PRS is nine months into its 40th anniversary celebrations, and for its latest drop the Maryland brand has unveiled one of its most environmentally friendly electric guitars yet – the S2 Special Semi-Hollow Reclaimed.
The run, which is limited to 700 pieces, doubles down on Paul Reed Smith’s claims that virtually any wood can be used as viable tonewoods, as each instrument is crafted from reclaimed and salvaged materials.
Those include woods taken from old houses in Brazil and salvaged after a hurricane in Puerto Rico. Such a move, PRS says, means each guitar “boasts its own character” and is “rendered unique”.
A sample of 100 to 150-year-old Peroba Rosa – usually utilized as siding in Brazil – is used for the tops, and was selected for its density. These tops partner Cuban mahogany necks and Guaribu fretboards. We’re told to expect tones that are “punchy but also warm,” while some of the neck woods – purchased from Puerto Rico – had been claimed from trees felled by Hurricane Maria in 2017.
The fretboards are sourced from Brazil, where the wood has historically been used for supporting beams in houses. PRS has opted to let their natural colors shine with satin nitro finishes. Holes and wear are reminders of the wood’s respective histories.
Elsewhere, the guitars are very much classic PRS. Built with a 25" scale length, they feature PRS Patented tremolos, Phase II locking tuners with wing buttons, and two humbuckers with its signature Narrowfield humbucker – a hybrid of ’bucker and single-coil sounds – in the middle.
Alongside its Volume and Tone controls, and five-way switch, the guitar sports two additional mini-toggles. These unlock a myriad of tones via 12 different configurations covering everything from cosy cleans to roaring rhythms and spanky split-coil sounds.
The reclaimed woods concept was born after PRS Guitars' Senior Wood Buyer, Michael Reid, embarked on a house-building project using second-hand Brazilian woods, with the first PRS run of its kind coming in 2017.
While his job sounds exhausting – with the preparation of the Peroba Rosa wood “involving the extraction of thousands of small batten nails” completed during the height of summer with sweaty protective gear on – he says the results are more than worth it.
“It is impossible to fool a good guitar player,” Reid admits. “Everyone who has a guitar made from these woods sees them as a legitimate tool for serious players, not as a gimmick.”
The PRS S2 Special Semi-Hollow Reclaimed is available now for $2,699.
Visit PRS for more.
Other noteworthy PRS drops in 2025 include Herman Li’s long-awaited, recipe-skewing signature guitar, a contender for best sub–$1K guitar of the year in the SE NF 53, and an exotic wood makeover for the SE.
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