Anyone else infatuated with their Acoustic?

[Larry Mal]

Yeah, I hope you find it. Good news I guess is that the J-45 Standard would have a more slim neck, I think they literally use the "Slim-Taper" necks on there, and that would save you some money.

[PapaB]

Yes. Martin D-28M Elvis Presley Signature, especially. I like all guitars, all price points, and generally have favored budget Yamahas and Alvarez .... But that D-28M, it sounds like no other guitar I've ever played. Deep bass. Very clear notes. (If they are not, the string is out of tune.) Each note has a full spectrum of sound: bass, mids and highs. Very balanced. And there's no volume ceiling, the louder you play, the louder it plays ....
Martin invented the Dreadnought.

[sal paradise]

So, spent the day with my Taylor 214ce. Apart from being generally disappointed with the action & not loving the cutaway or the 90s looking electronics, I’ve spent some time playing it.

The bigger body shape definitely has a slightly more pronounced volume. But it’s not really loud or anything.

The neck is really chunky. Way thicker than my Gibson feels. I’m sure I read somewhere that Taylors were most similar to electric necks? Maybe I was dreaming.

The sound. It sounds… like an acoustic. It’s clear & bright. Yet my mid-range Tanglewood dreadnought sounded better (although no pickup). Even the case feels fairly cheap for a £1k retail price Guitar. Not getting where all the great reviews are coming from

All in all, my G45 is a way more interesting sounding guitar, and far more comfortable to play.

I’m worried that this means all roads lead to J45 for my 2nd acoustic. Seems a bit of of waste to have two similar models. Think I’ll have to trek to one of the big guitar shops & see if I can try out some other makes & shapes in the same price range.

[Embenny]

The neck is really chunky. Way thicker than my Gibson feels. I’m sure I read somewhere that Taylors were most similar to electric necks? Maybe I was dreaming.

The sound. It sounds… like an acoustic. It’s clear & bright. Yet my mid-range Tanglewood dreadnought sounded better (although no pickup). Even the case feels fairly cheap for a £1k retail price Guitar. Not getting where all the great reviews are coming from

All in all, my G45 is a way more interesting sounding guitar, and far more comfortable to play.

The 200-series has a different neck from their classic profile (which is found on the 300+ series). Narrower nut, very different feel, even a different texture/finish. I had a 214ce 12ish years ago, along with several of their higher numbered series.

I'm not surprised that your G45 sounds better. It's got a soundport. Honestly, even a mediocre guitar with a soundport will sound better from the playing position than a good guitar without one. And I'm not calling your G45 mediocre, or the 214ce good.

One of my greatest guitar-related regrets was discovering soundports too late. Only my fifth (of five) custom build had one. The first four were by a luthier whi didn't normally do them, so they weren't on my radar. The fifth was by one who recommended it, and holy crap. I mean, it's in a thunderous guitar to begin with (jumbo bodied Sitka and Walnut 12-string multiscale with a 27" 6th course tuned down as low as A), but with the sounport open, I've never heard a guitar with so much rich bass.

The 214ce was always going to be brighter and thinner sounding, but with a soundport, it'd be an absolute no-contest.

I didn't even know Gibson offered soundports until I looked up the G45 model you mentioned, but that is awesome. They should have become standard on all acoustics years ago, in my opinion. It's been a decade since I shopped for a classical or acoustic, but I always had to prop them up vertically on my lap and play them turned toward me to get a sense of their true tone, since the tone radiated backwards to the player could often be misleading. Soundports don't sound exactly like the soundhole, but they're always so nice.

If your first acoustic has a soundport, it's honestly going to take a vastly superior guitar to impress you without one. Do they offer it as an option on the J45? Because honestly, I doubt you will like it more without one.

They're just that good of a feature.

[sal paradise]

I have an early model G45. No soundport. I just like the darker sound of it compared to a standard dreadnaught.

Surprised that the 200 series has a slimmer neck. It feels really wide at the nut and quite full. It’s playable but the Gibson feels much slimmer/smaller in the hand.

[Embenny]

Ah, didn't realize there were different versions.

I mean, Taylors have a very different voicing that not everyone will like. The 200-series was particularly bright when I owned it. Did you buy yours new? If so, Taylors always ship with Elixir strings, which are a love/hate type of thing. I love them. But if you like darker tones on an acoustic, they're the last strings I'd choose.

They also start out painfully bright. They take several hours of breaking in to reach their stable tone, which they then keep for many months. Not sure if that's what you have on your guitar, but thought I'd mention it.

If you like the tone of Dreads, you probably won't ever like a GA sized Taylor. It's just a brighter and thinner sounding guitar. I like bright guitars, but my 214ce was at the far bright end of what I'd want.

Taylors have a 1 3/4" nut as standard, by the way. It's the neck profile that's electric-like, not the width. It's what's commonly considered a "fingerstyle" width. If you want something that feels small in the hand like an electric, that's not going to be it.

[sal paradise]

Ah, didn't realize there were different versions.

I mean, Taylors have a very different voicing that not everyone will like. The 200-series was particularly bright when I owned it. Did you buy yours new? If so, Taylors always ship with Elixir strings, which are a love/hate type of thing. I love them. But if you like darker tones on an acoustic, they're the last strings I'd choose.

They also start out painfully bright. They take several hours of breaking in to reach their stable tone, which they then keep for many months. Not sure if that's what you have on your guitar, but thought I'd mention it.

If you like the tone of Dreads, you probably won't ever like a GA sized Taylor. It's just a brighter and thinner sounding guitar. I like bright guitars, but my 214ce was at the far bright end of what I'd want.

Taylors have a 1 3/4" nut as standard, by the way. It's the neck profile that's electric-like, not the width. It's what's commonly considered a "fingerstyle" width. If you want something that feels small in the hand like an electric, that's not going to be it.

This is a pretty battered 2014 Taylor. It’s seem some action & crazy buckle rash on the back. Thought it would be good for finger picking. Part of it is that the action is really high, which isn’t fair to judge a guitar on that. Just not gelling with it.

Acoustic 2 will be my standard tuning machine, so it’s gotta be perfect for me. I suppose that’s also part of the problem. Buying a guitar in fairly poor condition over the internetz is always a risk. The G45 sounds amazing in open C, so that’s what I’m gonna use that for.

[Embenny]

I don't think it's even a matter of buying in rough condition - any acoustic bought sight unseen is a massive gamble. Different examples of the same model can often sound dramatically different, falling somewhere on a bell curve. Unless you play a ton of them, you likely won't find the good ones at the end of the curve. And if you haven't played any of that brand or model, it's really going to be a matter of luck whether you like it at all.

I think I must have played over a hundred guitars every time I shopped for a new acoustic or classical, it took that many to really hone in on the right guitar in the right budget range.

[Larry Mal]

Thought it would be good for finger picking. Part of it is that the action is really high, which isn’t fair to judge a guitar on that. J

If there is any acoustic guitar that is not stuck having high action it's a Taylor guitar. The reason they "play like an electric" isn't the nut width or the neck profile, it's that you can get super low action on them.

The mechanism by which that is easily done is shimming, so if you at all care for the guitar, visit your guitar tech and have one put in.

Personally, I've moved on from the Taylor sound.

I had a Taylor 410 that played like a dream, and a J-35, and one of them had to go. There was no question.

As a J-45 owner, I can pretty confidently say that there's not many Taylors out there I'd like more, and port or no port, it'll eclipse your G-45.

[PapaB]

I'm not really sure how to quote others, but some one asked about the Yamaha FS series .... "What are your thoughts on the FSX5?"
If I may, they are terrific instruments. I own three Nippon Gakkis (FG-300, FG-140 & FG-75) and two newer entry level models, both their least expensive FGX-800C & FS-800, the latter is a $200.00 and it plays as well, and sounds nearly like my 000-17! A set-up (especially a nut job, that's the key to easy playing) and Martin Retro strings got it there.
IMHO the electronics on the X models are worth half the cost of the instrument. They really are tops. My 800 was $300.00 new, and came with tuner, preamp, and parametric EQ. It's really incredible value.
About the only drawback of the Yamahas, the old ones at least, is the epoxy glue of the neck. It's not meant to be taken apart ....
But if you store it with reduced string tension in its case, it should last you a lifetime. My Red Labels are almost 60 years old.
Great guitars. In a previous post I mentioned I'm of the opinion the SG was the best sounding guitar at Woodstock. The Yamaha was a very close second.

[sal paradise]

Thought it would be good for finger picking. Part of it is that the action is really high, which isn’t fair to judge a guitar on that. J

If there is any acoustic guitar that is not stuck having high action it's a Taylor guitar. The reason they "play like an electric" isn't the nut width or the neck profile, it's that you can get super low action on them.

The mechanism by which that is easily done is shimming, so if you at all care for the guitar, visit your guitar tech and have one put in.

Personally, I've moved on from the Taylor sound.

I had a Taylor 410 that played like a dream, and a J-35, and one of them had to go. There was no question.

As a J-45 owner, I can pretty confidently say that there's not many Taylors out there I'd like more, and port or no port, it'll eclipse your G-45.

Well budget was the decider here. Getting a 300 series for 50% of retail price seemed like a good bet. So bit of buyer’s remorse now that I’ve played it, and its condition means it won’t be easy to resell.

The lesson is: find a shop with lots of left handed guitars in stock, and accept that I probably need to up my budget if I want to be wowed by an acoustic.

Will keep playing the Taylor over the weekend & see if anything changes.

Even with the cutaway, it’s not that ugly…

[MC5tooge]

I am rather fond of my CAR Sonoran because it looks so fine and plays nice too.

Can't really afford to be getting into higher end acoustics and I really I don't need another GAS beast to feed.

[sal paradise]

I’m trying. But I don’t like it. Taken some photos & popped it on reverb.

Does it even look nice? I’m not sure what I was thinking


This is what’s going on at the back & why I got it cheap-ish for a 200 series. Plus no battery cover.

[Larry Mal]

Yeah, I have seen that on Taylors before, what happens is some moisture got under the finish and prevented it from binding. It will likely get worse, and since the guitar really isn't worth refinishing and you aren't happy with it, I'd just move it on.

[PorkyPrimeCut]

Probably more hassle than it’s worth but I wonder if that could be fixed by scoring a line through the laquer, following the grain, & squeezing glue into & under the cut. Then clamping it.