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Guitar maker Paul Reed Smith announced a new John Mayer signature guitar inspired by vintage Fender Stratocasters. The overt reference is not without precedent; Mayer played Fender instruments the majority of his career and developed a best-selling signature model with the brand in 2005. After announcing his split from Fender in late 2014, Mayer has played numerous Paul Reed Smith guitars on stage for both solo concerts and engagements with Dead and Company.
Over two years in the making, the Paul Reed Smith Silver Sky was designed from the ground up to for maximum playability and function. The instrument has an alder body, a 22-fret maple neck inspired by ’63 and ’64 Strats, a bone nut and a rosewood fingerboard. For playability, the guitar has closed-back locking tuners and a steel tremolo bridge with a threadless trem-arm set-up flush to the body for tuning stability. The 635JM pickups are full-bodied and clear, designed to nail Mayer’s iconic single-coil tone.
The body features Paul Reed Smith’s recognizable scoop in the lower horn that allows for better access to higher registers, and the headstock is an inverted version of the brand’s trademark design. This model again nods to Fender’s legacy with its colors. Where vintage Fender guitars took color-cues from ’50s American car manufacturers, Mayer’s new instrument is available in the four colors that Tesla uses.
The Silver Sky starts shipping on March 20 and the first 500 guitars released include a commemorative hardshell case.
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