Have been thinking of picking up electric guitars again and would like to start with a good Collings Electric. I used to have a 67 Gibson ES355 that I learned some lead lines, stupidly sold it.

Some background of me:
I prefer the tone of a Gibson more than Fender when I listen to recordings and concerts. I love the tone of BB King’s Lucille, David Gilmour when he play with his Gretsch (Not sure about he model but it is black and with a Les Paul shape). And my favorite electric guitarist are Blues players like BB king, Buddy Guy and I am a huge fan of Pink Floyd and David Gilmour is also one of my favorite guitarist. Even though I am not a fan of Eric Clapton, I prefer the tone of Eric Clapton’s ES335 a lot more than when he play with his Fender Stratocaster in his Concert DVDs.

So , which model would you recommend if I want to use it for Blues and play some Rock/Pop leads? CL or i35?

For those who tried both, what is the major differences between the two? Is the i35 worth the extra 1K?

My opinion is that you would be wasting your time (and money) to even consider anything other than the I-35. This is based upon what you described as your preference in sound of an electric guitar. Too bad there isn't some place that you could try one out.

Not to inject the patently self-serving, but I am reluctantly selling my I-35 deluxe. If you want that early BB King "Live at the Regal" sound, or Larry Carlton (listen to "BP Blues" from Last Nite, for example), there's nothing that comes close. I owned Gibsons back in the day, good ones, and this kills them doornail dead. See the Sale thread for more info, or email me at tommmartin22@comcast.net. I'm asking 5500, which is 800 less than an new one, and there are none in this delicious color (tobacco sunburst) anywhere. None. Zero. Sorry.

quote:

Live at the Regal

Sonoman, you are right! I love the tone of the the BB King "Live at the Regal" album! One of my favourite.

How about the 290? Is it a good starter or should I go straight to the 1-35? I am still not sure how far I will go playing electric and I probably need to sell my Gibson L-00 to get this guitar!

The 290 is something entirely different. If you want that BB King/Larry Carlton kind of tone from a Collings, the I-35 is the way to go.

You can also find late 60s 335/345/355s for less than you'd pay for an I-35. Harder to find a really good one, though!

I have to recuse myself. But, imho, there is no better semi-hollow electric than an I-35, and you'd have to go back to the late fifties 335 dot necks wih PAFs to even come close- and then you're talking second mortgage. Sorry. Broke.

quote:

Originally posted by sonoman:
I have to recuse myself. But, imho, there is no better semi-hollow electric than an I-35, and you'd have to go back to the late fifties 335 dot necks wih PAFs to even come close- and then you're talking second mortgage. Sorry. Broke.

Weeeellll... I have a '62 335 with PAFs at home, along with an '06 I-35. While I am very, VERY fond of the I-35, I wouldn't go so far as to agree with the statement quoted above.

OTOH, speaking as someone who owns a really nice vintage 335, I will also say that I am happy to play the I-35 all night. That says a whole lot.

quote:

Originally posted by sonoman:
Not to inject the patently self-serving, but I am reluctantly selling my I-35 deluxe. If you want that early BB King "Live at the Regal" sound, or Larry Carlton (listen to "BP Blues" from Last Nite, for example), there's nothing that comes close. I owned Gibsons back in the day, good ones, and this kills them doornail dead. See the Sale thread for more info, or email me at tommmartin22@comcast.net. I'm asking 5500, which is 800 less than an new one, and there are none in this delicious color (tobacco sunburst) anywhere. None. Zero. Sorry.

Sonoman, your email address was invalid and my mail got bounced back. I PM you instead. Thanks!

Ed: I answered. Sorry, I stuck an extra m in tommartin. Two's enough. thanks tom

Ed said, "I am still not sure how far I will go playing electric and I probably need to sell my Gibson L-00 to get this guitar!"

I realize that this is the Collings forum, but I think that it is madness to invest in a $4000+ electric guitar in order to explore playing electric blues. It may sound better, play easier, etc., but the minute you start to believe that a super expensive instrument is a necessity, you have missed the point of music, and especially, the blues. The great recordings of blues that we know and love were recorded primarily with off-the-rack, ordinary instruments. Would an I-35 be wonderful? Sure! Is it necessary? No!!

...Which isn't to say that I wouldn't like to own one. But I don't need to own one.

that's what the word "instrument" means. It's not an end; it's a way toward the end. A great guitar, to restate the howlingly obvious, doesn't make a great guitarist- especially blues. To quote Charlie Parker, or paraphrase, rather: "If you don't live it, it won't come out of your fingers". As far as need: love; water; food; shelter; clothing. A rare or gorgeous guitar. Not close. I"m selling mine becuase our family needs the money for other things, but I never deluded myself that the I=35, or any other guitar, was anything other than a means to express the inexpressible. Does it help? Oh, yeah.