Welcome to the Shoot Out

I compared 4 different Single Cut style guitars, here they are lined up.

From Left to Right we have:

Brian Moore DC-1

Gibson Les Paul Custom Shop Class 5

Paul Reed Smith SC Brazilian Neck #16/250

GMP Pawnshop Deluxe

Following are their specifications:

Looks:

    All 4 guitars are very stunning. However when it comes to looks, the GMP stands out, next would be the PRS, then the Class 5 and unfortunately lastly the DC-1 a lot of that is because the sunburst is just not sparkling shiny.

Playability:

    This is where the PRS shines. The Brazilian neck is smooth and incredibly fast. Way better then any of the other three guitars. The Class 5 has a little wider neck, the GMP has a very nice flat profile at the headstock and then rounds out towards the body. Dead last here would be the Brian Moore, the neck seeming a little stucky even at times. The Brian Moore is also much thinner and seems to feel weird, I guess I am not used to a thin single-cut. All of the guitars were expertly set up and there were no issues with that

Sound - Flexibility:

    Here is where the DC-1 stands out, with the 5 way switch and the push-pull it covers regular settings and split coil settings and 4 more other settings for a total of 7 settings! All the other three have "just" the standard Les Paul settings, Rhythm, both, Lead. All three of them added a touch of twang in Lead. The GMP actually has a setup where the volume is about the same. The LP right now shows the most gain and added brightness when switching to the Bridge position.

Sound - Tone:

    Volume at 10: All these guitars in HUM setting carry plenty of power. Very easily over drives my tube amp into nice breakup from blues to rock. The LP and PRS stand out in the Power department, the DC-1 was weakest, the GMP and LP were most pronounced in that you can hear the chords ring through well. The PRS had the least definition in this setting.

    Volume at Clean: All of the guitars have very good clean sounds yet distinct form each other and different in different settings. I was the most pleased with the GMP which has a more aggressive Rhythm sound and a nice bright Lead. The Les Paul has strong bass in rhythm that mute the volume somewhat, but has the best Lead setting sound. The BM in similar settings has the most "twang" in the bridge positon. The PRS has a rather overpowering bass sound both in Rhythm and in Lead.       

   Volume at Clean w/ Pedal: All of these guitars work very well with pedals. The PRS needing to turn down the most as to not to overpower the sound from the Pedal.

   Playing these guitars and with my own sound preferences. So I like the GMP the best because of the really nice Rhythm sound it has and a good twangy powerful Lead. The LP is a close second because of its unbeatable Lead setting, I'll probably have to adjust the Rhythm pick up on the guitar some more. But it does have a good setup for going from Rhythm to Lead because of the volume differences. I found the PRS to be overpowering in the Bass department and that is something I do not like too much. The DC-1 was overall very nice, but I think it is hurt by the thinner body and doesn't seem to carry as much fullness in its sound nor as much bite. A very good clean sound though with great versatility.

Final Comments

    All four guitars are quite amazing and gorgeous guitars. In looks the GMP looks the most like the LP, the Brian Moore the least. The PRS is quite distinctively different from the LP (I can't believe Gibson won that lawsuit!). The workmanship on each guitar is excellent with great setups. My favorite sound is probably from the Burstbuckers and if I could've I would've changed the Pick Ups on the PRS (But to keep its value I like to keep it all original). I was very pleasantly surprised by the 59s on the GMP especially how powerful they were and how full, bright yet with bite. The Seth Lovers do not quite seem like pick ups to use in Rock/Metal but have a nice defined sound. I really love the Brazilian neck and how smooth and easy that plays I also was very pleasantly inclined towards the flat profile to round profile neck on the GMP. Has a great feel to it when playing at the headstock. Being someone who collects guitars, there are obviously some other things I always consider in regards to guitars and that is the fact that the PRS stands out in value and as an investment, and the LP of course is a rock solid investment that will hold its value, the GMP is relatively unknown and the Brian Moore's are severely under appreciated at this time, making the PRS and the LP the best investment decisions.

The Winner is ....