“The first time I played it, I was smiling”: PRS unveils the latest evolution of John Mayer’s signature guitar – the ‘Dead Spec’ Silver Sky, inspired by Jerry Garcia’s Alligator Stratocaster
PRS has unveiled the next evolution of John Mayer’s hugely popular Silver Sky signature guitar – the limited-edition ‘Dead Spec’ Silver Sky.
Said to be sonically inspired by the iconic Alligator Stratocaster once owned by late Grateful Dead guitarist Jerry Garcia, the Dead Spec variant was purpose built for Mayer’s most recent Dead & Company tour, and is the first-ever model to deviate from the flagship template that was first introduced in 2018.
For those who kept an eye on this year’s Dead & Company farewell tour, the Dead Spec Silver Sky will no doubt be a familiar sight: since it was quite literally designed for the live shows, it’s seen plenty of stage action.
After the model was given one of its very first outings back in April, Mayer then made headlines when he once again wielded the “Advance Research Division” prototype model for a knockout guitar-swapping solo.
Naturally, its early appearances prompted an outpouring of speculation, with many Mayer fans theorizing that the blues-rock ace was in fact road-testing a new version of his Strat-a-like signature model.
While this, strictly speaking, might not have been the plan from the outset, it soon became clear to both Mayer and PRS that the Dead Spec Silver Sky was simply too versatile to keep away from fans – especially those keen on Mayer’s Dead & Company material.
As Mayer explains, “After playing the Silver Sky designed for the 2023 Dead & Company summer tour, I realized the guitar was special. It quickly became apparent this wasn’t just a tool for one particular job but could be extremely versatile in other players’ hands.”
At first glance, it looks to be a newly finished Silver Sky model, but upon closer inspection the suite of Dead & Company-specific updates can be found. At its core, a lightweight swamp ash body has been drafted in to replace the original's alder appointment, which in turn has been finished with an ultra-thin version of the Moc Sand colorway.
The Dead Spec design is also hardtail, meaning that although a modified version of the original’s bridge system is retained, it doesn’t function as a tremolo as the body itself has no room for a spring cavity, rendering the Gen III as a string-through bridge.
Having said that, the brass block of the bridge – which runs through the depth of the body – is still there, though is kept in place by a smaller cavity. This, according to PRS, “adds a musical warmth”, and works alongside a brass nut and string retainer bar that adds to the resonance and tone.
This deceptive spec lines up alongside arguably the Dead Spec’s most notable new appointment: a brass-plate Alembic Blaster preamp.
When early images of the six-string first surfaced, many spectators believed this was in fact the case, and now it is confirmed. Unlike the standard Silver Sky guitars, the Dead Spec version has an Alembic Blaster that adds the option of having a straight boost (thanks to the additional switch). There’s also an internal pot for adding 3-14dB of extra gain.
This directly pays homage to the same spec that was equipped to the original Alligator, and in practice is said to offer added punch and definitive note separation, as well as compensating for signal dips over long stage cables.
“We made this non-tremolo guitar with a lot of brass, which gave the guitar [a] beautiful warm midrange, and the Alembic Blaster switch that cleared everything up and gave the guitar some courage,” said Smith, who also revealed the first prototype took around five days to build.
“The first time I played it, I was smiling – I really like it,” he went on. “The other thing I love about this guitar is that the finish sinks into the wood. It’s part of the guitar, so the guitar feels alive in your hands. That’s really cool.”
With all that said and done, we have but one question: since the Dead Spec was specifically built for Dead & Company’s tour, and since that group has played their final tour, what does the future hold for Mayer’s own personal model?
Will he start using it during his own headline shows, or will it be removed from his guitar rotation entirely? Well, Mayer has left the door open for future shows with Bob Weir and co, so we imagine it will still come in handy at some point down the line.
Only 1,000 units of the Dead Spec Silver Sky will be made, and are available to preorder now for $3,350 each. Head over to PRS Guitars to find out more information.
John Mayer is enjoying a strong streak of signature guitar releases. A few months ago, he and Martin celebrated 20 years of signature models with two Gray Sunburst acoustic guitars.
