#5988 – Collings i35 Deluxe – used/2011 – vintage sunburst – sold

£5699

EXPRESS MAIL ORDER: click here for additional details
Click on a photo to view larger image and slideshow

There is no denying the exquisite attributes of a Collings i35 Deluxe – Some might even say it is to extravagant – But tour the gloss finish and look carefully at the whole build quality and you’ll certainly agree that it is exceptional – The serial number dates this used Collings i35 Deluxe as 2011 – So far a guitar that is now about to enter its teenage years, you may well expect to find a few blemishes on the gloss finish – It certainly is not used and abused, yet neither will it earn that ‘as new mint condition’ tag – You’ll find a slight touch of tarnish to the nickel hardware – Look on the rear of the body and you’ll find a subtle compression mark that has not ‘punctured’ the finish – And at worse the odd surface graze to the top surface of the finish, that barely shows up on any pics – Certainly nothing that could remotely be considered nasty – Overall clean – No fret wear – I just wish my web pics did a far better job of capturing the whole beauty of such a wonderful instrument, so for now you’ll have to accept it looks far better in the flesh

I love this quote that I borrowed from the Collings Guitars web site  ‘There are lots of products created with no greater aspiration than to be sold to a consumer, but as consumers of expensive musical instruments, many of us value the subtle signs that tell us the builder cared more than he had to – That careful thought, superior materials and skilled hands have all contrived to create an instrument that transcends the ordinary and defines the extraordinary – This is the best reason, in our opinion, to consider buying a superior instrument like this Collings i35 Deluxe in the first place – If you simply need a guitar, you can buy one that is reasonably playable and creates a reasonably good sound these days for under £200, but you won’t be buying an instrument that has been artfully crafted from the best materials, or one that is capable of producing an extraordinary playing experience and tone 

Before we go into any product details, please click here to visit the Collings i35 Deluxe web site page – Within the header marked ‘gallery’ you can click on a video option and see a couple of ‘youtube’style video clips of the i35 in action – Then scan to the foot of the page and see another video of Collings Guitars and what goes on behind the scene

Collings i35 Deluxe vintage sunburst Spec/Features :-

Aesthetics and Tribute :-  There is no mistaking the influence behind the Collings i35 Deluxe, so as against trying to re-invent the wheel, the Collings approach is to  select the finest ingredients, coupled with impeccable workmanship and attention to detail, to ensure the i35 Deluxe delivers the ultimate playing experience – The Collings method is to build one guitar at a time, hence all woods, pots, capacitors and pick-ups are hand picked to ensure that all components work in harmony – Appraise the i35 Deluxe, then you’ll fully appreciate that the knowledge, evaluation, and attention to detail that Collings possesses pays dividends in the end – Note the i35 Deluxe features a solid mahogany body, that is fully carved out, to leave you with a hollow body – A solid block of maple is then inserted into the centre of the body, hence you now have a semi-acoustic body – The maple block offers sustain and support to the pick-ups, bridge and tailpiece – Then apply a fully carved solid maple top and the body is now complete – This approach delivers a luxurious warm and cultured tone that is full of character – Like comparing an acoustic guitar with a laminate body and a solid wood body, the tone from the Collings with solid woods is a touch warmer, with plenty of rich harmonics – It just sounds so lush – This is further reflected when you plug it in to your favourite amp – The overall tone is very warm, rich and cultured – Delve into clean jazz tones with the tone pot rolled off, as required and you’ll adore the woody nature of the i35, but it certainly is not muddy or mushy – Clean tones with all the pots wide open on 10 are clear, rounded, full and smooth, with incredible clarity, with a touch more edge available from the bridge pick-up

Playing the i35 with the volume and/or pots rolled off a touch, produces soft smooth voices that retains all the guitars character and I feel this is were the guitar works at its best – This then allows you to turn it back to 10 as a form of a boost, as and when you require that little extra ooomph  – Further more, leave the 3 way switch in the middle position, then play around with various combinations of the two volume pots, so as to dial in and blend different voices from the pick-ups, each producing a subtle but effective variation – Now dial in some overdrive on the amp – Whilst the i35 will handle hi-gain amp settings I somehow feel that this is not were the i35 excels, so to get the best out of it, with more soul and expression, play it with clean and/or rock/blues overdriven amp settings – That way you can clearly hear all the attributes of the i35 – As I mentioned earlier it is a cultured guitar with lush silky tones – Think of the great 335 silky tones of Larry Carlton, the fat blues tones of Freddie and BB King, along with Clapton/Cream and it will give you some idea of the tonal qualities of the i35 – Then add, Carpenters, Steely Dan, Alvin Lee and even SRV on Chitlins Con Carne to that list – Soul, emotion, dynamics and expression can all be found in the i35 – The texture and sonic quality of every note, on each fret and each string is so well balanced

A good portion of the overall tone comes from the wood and in particular the neck – Fat neck, fat tone, thin neck thin tone, so like any good 335 based instrument, the Collings i35 Deluxe has a fullish neck profile – Enough girth to enrich the tone, sustain and stability, but not to the point that it impedes the playing experience – The Collings may not exactly play itself, but you try and put it down and stop playing it – The down side of any web site is that is does not fully capture the aesthetic beauty of the i35 or indeed the lush tonal qualities that it offers

EXPRESS MAIL ORDER - click here for card payment & additional delivery info

For additional product info, to arrange a showroom visit + viewing, or indeed any other questions, then please do not hesitate to contact me.

Call: 01335 345777 or email: mark@guitars4you.co.uk. Please note that showrooms visits are strictly by appointment only.

Please read below

Guitars4You is not another corporate high street guitar store - My selection of premium grade guitars is about quality not quantity. Every guitar has been selected, inspected and approved by me, with particular attention to the set-up and playing performance. Every sale, phone call, email and mail order transaction is handled by me. A journey that is now over 40 years old, has fuelled my knowledge, experience, love, devotion and passion for exceptionally fine guitars.