The Versatility of the Hollowbody II Piezo Explained

With the ability to blend between acoustic and electric tones in one instrument, the Hollowbody II Piezo is a highly versatile gigging and recording instrument. It has two output jacks, which means you can take different approaches to wiring your rig.

Music educator Colin McAllister and PRS product demonstrator Bryan Ewald each use their Hollowbody instruments in different ways.

Colin's approach is relatively simple, opting to use a single output directly to an amp. By using the 3-way mini toggle and blend knob, Colin can select whether he wants to output the sound of the magnetic pickups, Piezo pickup, or a combination of both pickups through his Sonzera amp. Typically, Colin blends a bit of the Piezo into his magnetic pickup signal to add a slight shimmer to his tone.

Bryan prefers to run both output jacks. This allows him to get isolated electric tones to his amp and isolated acoustic tones to the PA simply by using the guitar's 3-way selector. This way he can use the Hollowbody II Piezo to sound like two completely different guitars. By using the Piezo blend knob and magnetic pickup volume knob, Bryan can also blend any amount of the two isolated signals, to an audience this can sound like two guitar players doubling parts. When playing live, he runs his electric signal through his pedalboard and utilizes the two output jacks to instantly transition from an acoustic part of a song to an electric part of a song, each sounding convincingly familiar.

Check out the video below to hear it all demonstrated:

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Check out the Hollowbody II Piezo product page here.

To pick up your own PRS, contact a dealer here.