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Location: SoCal | Made a run with a buddy down to Buffalo Bros in Carlsbad yesterday. For those of you who don't know, they carry very high end guitars (sorry, no Ovations). The cheaper guitars like Taylor and Guild are downstairs, the highend guitars are upstairs. It's an old building right along an old highway and is an absolute blast to visit.
There were three guitars that really impressed me. Two were dreadnaughts and one was a parlor guitar. The dreads were both Martins, a D-18 Authentic, and a Ditson model. Deep beautiful boomers. Excellent craftsmanship. Just great to play.
The parlor guitar was a Collings 002H. Here's a link 002H . It was balanced, felt great and the sound was wonderful. If I had the money, I'd buy one in a heartbeat.
And that brings up the problem. The Collings was the least expensive at close to 5 large. The other two guitars were in the 8-10 large catagory. I could never justify spending that kind of cash on a guitar. And for those prices, they had better sound wonderful.
I guess I'll stick with my O's and A's. Much better value for the money...... |
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Location: Germany | Watch out, even the visit of their website causes GAS!
Karl |
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Location: Cincinnati | I visit their website regularly. Nothing wrong with dreaming. |
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Location: PDX | What's even worse -- you'll come across a 002H for half that price on line. You'll be tempted and may even buy it, and it will not be the same, and will disappoint you.
Maybe not, but it has happened to me more than a few times.
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gh1 |
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Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | Originally posted by gh1:
it will not be the same, and will disappoint you.____
gh1 Interesting. I have NEVER played a bad Collings. Some were certainly more spectacular than others but never one that disappointed me. |
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Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | My talent does not justify a $10K or $14K guitar...
Plus, I would be scared that I would drop it, scratch it, or something.
On Antiques Roadshow they were doing a little side-piece on classic guitars. The moderator-dude was visiting a purveyor of such instruments.
The store-dude handed the guy a nice old 1948 guitar and told him to check it out...
Then he said that he wasn't quite sure of the value... $50,000 to $80,000.
The guy got scared and gingerly handed the guitar back.
The store dude says, "These guitars just beg to be played. Otherwise it is just an old chunk of wood." Then he played a little ditty on it. But he didn't use a Pick. :p
Still... I own nothing that cost over a grand. (actually $800, I think :confused: ) |
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Location: PDX | Well, actually, i've never played a Collings that disappointed me either. Not that i've played more than a handfull. My point was more general i suppose.
The first Goodall GC i played was incredible -- the second, not so much.
I played a Martin 000EC that blew me away. Bought one on line -- sold it in a month. Just not the same.
Played a 1537 at a gathering -- fantastic sound and i just loved that guitar. Bought one on line, meh, just plain and not spectacular.
Those are just a few. Doesn't mean i would write any of those models off.
My point is -- just because you find one spectacular guitar that "speaks" to you; I wouldn't put even money that the next one, of the same model and maker will do the same.
Every guitar i have sold on line i have offered a 72 hour approval period for this very reason. You just can't predict what any particular guitar and guitarist combination will end up like. I may love it -- you may hate it. I may find it dead and you can bring it to life.
Stephen -- you may never have played a Collings that has disappointed you, and i hope you never do. But that certainly does not mean that there aren't guitarists out there that have had the same experience. Are you implying that every Collings will never disappoint anyone?
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gh1 |
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Location: Phoenix AZ | Different people have different priorities. If you place a high regard on bang for the buck, plugged in sound and road worthiness Collings is not for you. Go buy a Takamine. |
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Location: GATLINBURG TENNESSEE :) | When I visit places like that, it kinda feels like I just walked out of a high-dollar Nevada cat house. They may feel good for a day, but you always go back home to the one you love then feel a bit guilty for cheating. There's no place place like home. |
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Location: Madison, Wisconsin | Well I can say this about that: |
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Location: SoCal | Originally posted by bvince:
When I visit places like that, it kinda feels like I just walked out of a high-dollar Nevada cat house. They may feel good for a day, but you always go back home to the one you love then feel a bit guilty for cheating. There's no place place like home. How often do you get to high dollar Nevada cat houses? Any you recommend? |
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Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | gh1,
I said "I have never played a bad Collings".....referring just to my own experience. I am sure there are Collings haters just like there are Taylor, Martin, and Ovation haters.
I have never met anyone who was a Collings fan who has played a bad Collings but I have met Martin and Taylor fans who have played bad Martins and Taylors.
You make good points but some builders consistently produce higher quality instruments than other builders.....and there are many beside Collings that fall into that category of consistent excellence.
Originally posted by Gallerinski:
Different people have different priorities. If you place a high regard on bang for the buck, plugged in sound and road worthiness Collings is not for you. Go buy a Takamine. BINGO! :cool: |
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Location: Brisbane Australia | I visited Buffalo Bros while cruising around SoCal on my way to Amelia.
Very interesting place and friendly people.
AJ |
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Location: Phoenix AZ | I like to think of it this way: Collings has a very high mean and a very small 3-sigma.
I own 6 of them and each one is stellar in it's own way. Doesn't mean there isn't variation and there probably are some Collings duds out there. But the truth is that Collings is so consistently superb that a Collings turd is still better than another makers gem. |
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Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | Originally posted by Gallerinski:
a Collings turd is still better than another makers gem. You are a true wordsmith! :D |
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Location: seattle | Originally posted by moody, p.i.:
Made a run with a buddy down to Buffalo Bros in Carlsbad yesterday. ... three guitars that really impressed me. ... The dreads were both Martins, a D-18 Authentic, and a Ditson model. Deep beautiful boomers. Excellent craftsmanship. Just great to play.
002H . It was balanced, felt great and the sound was wonderful. If I had the money, I'd buy one in a heartbeat.
these are hand made martin guitars - the ditson is off the production line (info came direct from a call to martin in pa) |
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Location: 6 String Ranch | If you like it, buy it. If it developes a problem, sell it. |
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Location: Chehalis, Washington | Paul, at that price range I'd balk too, since you're up in the range of a lot of custom-builders. That said, I've yet to have the opportunity to play a Collings, which at this point is just as well for the GAS pains it would cause.
For the longest time, I thought my 1869 CL that I paid $1300 new for was an "expensive" guitar...wow, that feels like a long time ago... |
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Location: South of most, North of few | Originally posted by Beal:
If you like it, buy it. If it developes a problem, sell it. My sentiments exactly... :D
Actually, I've played a few Collings, and they are nice, but to my ears, my Martins sound better. I even drove over to the other coast (of Fl) specifically to buy a Collings OM that was advertised on the AGF. I took my CEO along to compare. When I got there, I played the Collings and wasn't overly impressed. I then played a Bourgeois OM (all of these were for sale) and it sounded a little better to me. I then played a Webber roundbody which I thought sounded terrible. The last guitar he had for sale was a Martin 000 17S which is the one I came home with. He did have one more on the wall that I inquired about, but he said "no, that one's not for sale" The only one he was keeping was...
a Martin OM 28.
I know a lot of you guys are infatuated with the Collings. I do love the burst they do and their workmanship is probably better than others, but for me, the Martin is hard to beat in a woodbox.
That said, I do own one Collings (sticker)
(ok, unleash the storm) :D
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Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | TJ, for me I just prefer the crisper sound of a Collings over the muted (for me) sound of a Martin. Martin has a distinctive sound that millions love but to my ears most of them sound like they have 2 year old strings on them.
The only one that I really love the sound of is my Norman Blake SE and even that one doesn't rock my world and I have never been able to bond with it.....I guess that is why there are so many builders out there. |
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Location: SoCal | I'm just telling you that the guitars I played at Buffalo Bros were impressive.
Last night, we had our first Friday nite summer jam and I got a friend from a local Guitar Center to come out. He's a huge Breedlove fan and won their selling contest last year. As a result, they built a guitar for him to his specs. I don't know the model number, but it was smaller than a dreadnaught, bigger than a parlor. And the sound was wonderful. Very balanced and it rang and rang. I really enjoyed it. I'll get pics next week and a description.
Bottom line -- there are a lot of great guitars out there. Not just Ovation, Tak, Martin, or Collings. It's great to play a lot of guitars and try different models...... |
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Location: Cicero, NY | Whoa! Where's the freakin' ranger on this thread? I've never seen so many posts trying to argue against points that weren't made (or even meant)!
Barkeep! Another round of Ritalin for my friends here! My buy!! |
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Location: South of most, North of few | Easy there Wease. I think Moody nailed it.
"Bottom line -- there are a lot of great guitars out there. Not just Ovation, Tak, Martin, or Collings. It's great to play a lot of guitars and try different models......"
It's like guitar strings. Everybody has a favorite, and few agree. That's why there are so many manufacturers. Speaking of other guitars, has anyone had experience with Santa Cruz? I hear they are really nice too. |
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Location: Phoenix AZ | People (self included) throw around brand names like they are nouns. To say this brand is better than that brand is meaningless. There may be aspects of a certain builder (brand name) that you prefer. If you like guitars with rounded backs you're probably going to prefer Ovation over Taylor. If you like guitars with good electronics you're probably gonna prefer Takamine over Martin. But those are just general preferences.
There's a reason there's a gazillion guitar models out there - everyone has their own needs and tastes. Guitars that I thought were stellar others laughed at. Some that I wouldn't own if I got them for free others adore. I play what I play because it's MY choice and I could give an aeronautical intercourse what anyone else thinks about it. |
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Location: Cicero, NY | Exactly but, and maybe I missed it TJ, I didn't hear anyone disagree with that. Some said they like Collings. You favored Martins but said the Collings' were nice too. Yet another opinion was that if you wanted a "bang for the buck", it was Tak. But no one trashed any of the others. If fact I think I read everyone saying they liked the others.
Ok, ok, sorry for the interruption. Ya know what? It's 5:00 here. Maybe it's just time for a nice glass o' sumpthin.
Carry on...(if you must) :D |
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Location: Phoenix AZ | I've lost the point of the whole discussion.
Maybe an interesting question would be the following - blind, deaf and without touching you have to choose a guitar for free. You don't know the size/style only that it's a wood topped guitar and the only thing you can choose is a brand name. What are you gonna choose ...
Me? COLLINGS 10 times out of 10. |
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Location: SoCal | My take...Buffalo Brothers is a good store, unpretentious, very well stocked with medium to high priced guitars (from Rickenbacker to Collins) as well as other stringed instruments. Fun even if just window shopping...good education also.
Their staff believe that the customer will determine which one they want to play, hopefully buy.
That's the bottom line...your money, your decision. Some people buy fine wine, some will buy because it is $3.39 a bottle or in a box dispenser.
For my guitars, the only time I am concerned about someone's opinion is if I am trying to sell something to them. |
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Location: South of most, North of few | Originally posted by Gallerinski:
I've lost the point of the whole discussion.
Maybe an interesting question would be the following - blind, deaf and without touching you have to choose a guitar for free. You don't know the size/style only that it's a wood topped guitar and the only thing you can choose is a brand name. What are you gonna choose ...
Me? COLLINGS 10 times out of 10. Me, Froggy Bottom or McPherson. |
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Location: Cicero, NY | TJ!! You CAN'T have TWO be a 10 out of 10...
(Man, I gotta start reading another thread...) :rolleyes: |
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Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | TJ, have I got a Froggy Bottom for you! :cool:
and you know how EZ I am to work with! :D
In truth, there are so many good builders and great guitars that I will never get the chance to play. Fortunately there is a good group here always willing to help me spend my money....and so far they have never lead me astray (even when I had to take a few deep breaths!) |
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Location: South of most, North of few | Stephen, Dave said "Free". Now if you're willing to part with it for that, count me in! ;)
I'm kind of tapped out now on my 3 recent Martin purchases, so another one is out of the question. |
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Impressive guitars