The Collings Forum

I’m a Collings (and Waterloo) die-hard, but I do fall in the camp that tends to hear more high end zing with the Collings line. For me, traditional builds and a baked top are (generally speaking) the perfect compliment for a Collings.

There is a sound in the high end of the notes I hear from baked tops that I'd rather not hear. It sounds artificial to me. And baked is not the correct term. They evaporate the moisture under a vacuum. Water boils at a lower temperature when under a vacuum.

Here is a quote from Dana Bourgeois about torrified tops in a Reverb interview from 2016.

"Mostly though, there’s a market preference for vintage. So boutique builders are building in that direction. That’s just where the market is right now.

You see hipsters playing B-25 Gibsons and Style 17 Martins, the still affordable vintage guitars that haven’t been snatched up by collectors. So this [torrefied wood] fits right in.

If you were building in a real contemporary style, looking to take acoustic guitars in an entirely different direction, you might legitimately decide torrefied wood was inferior. But for now, we lionize the response of vintage guitars, their look and their characteristics. Expect to see more and more torrefied tops in the near future."

Mr. Jelly wrote: ↑Thu Mar 03, 2022 2:14 pm There is a sound in the high end of the notes I hear from baked tops that I'd rather not hear. It sounds artificial to me.

I too have not preferred torrefied tops on Collings. It’s hard to put into words but I think Mr. Jelly might have captured it.

Eric Jones wrote: ↑Fri Mar 11, 2022 3:51 pm

Mr. Jelly wrote: ↑Thu Mar 03, 2022 2:14 pm There is a sound in the high end of the notes I hear from baked tops that I'd rather not hear. It sounds artificial to me.

I too have not preferred torrefied tops on Collings. It’s hard to put into words but I think Mr. Jelly might have captured it.

Good observations! Let’s face it, nothing compares to a true vintage instrument!!