PRS Tekton Is Here: Inside the Four-Model Bolt-On Family Built for Modern Players

PRS Guitars has spent four decades building a reputation on carved maple tops, bird inlays and a feel that sits somewhere between the two big American traditions. On October 20, 2026, the Stevensville, Maryland company did something it has never quite done before: it launched an entire family of guitars aimed squarely at the most technical, modern players, and built it around specs that PRS fans have been requesting in forum threads and dealer conversations for years.

It's called Tekton. There are four models, all bolt-on, all made in the USA, and all sharing a new body shape, a thinner neck, a flatter 16" fretboard radius, stainless steel frets and an all-new set of humbuckers called Stylus that PRS voiced to work through digital modelers as well as tube amps. PRS's own social post on launch day didn't bother with subtlety. It read: "TEKTON: BORN TO SHRED. Four new models and a whole new family."

Here is everything PRS has confirmed so far: what each model is, the full spec sheet, where Tekton fits next to the Custom 24, Silver Sky and the artist models, who it's really for, and what it costs.

What PRS Announced

The Tekton family launched as four distinct models:

• Tekton: six-string, PRS Hardtail bridge
• Tekton T: six-string, PRS Two-Point Tremolo
• Tekton "Floyd": six-string, Floyd Rose 1000 Series tremolo, all-alder body
• Tekton SVN: seven-string, PRS seven-string hardtail, 26.5" scale

PRS's official press release describes them as "designed for the most technical of modern players," and says all four share "a completely novel and lightweight body shape, thinner neck, flatter fretboard, stainless steel frets, longer scale lengths, and the genesis of PRS pickups purpose-built to get the most out of digital rigs."

The company is framing this as more than a model drop. "This is not just introducing a new model. We are planting a flag for a whole new family of guitars," said Jim Cullen, Director of Sales at PRS Guitars, in the release. "Over the years, we have heard a growing call for more modern spec'd PRS guitars. The Tekton is our answer to that call."

The name comes from Ancient Greek. PRS says tekton means artisan or craftsman, "in particular a woodworker, carpenter, or builder." The pickups got the same treatment: a stylus is an instrument used for writing. In the company's launch blog, PRS admits that "naming things is hard," and that most of the names on its shortlist were already taken.

How the Tekton Was Designed

The most revealing source on the Tekton isn't the spec sheet. It's PRS's own development blog, "Meet the PRS Tekton Family," published on launch day. It reads less like marketing copy and more like a design diary.

PRS says the goal from the start was "serving the most discerning, technical players," and that some of the specs were easy calls: a 25.5" scale for the six-strings and 26.5" for the seven. Others were argued over. The team debated whether to go with a 16" or 20" fretboard radius, and it was artist feedback that made PRS "fully confident" in 16".

The body started in a very analog way. "For the body shape, we started with a Vela, some whiteout, and pencils," the blog says. PRS cut weight from its offset Vela and merged it with the classic Custom outline, first on paper, then on computer, then as test bodies. The company says it "didn't nail it on the first shot" but kept refining. The neck went through a similar process. PRS wanted something thin that wouldn't feel like what it called "a cramped, uninspiring stick."

PRS also held what it calls "listening parties" on both U.S. coasts with current PRS artists and friends of the company. The main request from those sessions was surprisingly basic: the prototypes had no fretboard inlays at all, and players wanted some. That's where the Tekton's new offset-dot inlay came from.

Some of the specs needed real investment. PRS says it had to retool to bring stainless steel frets into production. It also "tooled up new pickup bobbins" to match the Tekton's wider string spacing. Near the end of the post, PRS compares the scale of the project to one of its biggest launches: "this process has felt much more like launching the S2 Series than launching a guitar model."

Body: A New Shape Between the Custom and the Vela

The Tekton body is new for PRS. The company describes it as a "middle ground between the PRS flagship Custom 24 and the PRS offset Vela." Look at the press photos and you can see both parents. The horns and the overall silhouette are recognizably PRS, but the outline is leaner and slightly offset, with an exaggerated lower-horn scoop for upper-fret access and a deep belly carve on the back.

PRS says the Tekton has "the thinnest body and thinnest neck PRS has made in standard production." The company hasn't published a body thickness figure or a target weight, so we can't yet put a number on how thin "thinnest" is.

Woods split two ways:

• Tekton, Tekton T and Tekton SVN: mahogany back with a figured mango top
• Tekton "Floyd": all-alder body

Mango is an unusual choice for a top wood on a production PRS, and it gives the Tekton a different look from the familiar flamed maple. The figure in the official photos is wild and streaky, almost like quilted maple run through a filter. MusicRadar, which saw the guitars in person, joked that readers might assume "Paul Reed Smith has got his hands on some really weird maple." Every Tekton spec sheet lists a "Shallow Violin" top carve, including the Floyd. Bodies are finished in high-gloss nitro.

The neck joint is part of the body design story too. Guitar World's review of the Tekton T describes the slim, sculpted bolt-on heel as "worlds away from the oversized heel of a Custom 24," and MusicRadar notes the four-bolt joint is contoured from the lower to the upper cutaway.

Neck and Fretboard

This is where the Tekton departs most from traditional PRS feel.

• Construction: scarfed maple neck, bolt-on, PRS double-acting truss rod
• Reinforcement: hormigo strength rods. PRS says these are similar to the carbon fiber rods it uses in its acoustics and in Herman Li's Chleo signature model, and are meant to add stability and resonance.
• Profile: Modern "D" (Modern "D" SVN on the seven-string)
• Depth: 49/64" at the first fret, 27/32" at the 12th fret
• Width: 1 11/16" at the nut and 2 1/4" at the body on the six-strings; 1 29/32" and 2 5/8" on the SVN
• Fretboard: Indian ebony, 16" radius
• Frets: 24 PRS jumbo stainless steel frets, .110" wide by .055" tall
• Inlays: offset dots, a new design for PRS
• Side dots: blue Luminlay, which glows for dark stages
• Neck finish: satin nitro
• Headstock: inlaid PRS signature logo, "Tekton" truss rod cover

PRS calls the carve "thin but with a near 'D' shape so it doesn't feel cramped." In practice, that means less wood in the center of the neck while keeping some shoulder, which MusicRadar says offers "a measure of comfort."

String spacing matters here as well. PRS says Tekton spacing is the same as on the Silver Sky and Fiore, "a bit wider than PRS's traditional spacing." The company says the change helps with "sweeping arpeggios and more precise pick attack."

PRS also adds a candid note about the ebony. The fretboards are Indian ebony, which can form mineral deposits as the tree grows, so some boards will show streaks or spots of different color. PRS calls these "birthmarks" and says they make every board unique. If you're expecting a jet-black board on every guitar, it's worth knowing that going in.

According to Guitar World, the 16" radius is new for PRS and this is the first time the company has used stainless steel frets. Neck color varies by finish: dealer listings for the mango-top models show both natural and black satin necks depending on color.

Stylus Pickups and Electronics

The Stylus humbuckers may end up being the most talked-about part of the launch, because they're built around an unusual idea: voicing a passive humbucker for players who run modelers. Guitar World went as far as saying this "might be the first time we've seen a mainstream brand build a pickup with modelers in mind."

Here's what PRS has said about them:

• Alnico 5 magnets
• Developed specifically for the Tekton family; the SVN gets its own seven-string Stylus SVN set
• Voiced for "clarity, articulation, and character," and designed to sound good in every position, both as humbuckers and split
• Not flat-response pickups, but with "a flatter output than many other humbuckers to keep some character while catering more to digital gear"
• DC resistance averaging around 13k (treble) and 11k (bass) on both the six- and seven-string sets, per PRS's blog

That last number is the interesting one. Plenty of pickups aimed at metal players push output much higher. PRS says the Stylus is deliberately "lower output than some industry pickups aimed at this genre," because "that brings more clarity and should pair with digital rigs better than higher-output pickups." The thinking is easy to follow. If a modeler or a capture is supplying the gain and the amp character, a very hot, mid-heavy pickup stacks its own coloration on top. A clearer, more even pickup leaves more of that tone intact.

Early reviews back up the clarity claim. Guitar World's review of the Tekton T calls the pickups "exceedingly well-judged – crisp, clear delivery that lets your carefully dialed tones shine through," and adds that "the output doesn't overpower a clean signal, and helps to keep higher gain tight and defined, with great string separation."

The controls are deliberately simple and identical on all four models: a volume knob, a push/pull tone knob and a 3-way blade switch. Pull the tone knob and the selected humbuckers split to single coil, which gives you six sounds:

The Four Models, One by One

Tekton

The hardtail is the purist's version. It pairs the PRS Hardtail bridge, a string-through design with individual saddles, with PRS Phase III locking tuners with wing buttons. It has a mango top on a mahogany back, smoked black hardware and PRS Signature 10-46 strings. PRS's product page sells it as the model for "players who prioritize precision, tuning stability, and consistency."

Tekton T

The T uses the PRS Two-Point Tremolo with a steel plate and brass saddles. It floats, and it's designed for vibrato work and shimmer rather than full dive bombs. Like the hardtail, it has a mango top and mahogany back, locking Phase III tuners and 10-46 strings. PRS's tagline for it is "Shape Every Note." Guitar World reviewed this model, and the review's headline quote is a strong one: "The ergonomics are the best of any PRS model yet, by far." The same review flags one complaint, "the hard edge of the carved top against the picking arm," which it calls "the sole ergonomic misstep."

Tekton "Floyd"

The Floyd is the one that will turn heads at a metal show. It has an all-alder body instead of mango and mahogany, and a Floyd Rose 1000 Series tremolo with a 16" radius to match the fretboard. Unlike the other three models, it comes with PRS Phase III non-locking tuners. PRS's pitch is direct: "Dive bombs, flutter effects, wide vibrato, and aggressive performance techniques are all welcome." The finishes on this model are solid colors and sparkles rather than figured tops. We'll get to those below.

Tekton SVN

The seven-string moves to a 26.5" scale, which PRS says adds tension and low-end clarity for extended-range playing. It uses a seven-string string-through hardtail, Stylus SVN pickups, locking Phase III tuners and PRS Signature 10-59 strings tuned B-E-A-D-G-B-E. The neck is wider (1 29/32" at the nut) but keeps the same depth figures as the six-strings. The body is mango over mahogany.

Shared Specs at a Glance

All four models share 24 stainless steel jumbo frets, a 16" ebony board with offset dots and Luminlay side dots, a bolt-on scarfed maple neck with hormigo rods, gloss nitro body and satin nitro neck finishes, smoked black hardware, a volume/push-pull tone/3-way layout and a PRS Premium gig bag.

Finishes

PRS called the Tekton's color palette "fresh," and it is a clear break from the classic PRS look. Based on dealer listings and launch coverage:

• Mango-top models (Tekton, Tekton T, Tekton SVN): Slate Blue, Imperial Topaz, Black Tourmaline, Violet Tourmaline, Bloodstone Red, Fuchsia Aura
• Tekton "Floyd": Pearl Black, Purple Royale, Multi-Metal Flake, White Holoflake, Hot Pink, Neon Green

MusicRadar saw Bloodstone Red in person and said it "looks astonishing." The Floyd colors lean straight into '80s shred-guitar territory. Washington, D.C.-area dealer Chuck Levin's described them as having "a little '80s attitude." Guitar World's review lists no left-handed options at launch.

Where Tekton Sits in the PRS Lineup

The obvious question is why PRS needs this at all. Guitar World's reviewer raised the same point, noting that the Custom 24, PRS's first production model, still "remains immensely desirable among modern guitarists." So what does a Tekton do that a Custom 24 doesn't?

Versus the Custom 24. The Custom 24 is the PRS template: set mahogany neck, carved maple top, 25" scale, 10" radius, bird inlays and the famous PRS vibrato. The Tekton changes nearly every one of those choices. It has a bolt-on maple neck, a 25.5" scale, a much flatter 16" radius, stainless frets, dots instead of birds and a thinner, more contoured body. Think of it less as a "modern Custom 24" and more as a different design brief that happens to share some DNA.

Versus the Silver Sky and Fiore. The Tekton borrows its wider string spacing from these two artist models, John Mayer's Silver Sky and Mark Lettieri's Fiore. They're aimed at a very different player, though. The Silver Sky is a vintage-inspired, single-coil bolt-on with a 25.5" scale and a much rounder 7.25" radius. The Tekton keeps that scale length and the wider spacing but takes the neck flatter and thinner and loads it with humbuckers. (TGP has covered the Silver Sky's history in depth if you want the backstory on that platform.)

Versus the artist "shred" models. PRS isn't new to heavy music. Mark Tremonti, Periphery's Mark Holcomb and DragonForce's Herman Li all have PRS signature guitars, and Li's Chleo is a Floyd Rose-equipped speed machine that shares the reinforcing-rod idea with the Tekton. Holcomb's SVN gave PRS a seven-string foothold. The key difference is that the Tekton has no artist attached. As MusicRadar put it, "the Tekton, however, has no artist affiliation." It's a PRS-branded platform rather than one player's spec.

Versus the competition. Both Guitar World and MusicRadar read the launch as PRS going after the market dominated by Ibanez, Jackson and similar brands. Guitar World says the Tektons "look to go toe to toe with the heavyweights of the metal guitar world." At $2,899 to $2,999, the Tekton isn't a budget shred guitar. It sits in the territory of USA-made and premium Japanese-made performance guitars, and it is competing on build quality and feel rather than price.

Who the Tekton Is For

PRS is careful not to call the Tekton a "metal guitar," and Guitar World's reviewer pushes back on that label too. The specs suggest a few types of player who will be most interested:

• Modeler and plugin players. If your rig is a Quad Cortex, Helix, Axe-Fx, Kemper or an interface and plugins, the Stylus voicing is aimed directly at you. Lower-output, flatter-response humbuckers leave the modeler to do the coloring.
• Technical rock, metal, prog and fusion players. A thin neck, a flat 16" radius, stainless frets and a carved-away heel are the combination players chasing legato, sweeps and fast position shifts tend to look for.
• PRS fans who wanted a "modern" spec. If you love PRS build quality but have always wanted a longer scale, flatter board and slicker neck, this is the first PRS family built from scratch around that brief.
• Extended-range players. The SVN's 26.5" scale and dedicated Stylus SVN pickups target drop tunings and low-register riffing.

Players who love the chunky necks, rounder radii and vintage voicings of a McCarty or a Custom 24 aren't the target here, and PRS isn't pretending otherwise. The Tekton adds to the catalog rather than replacing anything.

Price and Availability

PRS has published U.S. street prices through Premier Guitar's release, and MusicRadar confirms matching U.K. pricing:

• Tekton and Tekton T: $2,899 (£2,899)
• Tekton "Floyd" and Tekton SVN: $2,999 (£2,999)

All four include a PRS Premium gig bag. Guitar World's review lists the Tekton as made in the USA, and MusicRadar describes the family as PRS's new USA bolt-on range.

The guitars were announced on October 20, 2026. On launch day, U.S. dealers were listing them for pre-order, including listings on Reverb and at Chuck Levin's Washington Music Center, where some colors were already marked sold out. PRS hasn't published a firm ship date yet, so check with your dealer for delivery timing on a specific color.

The Bottom Line

The Tekton isn't a re-skinned Custom 24 with a Floyd bolted on. PRS designed a new body, a new neck carve, new pickups with new bobbins, a new inlay and a new color palette, and it retooled the shop for stainless frets to do it. The spec sheet reads like a list of things modern players have been asking PRS for, and the Stylus pickups take an unusual but sensible approach to the way most heavy guitarists now record.

Whether Tekton can take market share from the brands that own the shred-guitar market is a question for the next year of NAMM floors and dealer walls. On paper, though, this is the most significant new PRS platform in years, and it's the first time the company has built a whole family around the modern player instead of adapting a classic.

We'll be following up with hands-on impressions as the guitars reach stores.

Sources and fact-check

• PRS Guitars press release, "PRS Guitars Introduces Four-Model Family of Modern Instruments: The Tekton" (Oct 20, 2026). Source for the Jim Cullen quote, woods, body/neck claims, string spacing and hormigo rods.
• PRS Guitars blog, "Meet the PRS Tekton Family: Precision Built for Modern Players" (Oct 20, 2026). Source for the design history, 16" vs 20" debate, Vela/whiteout quote, listening parties, stainless retooling, new bobbins, DCR figures, naming and the S2 comparison.
• PRS product pages for Tekton, Tekton T, Tekton "Floyd" and Tekton SVN. Source for full specs, controls and taglines.
• @prsguitars on X, Oct 20, 2026, 12:00 PM EDT: "TEKTON: BORN TO SHRED. Four new models and a whole new family."
• Premier Guitar (Oct 20, 2026). Source for the street prices.
• MusicRadar, Jonathan Horsley (Oct 20, 2026). Source for U.K. prices, no artist affiliation, "USA Bolt-On range", the Bloodstone Red comment, the "weird maple" line and the Floyd colors.
• Guitar World, Matt Owen (news) and Connor Flys (Tekton T review) (Oct 20, 2026). Source for the "toe to toe" line, the stainless/16" firsts, the pickup quotes, the ergonomics quote, the carved-edge con, USA origin and the left-handed N/A listing.
• Chuck Levin's Washington Music Center blog (Oct 20, 2026). Source for the full finish lists, the "'80s attitude" line, pre-order and sold-out listings, and natural vs black satin necks.
• Reverb pre-order listings: Tekton Slate Blue, Tekton Bloodstone Red, Tekton T Violet Tourmaline.
• Unverified / not published: body thickness, weight, ship date, left-handed plans beyond "N/A". Custom 24 (25" scale, 10" radius) and Silver Sky (7.25" radius) specs are long-standing published PRS specs, not from the Tekton materials.