Collings 360 with VIDEO!

Specifications

• Body Length: 17 5/8"
• Body Depth: 1 3/4"
• Lower Bout Width: 13 1/4"
• Total Length: 38 7/8"
• Scale Length: 24 7/8"
• Standard Nut Width: 1 11/16"

• Honduran Mahogany top (standard)
• Premium Flame Maple Top
• Premium Quilted Maple Top
• Flame Maple Neck
• Gold Hardware
• Black Pearloid Tuner Buttons

Features

• One-Piece Solid Honduran Mahogany Body
• Optional Flame or Quilted Maple Cap
• Fully Carved Top
• High Gloss Nitrocellulose Lacquer Finish
• East Indian Rosewood Fingerboard
• Ebony Peghead Veneer
• Inset Amber or Black Top Hat Knobs
• Custom Mini-Humbuckers by Jason Lollar
• Hand Set Mortise and Tenon Neck Joint
• 24 7/8" Scale Length
• 50's Style Wiring
• Tone Pros Bridge and Tailpiece
• Sperzel Tuners with Vintage-Style Buttons

Review

The Collings 360 arrived on a Thursday, in a bigger box than most guitars that have been sent my way, and rather heavy to boot. I opened the top and found a mountain of foam peanuts to dig through (most ended up on the floor much to the cats delight). After about five minutes of digging I was able to free the case that resided in the box and place it on the living room table. I then worked on the latches and slowly opened the case and there it was… yet another reason Collings is one of the finest guitar builders in operation today.

The 360 is a new body shape for Collings along with the addition of the relatively unusual choice of pick up in the mini humbucker. The bridge is Collings usual fare a Tonepros Tune-o-matic with stop bar and a three way pick up selector toggle with volume and tone for each pickup. The wood options for the Collings 360 are fairly simple: the base 360 is an all Mahogany body; the options from there are for a flame or quilted maple top. The review model sent to us also included a flame maple neck. It goes without saying that the fit and finish of this guitar was up to Collings usual standards – perfect all around.

To call the Quilt maple top 3D would really be an insult to the wood, this top had layers and layers to it, you feel as if your hand could reach into it!  And then there is  the neck. The quality of the fame was as good as any “10” top I had seen before, and they were using this for the neck! (Have a look at the pictures to see just how nice the wood is).  This quality of wood from Collings peers is rare to see these days unless you are paying a steep premium, yet Collings seems happy to offer it with only a relatively small up charge – kudos. to them.

The mini humbucker is a pick-up that I personally have not had a lot of experience with, and truth be told, I really didn’t know what to expect when I first plugged it in. The tone was very bright and detailed with a defined mid range with some roll off in the low-end frequencies when compared to a say a set of Lollar full size humbuckers like the Imperials. I won’t go as far as saying that the pick ups sounded like single coils, because the tone was full, deep, and lacking any hum or buzz, but they are very bright and really have there own sound – a welcome addition to any guitarist’s arsenal. The Collings 360 is really one of the first guitars that I have played that fits right in between a Strat tone and a Les Paul tone yet maintains it’s own unique voice. A quick aside – if you have not yet had a chance to check out a set of Lollar pick ups, then I recommend that you get yourself a set as soon as you can, in this reviews opinion, Lollar is making the finest pick ups around. Some have mistaken this mini humbucker for a P90, but there is really no comparison between the two.

The Collings 360’s body shape is paying obvious tribute to other famous single cut bodies, but it also changes the shape up enough to be considered unique. The lower bout is larger on the bottom than it is on the top making this guitar rather comfortable to play. I found it allowed the guitar to rest snuggly against me and the lower contour on the back of the guitar aided with the overall balance of the instrument. When standing up with a guitar strap, the Collings 360 felt very well balances, I didn’t find it neck or body heavy, it sat in just the right place.

The tonepros tune-o-matic style bridge feels very solid and the Intonation was right on allowing the guitar to stay in tune no matter what style you are playing.  I often drop the low E string down a whole step to see how the guitar reacts (if the string gets overly loose and muddy) but The Collings maintained a good taught feel that allowed the drop D chords to sound clear and full with the right grown and none of the mud. The frets on the guitar were perfectly dressed and were of a good height and with to allow for some serious bends. If I were to compare them to anything, I would say they are very close to 6105’s.

This guitar was built for gain, the more you throw the Collings 360, the better it sounds. Those mini humbuckers really cut in the mix, the “Modern” channel on the Mesa Boggie can sometimes sound a little boomy with classic style humbuckers, but the minis sound very clear and detailed. They do sacrifice a little in terms of low-end extension, but the clarity of sound is worth it.  I know most people think of Collings in the context of blues and rock, but I really think these guitars shine with heaps of gain. The guitar does of course sound fantastic in the blues-rock zone; the pickups have enough output to drive most amps into the smooth, creamy break-up we all know and love so much. Playing the Collings through a DR. Z Mini Z yielded some very creamy Zeppelin sounding tones with a little more top end, but other wise spot on for that rich tone. The clean tones are also spot on with this guitar. I found that the mini humbuckers had a very Strat like sound in the middle position and a great deal of spank and sparkle in the bridge position. The neck is not as warm as say a Les Paul, but it does sound full and rich nonetheless. I recommend you give it a test drive with loads of real spring reverb.

I do wonder if Collings will offer the option to add full size humbuckers or even a hum – single – single or mini – single – mini configuration. I could see this being a very versatile guitar for session players and gigging players alike.  The weight and versatile tone of the guitar makes it a great guitar for a variety of applications. I do love the quilt top and flame neck, but I could also easily do with a gold top or even an all black top. The guitars shape gives it its own look no matter the color or wood.

The Final Word

The biggest issue with Collings guitars for me is the overall lack of issues as the review ends up sounding like a love letter. But I really could only find one thing that I didn’t like about the guitar – the knobs. What I found is the knobs are a little hard to turn with your pinky finger (something I often do when I am playing). I would end up replacing the stock knobs with a set of amber speed knobs (I find those are easier to spin then the top hat style… I could be alone on this complaint). But beyond that, the guitar is as near to perfect as you can get in terms of tone, build quality, and finish quality (the wiring looks like it was mission critical for NASA) – even the case is awesome. I can see the 360 as a future classic in the world of guitar, the body is familiar but differs enough that is really is its own design. In the end, what you have is a guitar built by people who not only know what they are doing, but have a real passion for it. This is a guitar that will last you a lifetime and that is what makes it such a pleasure to review. Did I mention that we bought the review sample? Yes, that is how good it is.