Reverend Warhawk DAW vs PRS Studio
Reasons to Get
Reverend Warhawk DAW over PRS Studio
Reasons to Get
PRS Studio over Reverend Warhawk DAW
Other Key Differences
Reverend Warhawk DAW vs PRS Studio
Shared Features
Reverend Warhawk DAW vs PRS Studio
Common Strengths
- Locking Tuners
- High-Quality Nut
- Top Pickup Brand
- Expensive Wood
Common Weaknesses
- Neck-Through Build
- Weight Relief
- Stays in Tune (Evertune)
- High-Quality Frets
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- Luminescent Sidedots
- Strap Lock
- 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- Active/Passive Preamp
Table of Contents
Price History Comparison
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Which One is Better Overall?
After going through our comparison algorithm, the results show that both instruments scored 72 out of 100, which makes them similar in terms of quality.
The PRS Studio wins when it comes to sound, build quality. On the other hand, the Reverend Warhawk DAW has the upper hand when it comes to playability, value for the money.
If you got small hands, none of these instruments will make a big difference when it comes to comfortability.
Which One is Better for Beginners?
If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, the PRS Studio is the better choice.
The PRS Studio meets 5 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Reverend Warhawk DAW meets only 4. This takes into account the type of frets, scale length, nut width, bridge type, fretboard radius, and neck profile to determine the easiest combination for new players.
New Player Friendliness
Reverend Warhawk DAW- Easy-to-use bridge
- Locking tuners
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable shape
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
New Player Friendliness
PRS Studio- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Locking tuners
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
Nevertheless, when it comes to choosing an instrument, you should pick the one more compatible with your personal style. Still, below we'll try you to give you our results as objectively as it's possible to help you decide.
Reverend Warhawk DAW Overview
- From Reverend's 2021 Set-Neck series
- Made in South Korea
- 6 strings
- 24.75"'' scale
- 12" Fretboard Radius
- Korina body
- Three-Piece Korina neck
- Pau Ferro fretboard
- Bridge pickup: HA5 Bridge (Humbucker/Passive)
- 1 volume and 2 tone Dome knobs
- 3-way Switch
- Wilkinson WVS50 IIK Tremolo bridge
- Medium Oval Set neck
- 22 Jumbo frets
- Reverend Pin-Lock tuners
- Compare Specs >
PRS Studio Overview
- From PRS's 2021 Core series
- Made in United States
- 6 strings
- 25"'' scale
- 10" Fretboard Radius
- Carved Figured Maple top
- Mahogany body
- Mahogany neck
- Rosewood fretboard
- Bridge pickup: PRS 58/15 LT (Humbucker/Passive)
- Middle pickup: PRS Narrowfield (Single Coil/Passive)
- Neck pickup: PRS Narrowfield (Single Coil/Passive)
- 1 volume and 1 tone Speed knobs
- 5-way Switch
- PRS Patented Tremolo, Gen III bridge
- Pattern Set neck
- 22 Medium Jumbo frets
- PRS Phase III Locking tuners
- Compare Specs >
Sound Quality Comparison
The wood used in an electric guitar or bass is not as important to determine the final tone. However, some people prefer specific wood types, so we'll take a look at those first. Then, we'll take a look at the electronics to determine the versatility and sound quality of each instrument.
Woods Used in the Reverend Warhawk DAW
Limba is a relatively rare wood that shows exotic tight dark grain stripes. It comes in white or black. As a tonewood, it is comparable to Mahogany but with richer mids. Find out more about Limba.
Pau Ferro has a dark, chocolate-like color with straight dark grains that is being used as a replacement to Rosewood due to the regulations. It produces a warm tone that is somewhere between Mahogany and Rosewood. Find out more about Pau Ferro.
Woods Used in the PRS Studio
Mahogany is a fairly rare wood nowadays. It's used mostly for bodies due to its relatively lightweight. Gibson popularized it with their Les Paul guitars during their golden years, so this wood has a lot of good reputation behind it. The most expensive type comes from South America and it's still used by Gibson even today. Find out more about Mahogany.
Rosewood is an almost purple-looking wood that is used mainly for fretboards since it's heavy, rare, and expensive. It's sometimes used on acoustic guitar bodies to create stronger warm tones. Find out more about Rosewood.
Winner: PRS Studio.
Pickup Configuration
The Reverend Warhawk DAW has an HP90 configuration while the PRS Studio has HSS pickups.
HP90 means it rocks a Humbucker at the bridge and a P90 at the neck. This is not a usual combination, which makes guitars like this really special. You'll get high-output rhythm pickups and a classy slightly cleaner tone excellent for blues and similar genres.
On the other hand, HSS provides a great balance if you like to play with a lot of distortion, but also love to use clean tones. You'll get a lot of output at the bridge position, but you'll be able to play bright clean tones at the other positions.
Pickups Quality
Both come with very good pickups from at least one of the specialized brands in the market. With pickups like these, you probably won't need an upgrade anytime soon.
Both use Passive pickups. This is what's used for most music genres. They have a regular output and will serve you for both high-gain and clean tones. The alternative (Active pickups) offer a higher output that is mostly used for heavy music.
Winner: Tie.
Versatility Comparison
Some instruments offer you more ways to explore your creativity than others. Below you'll find how both compare when it comes to versatility.
Switch Options
The PRS Studio gives you 5 switch options while the Reverend Warhawk DAW gives you 3. This means that the PRS Studio gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve
Only the PRS Studio comes with some kind of pickup modification: Coil Split.
Coil Split lets you disconnect one of the pickup coils. When used with humbuckers, it turns them into single-coil with lower output and cleaner tone.
When evaluating versatility, we also take into consideration bridge and neck joint type, number of frets, switch options, amount of pickups and more.
Winner: PRS Studio.
Final Sound Quality Scores
Build Quality Comparison
When it comes to build quality, we like to take into account everything used to build the instrument. This includes materials, hardware and the quality control expected depending on the country where it was built. Let's see how the Reverend Warhawk DAW compares to the PRS Studio.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Reverend Warhawk DAW is built in South Korea while the PRS Studio is made in United States.
South Korea was for many years the number one choice for mass-producing semi-premium guitars. They can build excellent guitars for a cheap price. Now, it's less common to find Korean guitars because Indonesia has proved capable of building guitars just as well, but likely for cheaper.
The United States is considered one of the best electric guitar manufacturers in the world. A guitar made in this country is supposed to have world-class quality control. Nowadays, guitars made in other countries can beat some of the ones made in the US, but most of the time, this country offers the best you can get. Of course, that comes at a price.
Winner: PRS Studio
Nut Material
If you want your guitar to stay in tune and sound good, you need a well cut nut. Nut quality can be inconsistent even when comparing two copies of the same model. The best way to make sure you're nut will be well done is by getting a nut made by an expert company like TUSQ or Micarta.
The Reverend Warhawk DAW has a Boneite nut. This is an artificial material made to imitate the favored type of nut: bone. This allows it to sound and feel pretty much like bone, but without the inconsistency of natural materials.
On the other hand, the PRS Studio comes with a PRS Propietary nut. It's similar to TUSQ nuts, but they're not as hard, and the tone is not as bright. However, the material is self-lubricating, and it's usually well cut, so they have good tuning stability.
Winner: Tie.
Fret Material
Most fret wire is made of nickel silver. This material eventually wears down after a lot of use and most instruments end up needing a complete fret replacement. However, some expensive models come with stainless steel frets. This is what you should aim for if you can afford it.
Unfortunately, none of them come with stainless steel frets.
Winner: Tie.
Bridge
The perfect bridge for you will depend on your playstyle because they all have advantages and disadvantages. However, some bridges are more expensive—like Floyd Roses and Evertunes—and thus add more value to a guitar.
Both come with a similar bridge: Tremolo. Tremolo bridges give you more versatility than fixed bridges. They let you perform the intense vibrato effects that would be impossible with a fixed bridge. However, since the bridge floats and there's less contact with the body, the strings lose sustain slightly faster. They can also be a bit harder to restring and set up correctly than fixed bridges.
Since we need to be objective, the most expensive type of bridge will be the winner of this section. In the end, this doesn't matter if you're not going to use the bridge for its original purpose, so choose the bridge that fits your playing style better.
Winner: Tie.
Tuners
They both have locking tuners. They'll help to keep your guitar in tune because they allow you to tune it without wrapping the strings around the posts. This avoids variations in the tuning due to the strings changing position at the post after a bend. They come at the disadvantage of being slightly heavier than regular tuners. Also, it makes it a lot easier to restring.
Winner: Tie.
Neck Joint
Contrary to popular belief, the difference in sustain and tone that some neck joints give to a guitar is simply unperceivable—if they're all well built. However, some of them do have advantages over the others.
Both have a Set neck joint. This neck is tightly glued to the body. They give you the least versatility because you can't swap them for a neck that fits your hand better if you want to, unlike bolt-on necks. Some people think this gives more resonance and sustain, but there's no real difference if the bolt-on joint is well built.
Winner: Tie.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Reverend Warhawk DAW
- Locking Tuners
- Expensive Wood
- Boneite Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Tremolo
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- Made in South Korea
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
PRS Studio
- Locking Tuners
- Made in United States
- Expensive Wood
- PRS Propietary Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Coil Split Pickups
- Tremolo
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Final Build Quality Scores
Playability Comparison
Let's now compare their playability. Bear in mind that the instrument will feel different depending on your hand size and play style. That's why you should always test before buying. But if you can't or want a second opinion on it, we can still take a look at each of the important measurements of the instrument for you. This way, we can predict how easy a guitar might be to play, or how different it will feel compared to the other.
Remember that, even though the difference might seem small, every inch counts when it comes to feeling of the instrument in your hands. Any variation can completely change how comfortable a guitar feels in your hands.
Nut Width
The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, the Reverend Warhawk DAW has the wider nut with 43mm (1.693'') vs 42.9mm (1.688''). This is a 0.1mm (0.0050000000000001'') difference
This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Reverend Warhawk DAW, especially closer to the nut. However, it's also easier to play without muting strings accidently. This favors people with big hands.
Scale Length
The scale length is one of the things that influences playability the most. This is the distance between the nut and the bridge and will affect everything from low action allowance, difficulty to perform bends, fret separation, and even tone.
The PRS Studio has the longest scale: 25". The Reverend Warhawk DAW is only 24.75" long. This is a 0.25'' (6.4mm) scale length difference.
This longer scale means that the strings need more tension to get in tune. This is good if you want to avoid fret buzz, which can happen when the strings are too loose and touch the frets while vibrating. This is especially important when playing in lower tunings. This will also let you reduce the gap between fretboard and strings (low action) to make them easier to press down. However, this higher tension will also make it harder to perform bends and vibratos as the strings will feel stiffer.
This also means that the frets have a longer separation between each other, so this will make it harder for people with smaller hands when playing some chord positions.
Another characteristic of a longer scale is that it makes the guitar sound 'snappier' or brighter. This is due to the extra separation between harmonics and overtones produced by the tension. This influences tone more than any other factor (except the pickups).
Lastly, remember that you can also affect the tension of the strings by changing your string gauge. You can use a thicker gauge for more tension and a lighter one for less tension.
Neck Profile
No single neck shape is better than others. However, most people tend to prefer a thinner necks because it doesn't get in their way when playing fast and most hand sizes can adapt to it pretty well. However, some people still prefer thicker necks for a better grip, especially if they have big hands.
Both the Reverend Warhawk DAW and the PRS Studio have a C-shaped neck. This is what you'll find in most modern guitars. Most people feel like the thickness of a C neck is simply the less intrusive one for playing fast, while at the same time allowing you to grab the neck easily for resting if you want to.
Fretboard Radius
Most guitar fretboards are not flat; they usually have a curve or arc across their width. A curved fretboard will make it easier to perform chords without muting strings, while a flatter one will make it easier to play single notes, which is good for bending and soloing in general. The best fretboards have a compound radius that varies across the fingerboard, but they're not common since they take a lot more work to build.
In this case, the PRS Studio's fingerboard radius is smaller, which means it's more curved than the Reverend Warhawk DAW's. This extra arc will make playing chords easier in this model. You won't be as likely to mute the strings, especially if you have big hands. However, playing single notes and bending will be easier on the Reverend Warhawk DAW.
Hand Size Comfortability
Everyone has a different hand size, and that's why it's recommended to try a guitar before buying, even if others tell you that it's comfortable to play. However, we can know whether a guitar favors small or large hands just by knowing its exact measurements.
After taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that both in this comparison are balanced for most hand sizes.
Reverend Warhawk DAW:
PRS Studio:
Fret Size
The Reverend Warhawk DAW has Jumbo frets, which should be taller than the PRS Studio's Medium Jumbo frets.
Some people prefer taller frets because they result in more sustain since the strings get pressed cleanly without interference from the fretboard. However, if they're too tall—like Jumbo frets—, you might change the pitch of the strings accidentally if you press too hard because you won't be touching the fretboard with your fingers. This is also why some guitarists with a heavy grip prefer smaller frets. They like to feel the fingerboard to avoid pressing down too hard and getting out of pitch.