How The Silver Sky's Specs Have Evolved Over The Years

One of the most common questions I see people ask when it comes to the Silver Sky "what specs does this year have?" or "If I want this spec what year do I need to buy?". This video is the only guide you'll need to watch to understand how the Silver Sky's specs have evolved with each year!
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[@tylerhailes2867]

PLEASE re upload the silver sky timeline discussion from the gear lounge page, it was amazing!

[@asehauDLM]

An excellent, and much needed, breakdown of the Silver Sky spec changes over the years, nice work Justin!

[@gregfruchtman1404]

Hello Justing, Thank you for the technical video detailing the Silver Sky over the past few years.

[@sedoyotec]

Thanks so much for putting all the info into one video!

[@davyholden]

Great video man!

[@shawnadams1693]

This was great, thank you.

[@sirfxalot]

Good video! I used to own a 2019, 2020, and 2021 Silver Sky (all at once). Now I just have the 2019 and 2020. Can confirm: the differences you're describing here are accurate. The 2021 pickups are very different than the earlier ones. Less bass, less high end. More "focused" feel, but I never got along well with the thicker neck shape. My 2020 (blue, maple) is hard to compare to my 2019 (red, rosewood) because the necks are different woods, and that affects the tone a lot more than most people think. The 2021 was a "flawless" guitar in so many ways but I find the thinner neck on the older ones much more comfortable for my hands, and I love the pickups in the 2019 the best. They have the most character and a nice snappy dark low end to them somehow, which it makes it more fun to play. The 2021+ pickups are so balanced they're almost "dull", if that makes sense. The red guitar on my channel is the 2019 but I don't have any videos uploaded of the 2021 before I decided to get rid of it. The red one has held its own to this day as my #1, but you can't go wrong with any of them!

[@hey12delila]

I have a 2023 model and am considering reshaping the neck, as it is just a little too fat for me to consistently do thumb-over chords. I am thinking about asking the luthier to just reduce the shoulders a little bit.

[@rick00770]

Great to know, I bought a 2018 tungsten color. Really like it. I was wondering about what I’ve heard . Thanks much. Subscribed.

[@a_man_named_daaave]

Thanks for the awesome vid! Your channel is golden. When John Mayer started his tour and I saw a picture of that dark satin silver sky, I wondered if it was a new color or just a trick of light. I checked the internet. Found nothing. Checked your channel. Found nothing. I waited another hour and KZbin pushed your video about the prototype color. It's good to be among geeks!

[@sophusjordtpetersen6871]

Glad to some JM content again.😍

[@martinleonmusic]

Played a 2020 Tungsten SS compared to my personal 2021 gloss Moc Sand, and the difference in pickups and neck is amazing. It’s my favorite guitar I own, and it’s so much more comfortable on the neck and sounds much smoother and nicer!

[@LaminarSound]

I just played a Roxy Pink Silver Sky yesterday at Guitar Center and I assume thats either a 2021 or 2022 because I dont believe that color even was released before then. I was very surprised by how tall the frets were. That guitar played and sounded like an absolute dream let me tell you. Ive got a really great S guitar already and Im in the market for another electric, ideally a humbucker guitar. Im looking at Les Pauls, HSS Suhr, and that new PRS NF53. But after playing that SS I just cant help but want it more than anything else. Everything about it just feels like home. It plays effortlessly.

[@luisbe88]

Hey Justin! This is a great explanation of the spec changes so far. I was wondering if you know whether they’ve changed the plastics as well? I’ve got a 2019 SS and the pickguard has yellowed considerably. I notice that in newer models the plastics look a lot whiter. This is evident also in the picture of the 2019/2021 moc sand SS you show with the pickup readings too. Do you have any information on this? Thanks again for such great content!

[@dannyllerenatv8635]

I'm glad that from 2021 up they chose 6105 style frets. I can live with the chunky neck shape and the 7.25 radius, those things are just fine. My main gripe always was the tiny frets. Fret size will make or break a 7.25 radius.

[@AlbertKarhuFilms]

I, and ”few” other players love the 7.25 radius with those lovely vintage frets of an old stratocaster. The make you feel the guitar more. Of course just my opinion and my style of playing. And that headstock shape that leo Fender came up with is just the coolest and perfect.

[@dannyllerenatv8635]

@@AlbertKarhuFilms It can depend on a lot of things too, if you want the frets crowned well, sometimes it helps to have a little extra "meat" on the frets. They make heavier string gauges easier to manage as well.

[@tomhagelberg6651]

So 2018-2019 the neck Is skinnyer? I’ve eyeballed silver sky, never tested live. I’m more of a skinny neck guy, so I would need to look at used 18’-19’ then?

[@YMESYDT]

This is interesting because I really liked the original Silver Sky (I played one of the first run from a local dealer that does a lot with PRS) then in 2020 I liked it less, but who knows the current one may be great again or the opposite, who knows.

[@xF1revolution]

I've got a maple midnight rose from late 21 with the CAB finish. It's so soft.

[@guitarstring5981]

This remind me the email from PRS tvat I shown to you few month ago. PRS say that the pickup not changed so if this is true, the only think that they could change was the wiring. Special the resistor that the volumne knos has. If you change the value, you can get more or less pickup outuput values. Is great to know if the pickup values that you share is direct from each pickup hot wire or from the output jack. Thanks, best regards

[@GrecBrown]

Hello! thanks for the great video!Does it mean that all models/color variations built after 2021 will have the larger Frets? For example orion green 2022 will have the 6105?

[@misterbeane]

I'm a little confused about the neck shape changes. I just bought a used 2021 SS (midnight rose, RW board), and from I can tell, in 2021-present models with RW boards have a more D-shaped neck. I'm guessing that the previous 635JM neck that was used in previous years was more of a fat C-shape, so when you say that the current D-shape neck is "more rounded", you are talking about the D-shape vs. C-shape, correct? I guess it's more of a question of semantics, as I could also see how someone could say that a C-shape is "more rounded" than a D-shape, because obviously a circle is a more round shape than a D-shape. Am I also correct in that nothing else on the neck has changed at all over the years? Same nut/bridge string spacing, middle-of-neck thickness up and down the neck, same fretboard width progression up and down the neck? FWIW, the only reason I'm wanting to know as much as I can about the neck changes is that the neck is much bigger/thicker from the 9th fret and up than I thought it would be, and is really the ONLY thing I'd change about the SS. I LOVE everything else about it, but I, just like the majority of players, don't have nearly the same size of hands as Mayer, so the neck feels huge to me. Not uncomfortably so, but enough to make me want to find out everything about it lol. Also really curious as to if there's any vids out there of people that have put the SS pups in a non-SS, just to see how they sound in a typical Strat body that is anywhere from 0.5-2 lbs heavier than the SS. It'd be awesome if someone put the SS pups in one of those $80 amazon guitars, just to see the results. Ok, rant over. TIA!

[@brandonbarker9421]

A current update would be amazing if you have any info. I reached out to PRS directly and they completely refused to give me any details whatsoever. I was honestly shocked at their lack of willingness to share.

[@lightninggod4348]

What would be on the lunar ice SS? I'm assuming the 2021 specs? Did anything change in 2023?

[@gabrielmwangi297]

So is John currently using the 2019 gloss moc sand ?

[@CodyGleason]

2:48 I just received an email from PRS that said they officially introduced nitro into the line in January 2020

[@philzlz]

PRS wrote me that even the maple neck had changes and sent me two diagrams if you are interested. I found all those quiet changes very confusing. I had asked if the maple has the same neck as the 2018 rosewood version, they said it had but then was slightly changed.

[@thefam9179]

When was it slightly changed ?

[@thefam9179]

Can you share the diagrams ?

[@mjsc97]

I recently ordered a midnight rose SS which is in a backorder. Will that include the newest pickups and fretwire? (Originally it was released in 2020)

[@CocoKoi321]

the first models had a 300k volume pot so they sounded brighter, later years they got a 250k, thats why they sound darker

[@thefam9179]

Where the pickups changed again in late 2022 or 2023?

[@thepedalguy2932]

Neck has always been nitro finished on the silver sky

[@TheSizzlingBadger]

I thought I read somewhere that the RW and Maple neck models had different pickups

[@guitarbygus]

I have a maple and rosewood 22 and looked inside. Both had the same pickups!

[@emulgatorx]

Wow, it's unbelievable how much innovation happened in just a few years! Makes you really wonder what they'll come up with next. Maybe slightly narrower or wider frets? Or a 9 screws on the pick guard instead of 8?

[@albertomunoz4867]

I checked with my Sweetwater representative in regards to the finish. They are claiming that its still a poly-gloss finish, not nitro. Any online literature that would confirm they are nitro?

[@JustinJeske]

Your rep is wrong, PRS has confirmed it on multiple occasions! They are gloss but Nitro top coat and CAB underneath!

[@Foe1971]

Time for an update?

[@andrewshively6475]

So the newer ones are minimally more “fender-y”

[@JadeRaven75]

Please yell "clean this mess up OR YOURE FIRED!"

[@maciejgucia4069]

Hi any news about the 2023 PRS silver sky changes?: )

[@bobdelair02]

As far as I am aware, they changed the pick ups again in late 2022.

[@thefam9179]

Where did you get this information?

[@o_o0_x914]

Katana boost > blues breaker > klon > TS10 Thoughts?

[@mattmanley7118]

I’m pretty sure my Silver Sky is from 2019 I lost the tags…. Nitro or poly?

[@albertomunoz4867]

I have a feeling they might all be Poly. I havent found any literature saying they are nitro. Sweetwater says that 2022 are poly.

[@alleged7]

Just got the 2022 Roxy pink delivered and it has a ‘Nitro’ label with a small disclaimer about the nitro top coat

[@JustinJeske]

www.sweetwater.com/insync/prs-finishes-what-you-need-to-know/ It’s all in this article on SW posted in April of 2022. Sounds like PRS is actually doing a more full nitro finish based off of the wording in it. Either way they started as Nitro over CAB finishes back in late 2019 on all US made guitars!