"I live in a Newtonian world of physics," founder Paul Reed Smith once proudly declared. What Paul means is that PRS instruments are built to put out what players put into them. That sentiment is clear with the SE Angelus A20E, an acoustic-electric guitar that’s versatile, comfortable, and gig ready. It’s an optimized and enhanced powerhouse that oozes PRS quality through and through! Now updated with new tonewoods, the A20E features a solid mahogany top and a laminate mahogany body for focused tone that cuts like a knife (in a good way). Inside, advanced PRS bracing ensures enhanced output and loud projection using traditional acoustic bracing blended with modified elements of classical nylon guitar design. You’ll also find premium hardware onboard including a bone nut, an ebony bridge, and PRS-designed tuners alongside welcome touches of beauty from the A20E’s herringbone purfling and rosette. And for those looking to gig, the PRS SE Angelus A20E also comes equipped with a special PRS-voiced Fishman Sonitone pickup for plugging in.

Mahogany matters

The PRS SE Angelus A20E features a plethora of fine tonewoods, mostly mahogany, that resonate richly with each strummed chord. A solid mahogany top ensures top-notch projection with focused midrange and articulate depth — great for both fingerpicking and strumming. Laminate mahogany back and sides ensure long-lasting sustain and warmly defined notes, while also keeping this guitar budget friendly! The A20E’s mahogany neck features a silky-smooth gloss finish and PRS’ “Pattern Wide Fat” profile for a beefy but ergonomic feel. And an ebony fingerboard with 20 frets ensures angelic playability up and down the neck, with extra upper-fret access courtesy of the A20E’s body cutaway. At each turn, PRS has made sure you get maximum tone from these tonewoods by pairing them with exceptional hardware, including a bone nut and a hardwood ebony bridge.

Custom-voiced Fishman Sonitone electronics 

The SE A20 Angelus comes outfitted with a Fishman Sonitone pickup system that’s been custom-voiced by PRS. The Sonitone system delivers dynamic, natural amplification through an undersaddle pickup and soundhole-mounted preamp that’s discrete but easy to access. The Sonitone preamp lets you tweak tone to your liking with its individual rotary controls for master volume and tone. And because PRS voiced this version of the Sonitone system themselves, you’re getting electronics tailored specifically to the Angelus’ sonic properties, not just a mass-produced pickup dropped in blindly!

Braced for big things

Bracing is critical for acoustic guitars! Like an amp with an electric guitar, bracing shapes acoustic tone at the critical point — the final point of sound production. Bracing can subtract power from each note you play, or it can naturally channel that energy as it arrives. PRS acoustics do the latter using unique hybrid “X”/classical bracing. This bracing pattern features a traditional soundhole “X” bracing with a classical fan bracing across the lower bout with locked-down sides meant to hold steady as the top vibrates. PRS acoustic bracing lets the top move more freely and reach its natural limits. The result is bold and clear projection with dynamic range and a unique voice you won’t find anywhere else.

What PRS Says...

The PRS SE A20E brings all-mahogany construction to our best-selling body shape: the Angelus Cutaway. The Angelus Cutaway body shape delivers comfort and playability and is well-suited for picking and fingerstyle playing. The all-mahogany body gives the PRS SE A20E an organic, warm voice. When matched with PRS hybrid “X”/Classical bracing, which allows the top to freely vibrate and project, the SE A20E’s voice projects with breathtaking volume and delicate nuance. Plugged in, the PRS-Voiced Fishman Sonitone Pickup delivers dynamic, organic tone that allows the natural sound of the instrument to come through. “The EQ in this pickup system sounds like you mic’d the guitar. It’s very musical,” said Paul Reed Smith. This electronics system features an undersaddle pickup and soundhole mounted preamp with easy-to-access volume and tone controls. Additional high-quality features include a solid top, ebony fretboard and bridge, bone nut and saddle, as well as PRS trademark bird inlays and headstock design. Ships in a high-quality acoustic gig bag.