If any story has gotten the guitar community talking this year, it is without a doubt the release of the John Mayer signature Silver Sky model from Paul Reed Smith. While most actual hands-on reviews of the instrument have offered ringing endorsements of its tone and playability, the internet is the internet, and the comments sections on various videos and blog posts have been heated, to say the least.
John Mayer for his part has offered his explanation and opinions on the guitar and its reactions previously, and late last week, builder Paul Reed Smith voiced some perspective on the issue via a video interview with Jonathan Graham of Guitar Interactive TV.
Smith quips that this guitar is "the most leaked thing that ever happened," before addressing the disparity between the trollish comments and the sentiments of people who have actually played the Silver Sky.
You can see all of Smith's comments in the video above. Around the 10:20 mark, the conversation turns more directly to the online controversy and what Smith calls "keyboard courage, visceral nastiness—they called me the knife block at work—that's the big wooden thing in the kitchen you stick all the knives in."
"I really like all this activity," Smith said. "It shows great interest in what's going on. And that part John loves as well."