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Review published by Guitar Jam Daily March 2007:
By Bill Wilke
I recently had the privilege of testing out a new Collings electric guitar, a City Limits (CL) Deluxe model. I am happy to report that the Collings mojo translates powerfully from acoustic to electric guitars.
In a recent article in Fretboard Journal, Collings right hand man Steve McCreary described Bill Collings as having the eye of a designer, the hands of a machinist and the brain of an engineer. The same article noted that Collings himself can be an intimidating boss, a very competitive perfectionist who doesn't tolerate mediocrity. Some people say he's nuts; he's eccentric at the least. In the acoustic guitar world, this has created instruments which are noted for understated but mature design, superb workmanship, quality materials, solid construction, superb playability, and a sound that boggle...in a very specific way.
The Collings sound is articulate, clear, and most of all, what I call "mature." By this I mean that it doesn't seduce the listener with a hyped quality: no booming bass at the expense of everything else, no overtones that get lost in a mix, no compression that protects the player from having his or her mistakes heard, no fast attack that compromises a pleasing decay envelope, no ultra-string separation that reduces warmth and sonic integration, or vice versa. But if you spend a lot of time in front of a microphone, placing instruments in a mix, or play everywhere from the sofa to a loud jam, travel much, or plan to use your instrument for decades, the Collings advantage quickly becomes pretty apparent. Personally, after playing and owning dozens of superb modern luthier-made instruments, I've committed to three Collings acoustics to meet all my needs.
But what about electrics? Personally, I've always been looking a hybrid of 335 and  Les Paul, but better overall, ever since I foolishly sold my favorite guitar to a friend 20 years ago, who still uses it as his main guitar. Specifically, I want the percussive, fat attack, soulful response, useable clean sound and rich neck pickup sound of a great 335, and the no-feedback and long sustain of a great Les Paul. And lastly, I want a responsiveness and a dimension of tone that inspires me to play in a way that most store-bought guitars simply don't. I was looking for my soul mate. I believe that I found it in the CL Deluxe.
I also had the opportunity to spend some time with the Collings I-35 model as well. Both the CL and the I-35 models met my needs. The I-35 is a solid wood, carved top, chambered guitar with less feedback and more sustain than most double cutaway semi-hollow models. And the CL has more warmth, fatness, attack, and versatile musicality than most LP-inspired designs. I seem to prefer the CL, but I long for an I-35 as well.
Beyond that, here's what I appreciate about the CL:
- Lacquer finish that breathes, a rare and very toneful feature.
- Very long sustain, courtesy of Tonepros hardware and very resonant wood.
- Lightweight resonant Honduran mahogany sourced by the experts at Collings.
- A graceful body shape that transcends a Les Paul with a tighter waist, larger lower bout, and shapely upper bout. I notice that many builders of humbucker guitars, perhaps for fear of litigation from the G-man, have innovated new shape, but they always seem to leave me cold. The Collings CL gets it right to my eyes. Moreover, some people say that a single cutaway design sounds better (maybe one reason PRS fought so wisely and valiantly for their Singlecut design?)
- Beautiful wide flame tiger maple top and faded amber-saffron finish that screams vibe. The best sunbursts in the business. Collings was already known for it in acoustics.
- Fantastic fretwork that allows me to play, shred, and bend with 11's. I never do that, until now. On this guitar, 11's feel like 10's.
- A scale length 1/8 longer than a Gibson (24 7/8" vs. 24 3/4") that must have something to do with the clarity, snap, etc.
- A neck pickup is rich yet clear, never muddy.
- A bridge pickup that can cut and slice, but always fat, never muddy or harsh, and versatile.
- Body resonance that rattles my chest; this guitar is great fun to play unplugged. It inspired long practice sessions lying while in bed!
- Responsiveness that invites the player to shape every note.
- A sustain mixed with responsive aliveness: not an easy feat, just ask Alembic.
- A graceful neck heel design that looks great and increases access to the upper frets.
- A neck shape that splits the difference between beefy '59 and slim '60's shapes and nails what I was looking for.
- Tone controls that work.
- Great design touches like the famous Collings headstock shape, Brazilian rosewood peghead veneer, grained ivoroid binding, pickup rings and knobs, bone tuner buttons, top purfling made from crosscut grained ivoroid (optional), and original design parallelogram fingerboard inlays (optional).
With subtle adjustments to my amp, technique, and tone pots, I can play convincing bebop, soulful soft rock, every kind of fusion and blues, and of course the range of British rock that we expect from a humbucker equipped guitar.
It's often said that we live in a golden age of guitar making, and I've found that Collings get it right, building guitars that excel in every way (quality, feel, design, reliability and many nuances of tone). This is a "serious" guitar, as the Collings ads say. A mature design for grownups. I've played and owned many guitars over the past 30 years, and I have to say that the CL Deluxe is an absolute keeper and I can't wait for mine to arrive.
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