Show your SE!

[dbonanno]

Hhhmm....the tuning has been pretty stable but not perfect. I definitely am going to get some locking tuners and then if I'm still having tuning problems then I'll have a real tusq nut installed.

I would opt for the Tusq nut FIRST.
I added Phase II locking tuners to my Tremonti SE Custom and still had issues ... until I changed the nut.
Same goes for my SE245 ... the strings kept binding in the nut.

In reading feedback from other SE owners, I think it's safe to say that the nuts on almost all of the SE's have been an issue.

[Desperado]

I would opt for the Tusq nut FIRST.
I added Phase II locking tuners to my Tremonti SE Custom and still had issues ... until I changed the nut.
Same goes for my SE245 ... the strings kept binding in the nut.

In reading feedback from other SE owners, I think it's safe to say that the nuts on almost all of the SE's have been an issue.

+1

It's nice to have locking tuners for string changes alone, but if there are nut issues, those things aren't going to help much.

[_pete_]

I would opt for the Tusq nut FIRST.
I added Phase II locking tuners to my Tremonti SE Custom and still had issues ... until I changed the nut.
Same goes for my SE245 ... the strings kept binding in the nut.

In reading feedback from other SE owners, I think it's safe to say that the nuts on almost all of the SE's have been an issue.

+2
I was gonna say the same thing.
Change the nut, save money on the tuners. The stockers are fine.

[Mikegarveyblues]

I would opt for the Tusq nut FIRST.
I added Phase II locking tuners to my Tremonti SE Custom and still had issues ... until I changed the nut.
Same goes for my SE245 ... the strings kept binding in the nut.

In reading feedback from other SE owners, I think it's safe to say that the nuts on almost all of the SE's have been an issue.

The only time I read any negative feedback (On various forums and reviews) on the SE's is the nut and pups and occasionally the tuners.

The pups... Well, that's a taste thing more than anything so can be filed away as 'opinion'.

The tuners... Perfectly acceptable in my book so long as the strings are wound onto the peg correctly andstrectched in. The most likely culprit and something that get's mentioned a lot is...

The nut. I think the actual materials used are fine it's just the QC on the cutting of the slots. I'm on my third SE and they've all had issues that have left me needing to have a new one fitted by a tech. The slots have been rough with binding issues (Which WILL cause the tuning issues) and in one case cut too low.

Don't get me wrong, I love the SE's and for my money there's nothing comes close to the overall quality unless you start spending some serious cash. Certainly the best imports and, IMHO, as good as the guitars costing 2 to 3 times as much from certain other manufacturers.

The QC on the nuts are the one thing that lets them down a touch. Everything else is as good as you could hope for the money spent or - in many cases - better!

[dbonanno]

The only time I read any negative feedback (On various forums and reviews) on the SE's is the nut and pups and occasionally the tuners.

The pups... Well, that's a taste thing more than anything so can be filed away as 'opinion'.

The tuners... Perfectly acceptable in my book so long as the strings are wound onto the peg correctly andstrectched in. The most likely culprit and something that get's mentioned a lot is...

The nut. I think the actual materials used are fine it's just the QC on the cutting of the slots. I'm on my third SE and they've all had issues that have left me needing to have a new one fitted by a tech. The slots have been rough with binding issues (Which WILL cause the tuning issues) and in one case cut too low.

Don't get me wrong, I love the SE's and for my money there's nothing comes close to the overall quality unless you start spending some serious cash. Certainly the best imports and, IMHO, as good as the guitars costing 2 to 3 times as much from certain other manufacturers.

The QC on the nuts are the one thing that lets them down a touch. Everything else is as good as you could hope for the money spent or - in many cases - better!

I agree 100%.
The issue with the nuts are pretty disappointing for me and I know it was never an issue with the older SE's.
Am I wrong in thinking that the SE's are assembled in Korea and sent to Maryland for final setup and distribution?

[Mikegarveyblues]

I agree 100%.
The issue with the nuts are pretty disappointing for me and I know it was never an issue with the older SE's.
Am I wrong in thinking that the SE's are assembled in Korea and sent to Maryland for final setup and distribution?

That's correct.

I'm not sure about guitars sold in the UK or the rest of Europe. I presume they're setup and distributed by the UK / European distributors which will soon be / is now PRS UK.

I rememember reading something about the SE guitars on another forum and it was absolutely clear the QC on SE guitars is of a very high standard so the nuts are something of an anomaly. Certainly, i'd rather pay a bit more at the till knowing that i'm not going to have to spend more putting right a QC issue.

It has to be said i've seen much worse QC issues on more expensive guitars. Overall the nuts are a minor issue and thanfully pretty cheap to correct.

[dbonanno]

It has to be said i've seen much worse QC issues on more expensive guitars. Overall the nuts are a minor issue and thanfully pretty cheap to correct.

A minor issue, yes.
Unfortunately, it's a minor issue that effects the tuning stability and overall playability of the instrument.
A minor issue that has major consequences if overlooked by QC.

True, the cost of a new nut is just a few dollars but not everyone is comfortable performing this task.
Some may in fact make matters worse by attempting to do this themselves.
And there are some who may not even be able to diagnose the nut as the problem.
Add the cost of a luthier (and possibly freight) and this "minor issue" becomes a real pain in the arse.

Then there are threads like this, which lowers consumer confidence.
All because of a part that costs PRS well under a dollar.
It just makes more sense to correct the problem where it started .... QC.

[zeke665]

First thing I did was had a bone nut installed

[IHitThingsHard]

New to the forum... how do I upload photo from my computer, keeps wanting an URL? Help a dummy out

[Mikegarveyblues]

A minor issue, yes.
Unfortunately, it's a minor issue that effects the tuning stability and overall playability of the instrument.
A minor issue that has major consequences if overlooked by QC.

True, the cost of a new nut is just a few dollars but not everyone is comfortable performing this task.
Some may in fact make matters worse by attempting to do this themselves.
And there are some who may not even be able to diagnose the nut as the problem.
Add the cost of a luthier (and possibly freight) and this "minor issue" becomes a real pain in the arse.

Then there are threads like this, which lowers consumer confidence.
All because of a part that costs PRS well under a dollar.
It just makes more sense to correct the problem where it started .... QC.

Ahh.. Don't get me wrong. No one should be having to fork out extra cash to have something put right. Personally, i'd rather not have had to spend any money at all correcting a QC issue. But it does have to be looked at in context of the whole guitar. Sure, a badly cut nut will seriously affect the performance of the guitar but it's minor compared to say badly seated frets or poorly dressed frets or even twisted necks. All of which I have encountered on other more expensive instruments (Not PRS's) and would cost a lot more to put right.

Yeah, I wish PRS would take a good look at the QC on the nuts because it seems to be the one area where they aren't up to scratch and it's a shame for what are fantastic quality instruments.

But context is key and it's also fair to say that many people never have issues and receive guitars with perfectly cut nuts.

[CoreyT]

Four SEs so far, and not one bad nut.
They stay in tune, and are also strung with 9 - 42 Cobalts.

[lastemperor7]

STILL waiting for my first and only prs to arrive....ordered on the 19th....beyond impatient now! I will look out for the nut issue...I've heard rubbing some graphite in there can help?

[John Beef]

Four SEs so far, and not one bad nut.
They stay in tune, and are also strung with 9 - 42 Cobalts.

I have owned geez, five or six? None of the nuts were bad. I have some basic nut files and usually have to open up one or two slots to fit my 11-48s.

[CoreyT]

I also have the Planet Wave Autotrim tuners on all of my guitars, but not for tuning stability.
I like the ease of string changes with them and no scraggly strings hanging off the pegs.

My guitars when I buy them get a full free setup and one down road too.
I wonder if the shop checks the nuts and may have filed mine, or I have just been fortunate enough to have gotten perfect guitars?

[Mikegarveyblues]

I also have the Planet Wave Autotrim tuners on all of my guitars, but not for tuning stability.
I like the ease of string changes with them and no scraggly strings hanging off the pegs.

My guitars when I buy them get a full free setup and one down road too.
I wonder if the shop checks the nuts and may have filed mine, or I have just been fortunate enough to have gotten perfect guitars?

You may have got good uns Corey!

I would suspect th guitars with bad nuts are in the minority... But a high enough minority it gets noticed. With a lot of them it may just be a case of the slots needing widening a touch.

@Lastemperor7

Pencil graphite will work or get some Nut Sauce.

[CoreyT]

I bought some Nut Sauce last year, but have yet to try it out.

[_pete_]

I've had 5 SE's and all of them had nut issues. The slots were not deep enough (strings much too high at the first fret) and the slots were all very tight and the strings would get caught in them. I'm very picky about my setups and these were all unacceptable. No problems at all with USA PRS nuts though.
After installing Graph Tech nuts on all the SE's (except one which got a Floyd), they all stayed in tune and played as well as a USA PRS.

[Chris528]

Just picked this up today!

[sergiodeblanc]

Wow Chris! That totally deserves a

[lastemperor7]

You may have got good uns Corey!

I would suspect th guitars with bad nuts are in the minority... But a high enough minority it gets noticed. With a lot of them it may just be a case of the slots needing widening a touch.

@Lastemperor7

Pencil graphite will work or get some Nut Sauce.

I bought some Nut Sauce last year, but have yet to try it out.

Okay, since I'm relatively new to guitars, I am finding this whole conversation about nuts to be absolutely hilarious!! "All my nuts were bad", "All my nuts have been great!", "I love my nuts", "I need new nuts," "I bought nut sauce" lol I'm sure it was funny to you guys at some point as well!

That said, I hope I don't need a new nut lol...my guitar is supposed to FINALLY arrive today, but I am not going to get my hopes up. Geez, practically a whole month for delivery > Really not happy about that. Apparently there were some wind issues with the Chesapeake Bay Bridge last week....but still...a whole month?!?!

Just picked this up today!

Gorgeous!! Congrats Chris!