This Collings I-30 LC comes in plain maple which is a custom option (regular run is lightly flamed), making this often a fairly hard variation to come by. This is Collings's interpretation of the fully hollow, trestle braced, thinline, laminate, double cutaway guitar which was first exemplified by the Gibson ES-330. Collings has refined the bracing and uses a slightly small body. The result in this example is a highly resonant, light weight electric guitar that is not only tremendously versatile, but truly excels at multiple styles. The Lollar P90s match wonderfully with this guitar and sound simply amazing.
The guitar is in near mint condition with almost no signs of use. It has clearly been babied in the six years since it was made. The exceptional, consistent quality of the work done at Collings shines through in this example. The fit and finish are exactly what one expects of Collings. The frets show no noticeable wear and the action is low and fast.
Weight - 5.3 pounds
Nut width - 1.72 inches
1st fret depth - 0.87
10th fret depth - 1.01 inches.
The guitar comes with the original Ameritage hard shell case, warranty card, microfiber cloth, and pickguard (not currently mounted).
Collings's description of the model:
Our goal for the I-30 LC was to take the concept of a double cutaway, fully-hollow, P90-equipped guitar and refine it to the extent that it offers something truly new for today’s players. The result is one of the most acoustically responsive and versatile electric guitars we have ever offered.
The lightweight “trestle-braced” body of the I-30 LC has been developed through extensive R&D and is the distillation of knowledge gleaned from our popular I-35 LC and Statesman LC. The trestle brace design directly couples the neck and tail block, creating exceptional strength and acoustical energy transference, while also allowing for a lightness and responsiveness that is both a tactile and musical joy to experience.
Playing the I-30 LC, you can easily feel the acoustic energy travel through the symmetric arches and re-curves of the top and back. These plates have been custom laminated and voiced for a tonality that is acoustic guitar-like in its resonance and dynamic response, but focused and feedback resistant enough to be utilized in jazz, blues, rock n’ roll, and other styles. Our new custom-designed trapeze tailpiece provides just the right amount of “give” for a relaxed string feel and effortless playability.
Lollar Dogear P90s are perfectly matched to the instrument’s acoustic response and offer a wide palette of tones from rich jazzy warmth to 1960’s British Invasion-style chime. Drawing its inspiration from both classic electric designs and our own previous models, the I-30 LC is an exciting step forward and an intriguing Collings sound.
*This particular example is shown with the custom Plain Maple Laminate option; a lightly-flamed body is the norm unless otherwise requested.