PRS McCarty II | Tobacco Sunburst | 2008

We caught this PRS McCarty ll chilling by some Maltese Salt pans. A beautiful tobacco burst finish. The guitar is in great condition, with ample life left in the frets, some marks of use along the guitar body and one ding at the back of the neck which is barely noticeable when playing and also visibly. You can spot it in the images in this listing. No repairs have been made to the instrument. 
 
This McCarty II solid body version was only made between 2008 and 2009, the specifications are almost the same as the previous McCarty model. The body has been slightly increased in depth and the top is East Coast 'red' maple (as on most Gibson Les Pauls), which is plainer in appearance with a few streaks. It also comes along with an unplated Stop-Tail bridge and vintage-style tuners. This model is hooked up with PRS's 245 pickups, here with old-looking, scuffed nickel-plated covers as seen in the images. The major difference is the Mastering Voice Control (MVC) pot, powered by two 9-volt batteries. 
 
"Originally, Carlos Santana was looking for more tonal options from his guitar, more in the direction of Stevie Ray Vaughan," explains PRS's J Hayes. "So Paul came up with this active circuit that would give Carlos a '60s single-coil sound but without the hum issues that plague such instruments. The second version that is used in the McCarty II is based on the same concept."
 
The circuit is switched on by a mini-toggle switch in between the two knobs. With the MVC switched out the guitar remains on the passive option, it will also work without any batteries. The tone control knob is replaced by a centre-notched pot which moves from the single-coil tones to "heavy metal sounds".
"It's completely variable," said Paul Reed Smith "like a pan pot on a console. And it was designed by a guy who does consoles. I couldn't be more pleased. Watching people's jaws drop has just been a hoot."
PRS rarely creates a bad neck pickup sound and this has bags of depth, soul and enough clarity to cut successfully through quite a gained amp tone. It certainly works for bigger 'metal' voices, but it's a little like moving from a small combo to a half-stack.
Here's what PRS had to say about it: 
New for 2008, the successor to the McCarty is the McCarty II. Featuring our new Mastering Voice Control (MVC) circuitry that allows you to go from clear, early 60’s single coil tones to heavy metal sounds with the flick of a switch, this may just be the only model you’ll need to take to a gig or recording session.