Taylor Guitars

Bobby Lee · Post by **Bobby Lee** » 8 Jun 2005 10:18 pm

Both of the acoustic players in my band play Taylors. I guess they feel really good. Nancy's came with faulty electronics that took about 6 months and numerous trips to the repair shop to get fixed. Also it seems to break strings a lot. John is real happy with his, but I've never liked the sound of it in the PA. Real boxy sounding to my ears. I guess he likes it that way though because he never complains about it.

I get better acoustic tones with my Line6 Variax electric, in my opinion.

------------------
<img align=right src="http://b0b.com/Hotb0b.gif" width="96 height="96">Bobby Lee - email: quasar@b0b.com - gigs - CDs, Open Hearts
Williams D-12 E9, C6add9, Sierra Olympic S-12 (F Diatonic)
Sierra Laptop S-8 (E6add9), Fender Stringmaster D-8 (E13, C6 or A6)

Jim Phelps · Post by **Jim Phelps** » 8 Jun 2005 10:47 pm

My own worthless opinion is....

Taylors are nice, good guitars, Takamine's are nice, good guitars, Martins are nice, good, etc. etc. etc.

Just about everyone is making nice good guitars these days. Everyone has different likes and dislikes and believe this or that brand is "better".

However, have you noticed that there have been very definite trends for acoustic brands?

In the '60's, Gibson acoustics were the fad.

In the '70s everyone you saw on TV and concerts was playing Ovations, and working bands followed.

In the '80s everyone on TV and concerts (and again the working bands followed) played Takamine's.

In the 90's, everyone you see is playing Taylors.

Now Taylors are still very popular along with Collings and some other boutique guitars.

What will be the next brand everyone will be playing and thinking is the "best"?

The best-sounding acoustic I ever played was a Martin D-28 Sunburst from about 1937. Never heard anything like it since. It belonged to a highschool-mate's Mom, she used to play in a radio show when she was young in the 30's and 40's. She actually loaned it to me for a while (I didn't ask her!).

What a spoiler.

[This message was edited by Jim Phelps on 08 June 2005 at 11:51 PM.]

Jim Peters · Post by **Jim Peters** » 9 Jun 2005 4:42 am

Terry, some do some don't. As with almost all brands, there are good and bad ones. The Martins I have tried seem to be the hardest to play, in general, Taylors were usually pretty good to play(including the Big Babys), Larivees were mostly excellent,Takamine quality varied a lot, but this is on a given day in a particular store. our results may vary. JimP

David Doggett · Post by **David Doggett** » 9 Jun 2005 5:27 am

I have spent a good deal of time sitting around in the high-end acoustic room at the huge Guitar Center near me. There were about a dozen each of various Martins, Taylors, Gibsons, etc. I finger pick only, never learned to flat pick. I play a little mediocre blues, folk, country and bluegrass. For these new instruments, the Taylors and Takamines had the best sound to me among comparably priced models. The Martins seemed overpriced. It's impossible to know how the sound will improve with time as the woods age further. Any well made guitar will improve steadily for many decades, which of course explains why most people prefer the sound of vintage guitars over identically made new ones.

The ease of playing varied as much within brands as between them, and mostly was related to variations in setup. The Gibsons with the short necks were easier to chord near the nut, but the longer neck models were easier to chord up the neck.

Darvin Willhoite · Post by **Darvin Willhoite** » 9 Jun 2005 5:32 am

Terry, I bought a Big Baby Taylor for a friend of mine a couple of months ago, and when I got it the action was pretty high. After a little nut and bridge work, it played and sounded really good. I have a Baby Taylor that I throw in the truck when I travel, and it too needed a little action work, but now it plays and sounds amazing for such an inexpensive guitar.

------------------
Darvin Willhoite
Riva Ridge Recording

D Schubert · Post by **D Schubert** » 9 Jun 2005 7:05 am

IMHO, there are only four main categories of acoustic guitars: pre-war Martins, pre-fire Martins (1965 and earlier), newer Martins, and then everything else. Of course that reflects my personal bias toward traditional & bluegass sounds. Often times you'll hear Martin die-hards say -- in the words of Raymond Huffmaster, I believe -- "When I calls on it, I wants it to be there!" -- referring to power in reserve, or the ablity to "lean on it" as somebody said above. Having said that, if you like the sound of the Taylor, buy the durn thing. There are many worse guitars on the market.

Terry Sneed · Post by **Terry Sneed** » 9 Jun 2005 9:34 am

Thanks Jim and Darvin. Musicians Friend has the Big Baby on sale for $400. And you can send it back if you don't like it.
I'll probly try either the Big baby or the Martin D 15 limited edition which is $739 I think, at Musicians Friend. wish I had the bucks to buy a D28 or similar priced guitar but about $700 is as high as I can go.

------------------
Mullen D10 /8x5 / session 500rd/ American Strat Highway 1 model
steelin for my Lord

Roger Rettig · Post by **Roger Rettig** » 9 Jun 2005 10:00 am

Jim Phelps,

Two of the trends you mention were the result of a deliberate campaign by the manufacturers in question - Ovation and Taylor - to put their product in high-profile artists' hands.

Ovation's big coup was getting Glen Campbell to play one back when he had a regular TV show. They got Jerry Reed on board, too. Taylor did the same in the '80s. Once a guitar is seen in a video the effect is predictable. Don't forget - probably 99% of musical instrument profits are from non-professional players.

Once upon a time, one could be sure that a Martin player had paid for his guitar, but the advent of signature editions (YUK!!!) has ended that. I know it's inevitable and that CF can't ignore industry trends, but I find it sad. It's also true that, while Martin ruled the roost for many decades, a lot of builders are making a comparable product.

Things have changed in the last twenty years - look at old photos of country music stars and their bands and you can split the tally between Gibson and Martin (maybe Martin would just win), with the odd Grammer guitar thrown in....

RR

PS: I've just recieved my Martin Custom-Shop guitar - I had them make me a replica of a 000-28 from around 1950. It's absolutely lovely, and cost only $2400 - the real thing (from 1950) would be about $10,000!

RR

Jim Phelps · Post by **Jim Phelps** » 9 Jun 2005 10:44 am

Hi Roger,

Yes actually I'm aware of the promotional efforts of Ovation, Takamine and Taylor, I remember very well Campbell's TV show which started the whole Ovation thing, but I don't believe it matters as most all companies attempt to promote their intruments and get them into the hands of a popular star. The point was, they were the rage of their age, for whatever the reasons may be, everyone had to have that brand at the time. Lately it's been Taylor's turn. The main point being that guitarists (and other musicians too, probably) are influenced by popular trends, even "fads" if you will, like it or not.

D Schubert · Post by **D Schubert** » 9 Jun 2005 11:08 am

A flattop guitar can't be tweaked to the same extent as a PSG, but there are some fundamental adjustments & modifications that will make a good guitar sound and better...

(1) Bone nut and bridge saddle, replacing stock materials

(2) Well-fitted bridge pins, where applicable

(3) Proper neck torsion rod adjustment, where applicable

(4) All the above, set up for manly string gages -- 0.012" or preferably 0.013" for the little E. I like true medium strings (0.013") with the action "slanted" so that it's a hair lower on the treble side...at the nut and at the bridge.

In particular, many pickers will bitch about Martin's standard out-of-the-box setup (which is relatively high string action) but never think to take it to a qualified luthier for a good, personalized setup.

Jack Stoner · Post by **Jack Stoner** » 9 Jun 2005 12:27 pm

Some play certain brands of Guitars because their "boss" required it.

In the early 70's I worked for Little Roy Wiggins at his lower Broadway music store and because Roy was President of the Grammer Guitar Co, to a lesser extent I was also involved with Grammer Guitar Co. Bill Monroe is one example, and whatever Bill did or used all Bluegrass pickers followed suit. Joe Stewart was working for Bill, as his Guitar picker and harmony singer. Joe wanted a Grammer guitar and they built one for him. He took it to the Opry to use with Bill and Bill would not allow him on the stage with the Grammer - it had to be a Martin only.

Sho-Bud got a boost for their Sho-Bro "Dobro's" as Roy Acuff was close friends with Shot Jackson and when Shot started making the Sho-Bro he required Oswald to play one on appearances with him. Oswald didn't like the Sho-Bro and complained it wasn't as loud and didn't have the tone his "real" Dobro had but he bowed to pressure from Roy and used it.

ajm · Post by **ajm** » 9 Jun 2005 4:29 pm

I am not real partial to them because the necks seem thin to me front to back. This can tend to make your hand cramp up in the palm area. They feel real sexy at first, but it takes a while to realize this.

I don't know of anyone who makes a fatter necked acoustic. Maybe Guild or Tacoma?

------------------
Artie McEwan