Do any of you guys actually use a Collings Baby, 01, or 02H as a Travel Guitar?
I know they are an expensive option, but I don't think any other travel sized guitar has such beautiful sound!
Marc
Collings Baby, 01, or 02H as a Travel Guitar?
Re: Collings Baby, 01, or 02H as a Travel Guitar?
For a long time, my travel guitar was a mandolin, but I just don't play enough mando to be satisfied with that. I took my Martin 000-15S on a trip last weekend, and it did great. It's about 1/3 the price of a Collings, and I love the tone on it, but it's got too much sentimental value to me to serve as a long term option.
A perfect travel guitar for me would be cheap, playable, sound good, and be effectively disposable if worse came to worse. One of these days I'd like to pick up something like a used Seagull for that purpose, but I don't think I'd ever put a Collings or a Martin (other than maybe an X-series or Dread Jr.) in that category.
A perfect travel guitar for me would be cheap, playable, sound good, and be effectively disposable if worse came to worse. One of these days I'd like to pick up something like a used Seagull for that purpose, but I don't think I'd ever put a Collings or a Martin (other than maybe an X-series or Dread Jr.) in that category.
Re: Collings Baby, 01, or 02H as a Travel Guitar?
Hi Marc
I have owned both an O1 and a Baby O2H and used them both as a travel guitars. The baby is easier to live with on the road, especially air travel, not much difference between the case lengths, maybe couple of inches, bit of a reduction in the depth. However if you are going to be playing them at home this is where the O1 I felt was the clear winner, more of everything, volume/sustain, for not much increase in overall dimensions.
So not black and white, never is when it comes to guitars. Happy hunting.
Malcolm.
I have owned both an O1 and a Baby O2H and used them both as a travel guitars. The baby is easier to live with on the road, especially air travel, not much difference between the case lengths, maybe couple of inches, bit of a reduction in the depth. However if you are going to be playing them at home this is where the O1 I felt was the clear winner, more of everything, volume/sustain, for not much increase in overall dimensions.
So not black and white, never is when it comes to guitars. Happy hunting.
Malcolm.
Re: Collings Baby, 01, or 02H as a Travel Guitar?
I've never owned or played a Baby, but I have owned an 01A. (Man I regret selling that guitar!) I did a lot of traveling with that guitar, including a couple flights to Germany. I had mine in a somewhat cheap gig bag, tossed it in the overhead compartments of all kinds of airplanes, never, ever had a problem. Some planes do have limited and small overhead compartments, but the few times I encountered this a nice flight attendant, or once even a pilot, stowed the guitar for me.
The downside, 01's (and Babys) are not cheap. Traveling can be stressful and somewhat dangerous for a guitar. So, should something happen, you'll be out a lot more with a Collings than some other less expensive instrument. Good insurance can mitigate this somewhat.
The upside, in my opinion 01's are about the best acoustic Collings makes, so having that guitar both at home and on the road is a pleasure, no compromise with tone or playability. I recommend them highly, even if you never leave home.
Just another suggestion, my travel guitar these days is a Waterloo WL-14. It's a bit bigger than an 01, but not by a lot. It's a bunch cheaper than an 01 so I don't worry nearly as much about damage - although I am very, very careful. Tone is much different than an 01, not for everyone, but it works great for me.
The downside, 01's (and Babys) are not cheap. Traveling can be stressful and somewhat dangerous for a guitar. So, should something happen, you'll be out a lot more with a Collings than some other less expensive instrument. Good insurance can mitigate this somewhat.
The upside, in my opinion 01's are about the best acoustic Collings makes, so having that guitar both at home and on the road is a pleasure, no compromise with tone or playability. I recommend them highly, even if you never leave home.
Just another suggestion, my travel guitar these days is a Waterloo WL-14. It's a bit bigger than an 01, but not by a lot. It's a bunch cheaper than an 01 so I don't worry nearly as much about damage - although I am very, very careful. Tone is much different than an 01, not for everyone, but it works great for me.
Re: Collings Baby, 01, or 02H as a Travel Guitar?
I guess my answer will be similar to Charlie's as I now use a Waterloo14L as a travel guitar. For a long time I also used a 01a, with a vintage now neck, and it was a terrific instrument. I did a lot of air travel with that guitar, but ultimately I felt I was taking a risk handing off a $5k guitar to airline personnel then the Canadian $ dropped and the 01a replacement was$6500! These days, I think if i were to consider that amount of money for a small guitar to travel with, I'd also consider a '30s/'40s vintage Martin 0-17, or one of Ben & Wes' Pre*War 0-18. As far as parlor's or the Collings Baby, I prefer to play a standard short-scale (24 7/8") guitar. I came to this conclusion because I had a Larrivee parlor, & found after working out complex fiddle tunes on the much shorter neck, the muscle memory wasn't quite there when trying to transfer the skills to a long scale acoustic.
Re: Collings Baby, 01, or 02H as a Travel Guitar?
Until recently, I used a Collings Baby as a travel guitar. I would take it on planes in a Blue Heron gig bag and never had a problem getting it onboard or in the overhead. I have tried most every small/travel sized guitar there is and the Baby is in my opinion, the best sounding of them all. Most travel guitars feel like a compromise to me and the Collings Baby never did.
Mitch
Mitch