PRS builds its guitars in three lines. The core models and the S2 line are made in Stevensville, Maryland. The SE line is made in Indonesia and costs a fraction of the price. On November 3, 2026, Thomann had all three in stock, plus a few Wood Library and limited guitars above them.
| Line | Made in | Guitars in stock | Median price | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SE | Indonesia | 86 | $1,002 | $533 |
| S2 | USA | 22 | $2,803 | $2,074 |
| Core | USA | 126 | $5,450 | $3,027 |
| Wood Library and limited | USA | 17 | $14,580 | $7,065 |
One name, three prices: the McCarty 594
PRS SE McCarty 594, $948
A mahogany body with a maple top under a flamed maple veneer, a set mahogany neck, bird inlays, the 594's short 24.6-inch scale and two 58/15 LT humbuckers with push-pull tone controls for single-coil sounds. A gig bag comes with it. #5 of 146 double cut guitars.
PRS S2 McCarty 594, $3,013
Made in the USA, with the same mahogany body and maple top, the same scale and 58/15 humbuckers without the "LT", faux bone binding and a gig bag. #23 of 146 double cut guitars.
PRS McCarty 594, $4,962
The core version: a figured "10 Top" maple top chosen for its flame, PRS's McCarty III humbuckers, a hard case, made in Maryland.
On paper the three are close: same woods, same shape, same kind of pickups. The differences are in what a spec sheet doesn't show: the grade of the maple, the finish, the fretwork, and how much hand work goes in. Players argue about how much that is worth; what is clear is that it costs about $2,000 per step.
Thirteen pairs
| Model | SE | Core | Core costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| CE 24 | $533 | $3,139 | 5.9× |
| Silver Sky | $773 | $3,154 | 4.1× |
| Swamp Ash Special | $843 | $3,700 | 4.4× |
| DGT | $857 | $5,439 | 6.3× |
| Santana | $871 | $5,270 | 6.0× |
| Custom 24 | $896 | $6,168 | 6.9× |
| Tremonti | $952 | $5,270 | 5.5× |
| McCarty 594 | $952 | $4,984 | 5.2× |
| Studio | $970 | $4,822 | 5.0× |
| Paul's Guitar | $1,042 | $5,943 | 5.7× |
| Custom 24-08 | $1,064 | $5,495 | 5.2× |
| Mark Holcomb | $1,457 | $5,943 | 4.1× |
| Hollowbody II Piezo | $1,681 | $6,392 | 3.8× |
All prices are the cheapest version in stock of each. The gap is smallest on the John Mayer Silver Sky and the Hollowbody II, and widest on the Custom 24, PRS's best-known model, where the core guitar costs almost seven times its SE.
Silver Sky: where the SE is furthest from the original
The SE Silver Sky at $773 has a poplar body and an 8.5-inch fingerboard radius. The US-made Silver Sky at $3,154 has an alder body, a rounder 7.25-inch radius as on vintage Stratocasters, a bone nut and locking tuners. Here the spec sheet does show the difference.
Which one?
For most players the SE is the obvious choice: the ranking puts the SE McCarty 594 in the top ten of 146 double-cut guitars, at a fifth of the price of its US sibling. The S2 is for people who want a US-made PRS without paying core prices. The core guitars are for players who want the figured tops, the finishes and the hand work of the original.
PRS also launched a new US model this autumn, the Tekton, at $3,364 to $3,476, just above where the S2 line ends.
Where the numbers come from. Every PRS electric guitar Thomann had in stock on November 3, 2026, from its partner feed, without left-handed versions and bundles. Lines are taken from the model names; US origin from Thomann's descriptions. Pairs compare the cheapest SE and the cheapest core guitar sold under the same model name. Prices are Thomann's US-dollar prices.
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Denis Kataev runs AudioFu. Every night the site records the prices of more than 38,000 instruments and studio tools at Thomann, and he writes about what those numbers show: what got cheaper, what just arrived, and which discounts are real.
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