PRS Starla owners chime in

[Crowder]

I just got a PRS Starla w/ Bigsby via ebay. It's in great shape, but it was kind of grungy when I got it. Right away I noticed the setup was wrong. The pickups were cranked way up close to the strings, and the bridge was flat against the body. There was no tension on the truss rod so there was too much neck relief. It seemed like someone had been trying to get tones out of it that it wasn't designed to give up. The pickups sounded really odd, probably because the strongest part of the magnetic field was hovering somewhere above the strings.

I took the strings off and cleaned it thoroughly. I lowered the pickups, raise the bridge, and added some tension on the truss rod. I strung it up with 10's and it sounds far better than it did before.

I'm curious to hear from other Starla owners. Did you keep the stock pickups or move on to something different? How close or far away from the strings do you set them?

Thanks

[jetydosa]

Congrats! Starlas are super cool!

The neck pup on mine is just a bit lower than the edge of the fretboard. The bridge pup maybe 1/8" from strings, fairly close. I think the Starla pups are awesome, different than reg humbucker sure, but very musical and usable.

[Stratoben127]

The other guitarist I my band has a Starla. He hates it for some reason, I LOVE it. He's actually a member here. Maybe he'll chime in. I love the pickups and they actually sound decent split but I really love the body and neck. I'm a Strat guy but I love Les Paul's and this is a Strat lover's LP (which is odd because he likes Strats too). It is SO much more comfortable and lighter than my LP and the neck is really nice as well. I just had to get an LP because I wanted one since I was 7 and needed to have that gratification of having a flame top, burst Les Paul. Otherwise, the Starla might have been mine.

[Chicago Slim]

The Starla has a unique sound. They used TV Jones Classic pickups, in the proto-type Starla. So, it was designed to to used with Gretsch like pickups, that give you a bell like tone. The Starla pickups are a little more full range than a TV Jones. They work a little better for high gain, bit it wasn't their primary design. When you split the coils, they cut-in more windings, on the remaining coil. This prevents volume drop, when using the split mode.

I've got three Starla's, and have changed one to a Compton bridge, for a different sound. I don't see me changing pickups. But, P90's or GFS Dream 180's would work well in a small mahogany body. I use the Dream 180's in a PRS Standard. The sound is similar to the Starla's, without the bell like highs. They have a little of that P90 growl, but it's still a humbucker with splitable coils. They will have a large drop in volume, when split.

Starla's are shipped with 10's. Sometimes people loosen the strings and truss rod before shipping. Not a good idea, but I've seen it before.

[Crowder]

Cool, thanks. I'm going to try it at band practice today before I make a decision about the pickups. I have a new set of Fralin Unbuckers sitting here so it's kind of tempting to try those in something, maybe the Starla or maybe something else.

[gatheredenergy]

I love my Starla and the stock pickups in it. They sound great tapped or not. Mine are set much like jetydosa...neck is just under fretboard and bridge is not far below strings. Just mess around with them til you hit that sweet spot. Youll know it when you get there. Give the Starla a chance, she's a sweet little piece of axe....

[Crowder]

I took it to band practice today and used it through the same rig I had been using my Tele through. It sounded great. Definitely has its own voice and many have noted. A lot of people mention the clarity of the Starla, and that is really the defining aspect of it. Even with a lot of gain, you hear every note and nuance. It is very revealing!

Diggin it

[googoobaby]

I have a Custom 22 with Starla pickups and it's my current favorite electric.

[Chicago Slim]

I took it to band practice today and used it through the same rig I had been using my Tele through. It sounded great. Definitely has its own voice and many have noted. A lot of people mention the clarity of the Starla, and that is really the defining aspect of it. Even with a lot of gain, you hear every note and nuance. It is very revealing!

Diggin it

It's good to hear that the Starla is working out for you. I would hate to see you change it with hot pickups, and have it sound like the other 98% of the guitars out there. A lot of Pro's that played Tele's, like John Bohlinger, have switched to Starla's. I've switched from maple topped PRSi, to all mahogany, because of the clean sound.

[02Singlecut]

It's good to hear that the Starla is working out for you. I would hate to see you change it with hot pickups, and have it sound like the other 98% of the guitars out there. A lot of Pro's that played Tele's, like John Bohlinger, have switched to Starla's. I've switched from maple topped PRSi, to all mahogany, because of the clean sound.

You'd be amazed what a goog PAF'ish pickup will sound like in a Starla. I settled on a PRS 59/09 in the bridge and a P-90 in the neck. Great sounding guitar!!!!


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[Crowder]

I have a Custom 22 with Starla pickups and it's my current favorite electric.

That's cool. The pickups have a bite on the top end that is consistent across all three positions. I normally can't use a neck bucker for leads but the Starla neck pickup doesn't mush out. I also like that the output is sort of similar to my Tele, so I can use the same pedal settings and count on just a little more grit from the Starla.

My biggest complaint is the placement of the switch and Tone knob. I have to reach over the Bigsby to get to them. Nothing I can't work around.

[duaneallen]

I had one a while back and loved it, but sold it for some stupid reason. I was able to track down my old one, and its coming on Wed.! I'm psyched! I would definitely stick with the stock pickups, that is the main charm of the Starla. If you had to change them, I would only go with TV Jones. The guitar was really built for the Gretsch sound, if you go with regular humbuckers, it will just sound like everything else out there.

[Sniper-V]

Had a Starla Mahogany w/Bigsby briefly and I dug it. I really liked everything that was going on with woods, body shape, pickups, and electronics. I actually really enjoyed using the tone knob on the Starla more than I normally do on other guitars. It rolled off the right frequencies that made it very usable throughout the entire range of the pot. In combination with the volume it was a joy to play. I don't believe there was anything super special in there electronics-wise except for stock PRS, but I think it's the result of the overall equation and everything just worked with the Starla.

[Crowder]

Had a Starla Mahogany w/Bigsby briefly and I dug it. I really liked everything that was going on with woods, body shape, pickups, and electronics. I actually really enjoyed using the tone knob on the Starla more than I normally do on other guitars. It rolled off the right frequencies that made it very usable throughout the entire range of the pot. In combination with the volume it was a joy to play. I don't believe there was anything super special in there electronics-wise except for stock PRS, but I think it's the result of the overall equation and everything just worked with the Starla.

That reminds me that the volume knob seems to really cut treble on this one. When I change strings again I'm going to look to see if the volume bleed kit has been removed or something. (BTW I'm a fellow Santa Cruz D/PW owner too!)

[Chicago Slim]

I've got a 7 lbs, PRS Standard 22. With Dragon II's, I never played it. I currently have Dream 180's in it (sounds pretty good). I recently sold a PRS Swamp Ash Special with McCarty pickups, because I never played it. Since I got the Starla's, It's really all I play.

[big e]

Singlecut where did you get that custom pickguard for your Starla?

[big e]

Oh, I bought my first Starla last summer, it was from the Experience "10" with custom color green, Santana neck and Bigbys, loved it so much bought a second one in fall in light blue metallic. Love the switching variety, wouldn't change the pups or the wiring.