“The CE has been with us since the very early days of PRS. I love celebrating this model”: PRS radically upgrades its CE range with dashing new tonewoods – and an expansive pickup switch that has never been seen in the lineup before

PRS Guitars has expanded its CE family of electric guitars with the PRS CE 24-08 Black Limba and the PRS CE 24-08 Swamp Ash.

Both guitars are limited edition and, as their names suggest, serve up different tonewoods – a topic that Paul Reed Smith himself has an interesting take on – but otherwise share the same spec sheets.

The Black Limba model will no doubt turn heads with its rich, natural color and “powerful but warm voice”. The Swamp Ash version, meanwhile, offers more well-rounded tonal flavors, supposedly including bright, articulate highs and a defined low-end.

While the natural wood grains can still be seen on the Swamp Ash model, there is a raft of colorways to pick from, including Frost Blue Metallic, McCarty Tobacco Sunburst, Metallic Midnight, Pearl White, Red Apple Metallic (pictured) and Vintage Natural. The Black Limba model is exclusively available in its natural finish.

Built with a 25” scale length, both models come with bolt-on maple necks, 24-fret rosewood fretboards, and PRS-patented tremolo bridges. Their bodies feature violin top carves and locking tuners are a handy addition.

PRS 85/15 humbuckers, crafted in PRS’ Maryland home, have been drafted in, and promise to deliver extended tonal range at both high and low ends of the spectrum. That depth is furthered by the luthier’s nifty 24-08 switching system, which sees the pickups offering eight different configurations, including biting single-coil sounds.

Notably, this is the first time the system has made its way onto PRS' mid-priced CE models. It seems the firm is in the mood for sharing features across its ranges, with some of its affordable SE guitars now coming equipped with its innovative DD 'S' pickup system.

“Every once in a while, we choose woods from our stock to create special instruments, and these guitars are great examples of just that,” says Paul Reed Smith of the new CE 24-08 models.

“The CE has been with us since the very early days of PRS. I love celebrating this model with new woods and by adding the ‘08’ switching system to it for the first time. These are real players’ guitars.”

The PRS Black Limba CE 24-08 and Swamp Ash CE 24-08 are available now for $1,999.99. Each guitar comes with a premium gig bag.

Head over to PRS for more information.