PRS Mira X Review
By MNJ
When it first appeared, the PRS Mira drew mixed reactions. Diehard PRS lovers – they’re very protective of their favourite guitar brand – were sniffy. It didn’t look like a PRS for a start – where was the carved top, the sophisticated inlay work and exotic tonewood? Plus, it had an oddly shaped scratchplate and no trem option. However, there was a distinct vintage look about the guitar which – if you know anything about Paul Reed Smith – was entirely in keeping with his lifelong admiration for Ted McCarty and his work with Gibson in the fifties. It’s obvious that the inspiration for the Mira comes from the slab-bodied and flat-topped double-cutaway Les Paul Specials from that era and even though there are some fundamental differences – like the Mira’s 25” scale length, exposed humbuckers and single volume and tone controls – the ‘wrapover’ bridge/tailpiece and double-cutaway shape means the guitar is not a million miles away from the Special in looks.
Then along came the Mira X. Instead of the Mira’s mahogany body, The Mira X is constructed with a solid African basswood body and a Sipo Mahogany neck and Pau Ferro fretboard. This combination of tone woods contributes to the lighter weight and even more of a ‘vintage’ feel. The Mira X has an unusual 24 ½” scale length, a whole half-inch shorter than the Mira and comes in a range of modern colours like Cardinal Red, Orange Zest, Lime Green and Teal. Other modern conveniences on the Mira include a 10” radius fingerboard with 22 frets, a three-way blade pick-up selector and vintage style tuners. At six and a half pounds, it’s certainly a lightweight and very comfortable to hold and play, well balanced sitting or standing. PRS have provided the Mira X with its own set of humbucking pick-ups, high output jobs that give the guitar an authority which is surprising considering its low mass.
The Mira X is and ideal guitar for a player who may suffer from back problems and who wants a no-nonsense instrument that has some quality pick-ups and a decent sized neck. The overall tone will clean up by backing off the volume control but generally, the power in these Mira X humbuckers is considerable although you’ll have to work hard to get ithe guitar to sustain for any length of time. As always, you can rely on the PRS build quality to ensure flawless finishing so there’s no worries about fret ends not finished or nuts not cut right. This is a tidy little guitar that will cover rock, blues or similar but probably not much else tone-wise. However, for a guitar with so few of PRS’s usual features, the Mira X definitely stands up on its own merits.
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