CruzTone Lap Steel Review

[Michael Papenburg]

As you probably know, Colin at CruzTone has lent one of his 8 string lap steels to a number of Northern California residents. I have had possession of it for the past several weeks and thought I'd write a review.

First of all, it is an incredibly solid instrument. It just feels like it will last a lifetime. The woodwork is very nice and the aluminum looks great as well. It came with 3 legs which are very stable for either standing or sitting height. This one came in a very nice gig bag but I believe the 8 string models usually ship with a hard case. I find that it's quite a bit heavier than my other lap steels but nothing too extreme.

The sustain on this instrument is excellent. I'm sure that the 24" scale helps in this department. The tone is very "vintage" IMO. I feel that it sounds a little bit like the Fender Deluxe I used to own which had one of the trapezoid pickups. The overall tone is bright and clear with excellent string definition. In comparison to my Supro with NiBro magnets, the CruzTone has more top end and a bit less mids. In other words, it has more cut than girth. It is not overly bright, though, and the tone control is nicely voiced so you can tailor the sound to your amp.

When I received the instrument it was in high C6 tuning (with a G on top). It sounded great but I normally use G6 so I changed the strings after a few days. It sounded fantastic with both tunings. I believe the locking tuning machines are made by Planet Waves. They automatically trim the strings as you tighten them up. I've never used this kind before and found that they worked flawlessly and were very stable.

I only had two small criticisms. The aluminum fretboard is held down by screws. One of them is in the center of the board but it is in a somewhat random place. I wish that it had been placed on top of one of the position marker dots because it threw me off a little bit when I was playing above the 12th fret (I should mention that there aren't actually "frets" - just lines that represent them). The other being that I would prefer the input jack to be on the end of the instrument rather than on the side closest to me. I'm assuming that one could pick where it is located, though.

I have played it quite a bit at home and was able to bring it to one band rehearsal. I can wholeheartedly recommend one to anyone looking for a great sounding modern lap steel with vintage inspired tone.

[Ray Langley]

Hey Michael - Good on you man for posting this review.

Reviews are a valuable contribution to the lap steel community. I think/hope I am still on the list for trying out this instrument.

It is good to hear the strong and the "less than glowing" points about any product in our field.

Again, thank you for joining in reviewing this instrument.

[Ron Whitfield]

Michael, were you aware of and did you use both versions of the PU on the CruzTone?
I ask because when I tested it (probably the same guitar, the prototype CT) during Colin's vacation here a couple of years back, he forgot to mention the ability to convert the PU from strings thru to open air by removing the top of the PU, thus giving it as Colin later stated, a P90-ish style of sound.
I'd have loved being able to try both versions, but was impressed with the one, non the less.

The CT is a very playable guitar. It almost plays itself, and it has a unique tone quality, much as Michael describes. But I didn't find it 'vintage' to any degree that I'm used to, at least with the set up used then, and it was deduced by a friend and I that the roller nut/s greatly contribute to it's overall sound/tone. For some things, like a modern/contemporary sounding steel sound, or a super-charged Stringmaster, it would excel, and the almost patented phrase used about this steel 'a Fry-pan on steroids' is pretty true. However, that's not what most players in the islands that focus on the older styles of Hawaiian steel generally prefer. Mega sustain and top end til the cows come home isn't always a priority over here, and it was suggested that a version with a typical bone nut be tried, just to tame it down to a bit to a more mellow Hawaiian standard, and I hope that comes to be some day. A market is waiting for that model as well. Those tones may well be in that guitar, as is, but we didn't have the opportunity to hear it's full potential.

Colin has put a lot of time/research/effort into his creation and he's made a stunnng instrument. Those that are lucky enuf to be on the waiting list to test it will have a ton of fun and be able to find many uses for it's abilities.

[Michael Papenburg]

I was not aware that you can take the pickup cover off for a different sound. I still have the instrument so I'll have to check that out.

In terms of "vintage", it seems that there are a lot of different ideas of vintage tone. I don't play Hawaiian music so I'm not familiar with the tones that are expected in that genre. The Fender Deluxe I had was very bright and sounded more like a pedal steel than my other lap steels. My Supro is bright but full sounding at the same time. I have a Magnatone that is definitely mellow and an Oahu Tonemaster that is somewhere in the middle.

When I think "modern" I envision a really hot pickup that is better suited to distorted tones than rich clean ones. Perhaps it would be best to describe the Cruztone as "modern vintage" .

[Ron Whitfield]

Then maybe he also didn't mention the PU height adjustment screws are located on the back-side of the guitar.
Odd that these two very important details are possibly again not mentioned to those recieving the steel... I was stoked to have the rare opportunity availed to me, and then quite bummed to have enjoyed only half the guitar for an entire week. Hoping to hear your thots on the 'other' PU, Michael!

[Colin Alder]

Michael,
Thank you so much for your thoughtful and thorough review of the eight string CruzTone. As I said when I sent it out, this particular steel has some parts that are seconds, and this is one reason I'm willing to send it on the road. The headstock has a flaw in the decorative milling, the finish is work-a-day polyurethane, and the fretboard has that stray screw that you mentioned. It was actually done by my having missed a position marker that floated free when I was doing the cad drawing. It came out on the 14th fret and I never noticed it until I got a batch back from the engraver with the stray dot painted black. s**t!!! One problem with CNC is it can make junk just as fast and efficiently as good parts. So I drilled it out and put a screw in its place. The production CruzTones don't have it.


As far as the convertible pickup goes, I shot my mouth off so much and thought that you all had seen the Doug Livingston demonstration on the CruzTone website. But check it out,,,top magnet off gives more of a hot P90 tone. click

I originally had the output on the end,but found that it interfered with setting the guitar on a stand and having it still plugged in. But on a custom order you can choose your own placement. I believe the one in the photo above has the chicken head pointing at the jack, although I like it on the other side so the cord is hidden from the audience.

[Michael Papenburg]

Colin -

Thanks for your post. I forgot that this instrument had a few issues so that makes total sense. I hadn't thought of the fact that an end jack would get in the way of setting it on a stand because I've never set a lap steel on a stand before. I grew accustomed to the jack being on the players side with time. It's easy to feel that what you are used to is the best way to approach something .

As of today, I've been trying to coordinate giving the CruzTone to Brad as he is next on the list. It seems that he is very busy, though, so he hasn't had time to meet. Hopefully we'll be able to work something out soon.

[Brad Bechtel]

My time with the same guitar allowed me to come to pretty much the same conclusions as listed above. Colin's background as a fine furniture manufacturer shows in the detail and care he put into this guitar (and the others I've seen). They're striking looking instruments - every time I brought this one out, I got favorable comments from other musicians.

The tone control is extremely wide - you can go from icepick treble to deep bass. The instrument is very heavy - the legs are a big help here. The mass of the guitar helps contribute to the overall sound and sustain. The supplied gig bag was great, high quality and fit the guitar quite well.

I mentioned to Colin that I had one situation where the lighting being used caused a "shadow" ninth sting to appear (i.e. the eighth string's shadow made it seem like a ninth string was also present). I don't think it affected my playing any, though.

I tried this guitar with the supplied G6th tuning and with C6/Am7 tuning (bass to treble A C E G A C E G). It performed perfectly with both. I would like to try out a six string model, as I am far more comfortable with two fewer strings.

This is a fine guitar and should be at the top of your list if you are looking for a high quality non-pedal steel guitar.

[Ron Whitfield]

...did you demo it with the '2nd PU' conversion as referred to above?

I'd like to hear your thots on how it compared, etc., if you did.