Les Paul off of your hands now that it’s basically useless 😉😉

That PRS Studio sounds incredible!

Huge Thnx. Perfect. Exactly what I was looking for. 😅😊😊 Enjoyed it and learnt so much.

great comparison review, plus outstanding playing :0)

I really liked the character of the Strat sound best and the Les Paul next. The PRS sounds too brassy to me. In other words, I don’t like how a chords rings out. Also, the PRS overall sounds too smooth and lacking in the mid to higher end. Someone else called in a compressed sound which probably is a better description. Overall, thanks the demo is awesome, very useful and you play awesome!

Good playing. For what it's worth, here's my opinion based on the guitars I own... My PRS McCarty vs my Gibson Les Paul's... similar, but the McCarty has more note separation on chords, and more clarity. My PRS NF3 vs my Fender Strat's or Tele's... The PRS has more tonal possibilities than the Fender's. Better? Subjective. A key to the Narrow Field pickups... the volume control. Same thing with my PRS McCarty Korina with soapbars. The NF3 may have become one of my favorite 'does everything' guitar, and it has such a great tone with every setting. Strat's do what they do... I'm not really a Strat Kat... I like my Tele's more. But that's me. Bottom line IMO... Gibson's and Fender's make a really good guitar (some are great... some... ughh... bad) PRS consistently makes a really great guitar.

I had a PRS studio in the 90's which had 2 single coils instead of the narrowfields which had not been invented yet. It was not a great guitar and I sold it because the single coils (which may or may not have been noise cancelling- I don't remember) were too shrill. Clearly PRS have done well in re-designing the Studio. GREAt sounds from the Blu-amp!

Fantastic sounding PRS. Much better than the LP. WOW

The DGT is such a good go to. So simple to use. But man, that studio rings clear and true. Dang. Don't think I'll sell the DGT but may go shopping......

Thanks Paul - I agree with you, the Studio seems to be more versatile - since I am drawn toward more straty sounds.

About to pull the trigger on a DGT… but that studio caught my attention when I saw it. Now you really put me in a dilemma. But I prefer a tele to a strat, so maybe the DGT is still the right choice…

This is interesting. As a strat guy I’m loving the studio model.

Interesting comparison, all four guitars above my pay grade as a player but for what it’s worth, I suspect the DGT is the best balanced instrument of all.

no bad sound in any of the guitars.. but that narrowfield neck pickup is really something, sounds awesome! that les paul bridge sound smoother to me, but that studio is really close. So my ideal guitar: body of DGT, les paul bridge pu and narrowfield neck…

All great sounding guitars. I have 58/15 LTs in my 594 and they are a game changer. My Les Paul gets muddy on the neck pick up but it does sustain better and is a louder instrument (if that’s better). It wouldn’t replace a strat for me though, the splits are ‘stratty’ but doesn’t react in the same way when you start to dig in batter it :-)

I hate to say this but to my ears the Les Paul sounded more creamy/smooth than the Studio... that's not to say that I didn't like the Studio - and there's no doubting the quality of top-end PRSs.

I’d like to buy one of those PRS middle pickups and make a really ugly Strat or Tele pick guard with that in the middle, a regular sized P90 in the neck, and an old T top pickup I have in the bridge.. The studio sounds amazing, and I like you dual P90 Tele too.

Great comparison video, thank you! I loved the neck pickup on the Studio, great clarity with a little more mids or girth, a little smoother like SRV. The bridge surprised me in split mode too, not bad! Could you do a video demoing the trem? Is it floating? It'd be great to have a floating setup you could do anything with that didn't require a Floyd.

For reference, I play a Strat with stacked mini humbuckers. Of your three guitars, I preferred the Studio over the other two guitars as I think it combines the best qualities of single coil and humbuckers into the narrow-field pickups, not unlike my stacked mini humbuckers.

2+ years later, do you still feel the same? Do you prefer the Studio to the DGT? Wonderful playing as always. Thank you for the excellent comparison.

This was such a perfect video. Super helpful. I've been considering a Studio, Modern Eagle V, and DGT to go alongside my HBII w/ maple neck and SC594. I just got done trying out a Fiore and a Suhr Telecaster, but traditional single coils just don't seem to gel with me well enough. The dream guitar seems like it would be a Studio with a 25.5 maple set neck and a second tone control, but one of the wood library Studios with a 25" maple neck might have to be what I settle on. Just don't know if it will have enough of the spank and pop that I'm wanting, but I can't at least tell that the mahogany neck for what I am chasing here would not be the right solution for me.

seems like the neck pickup in the studio has the strengths of a humbucker and single coil but the weaknesses of neither, i was going to buy a ce 24 because of its abilty to split the neck pickup but i may go the extra and treat myself to one of these

Hi Paul - rather new to your channel and I´ve found this video precise, enlightening and inspiring - all in all excellent. Just my 2 cents: different guitars may shine in different settings, different amps, different chain of effects. For the typical Les Paul - PRS comparison (which, more often than I should, I keep doing ) the top end and high mids of the PRS makes it seems more open, cleaner and articulate. The mids, low mids of the LP, make it an unbeatable beast on a mid-high overdriven sound. Some tweaking in the eq, specially with an eq pedal, may increase or revert that. Since they are voiced differentely, It would be very interesting to see how a LP deals with PRS pickups and vice-versa. Sometimes we, guitarists, are strange creatures in the search for the holy grail.Just mho.

I gotta be honest. I love Les Pauls and I owm three of them. But I feel like that Les Paul doesn't even compare to either your PRS or your Srat. I've been on the fence about getting the Studio and I think you just helped me decide.

Back again... man the Studio does sound killer. I might buy one after all. Bought a EBMM Luke 3 and its a bit of a dog... long story and might be returned and perhaps pickup a Studio. Hard to come bye here in Australia. How do you feel after two years, still the swiss army knife for live and studio work?

It's the Les Paul, it's a class of its own. The others are very good, but the LP is another dimension.

To my ears, the PRS had more presence, dynamic range, frequency range (esp.better bass tones) and overall string tone than the LP. By far. Actually, the same goes for the DGT. I assumed there would be a huge price difference between the two PRS, but really it's only a couple of hundred bucks. Amazing.

Prs clarity is phenomenal! The strat neck pickup sound so iconic. Les Paul is a bit too muddy for my taste

Really nice video. I played the studio in a store and loved it. I just got a Fiore and love it. I been thinking dgt or 594 and really having a hard time deciding.

Great video. I've been eyeing the studio for awhile now. I currently have a core 24, and Chris Robertson... and have owned CE 24, and 245... but have never tried a studio... would love to try in person to see if worth spending even more than I paid for my 24... which was already super expensive...

Beautiful Studio !!

Excellent comparision dear friend.

It's the PRS ALL the way around mate! 👍👍

Im so in love with The PRS Studio, too bad they are extremely expensive here

I think the new PRS is brighter, but I wouldn't say it was better, just different. I think the DGT was designed to have more of a vintage tone.

The PRS guitars so lively and full of tone ! The Gibson and Fender are so dull sounding.

They all sound fantastic. The Strat sounded a little more open on the clean settings. But really they are all excellent.

killer guitar the studio, very close to the strat, I kinda prefer the studio but both sound great, now with the les paul, the Studio eats it alive, the DGT is cool, different.

Cool man

I have been looking hard at a DGT. I have an original singlecut. I see you like the studio due to clarity. Which neck shape do you like better since the DGT has a different profile than most other PRS guitars? You make amazing content. Really like watching it.

The PRS doesn't have the growl of the Les Paul or the clarity of the stratocaster, it sounds like a blanket over the amps

Maybe it's just me,,, but the strat sounds perfect, as for the PRS studio it does sound better than the Paul and the dgt, I like the look of the DGT I think the gold top is definitely the coolest looking PRS I think the difference between them tonally is so small I'd go for the dgt , but the strat still wins lol

The studio definitely has a “hifi” vibe. (Kept waiting to hear the out of phase quack tones) I’m an all mahogany (no maple cap) DGT owner and really enjoy its qualities. Being able to get a passable Tele bridge sound is pretty important to me.

God you've got some beautiful guitars there Paul,not jealous much 😮😮😎👍

I liked the Studio in most cases, thankfully, as mine is on order. CAN'T WAIT!!! Is that the Yellow Tiger finish?

Do you use the same string gauge on all guitars?I use 9s on my DGT and I love it.

I like both PRS’ for the very reasons you mentioned. I think between the two you have eliminated about 4-5 guitars in the back. Add a PRS Custom 22 Semi Hollow and you might be down to three guitars. I have been a Tom Anderson guy for decades…I might pick up a PRS for a change… Thanks

this really has me GASsing for a prs studio S2, I really wish that wasn't a limited edition run, and hopefully they just bring them into regular production some day

Wow Paul nice video good work. I really like the Studio it would seem that PRS has designed the ultimate guitar for a lot of people. The Studio sounds so good that I think I might have to get one. I like the idea of having a Les Paul style guitar that can also do some pretty convincing Strat tones as well. The always cool feature of PRS Les Paul style guitars is that they are much lighter than a Les Paul and for us old farts that is a good thing. Very good playing and sounds thank you for doing this.

I like the studio the best. In terms of looks and sound

The magic happens when you roll the volume down on prs. It gets more clarity like strat!