Taylor 30th Anniversary Grand Concert

AndyT
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Fri Dec 04, 2009 10:36 pm

Bear doesn't have stock in Taylor, He works for them in the PR department. But he only gets commission so if you have not been giving his name to the factory, then he won't get paid.


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auntlynnie
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Sat Dec 05, 2009 8:56 pm

Although I have more guitars than I'm going to admit to, my go to guitar is a Taylor 712ce. I've never met a Taylor I wouldn't be happy to play. It's odd that the same thing doesn't hold true for me with Martin.


lh7050
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Sat Dec 05, 2009 9:12 pm

You know Doc I had the same conversation today with the parent of one of my students. I've had a 28,35 and even a 45 and never could get the solid feel I get with my Taylors also. Funny isnt it. Some people like this and some like that.I guess that what keeps things moving. who knows ... ;)


rbrisson
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Sun Dec 06, 2009 4:27 am

Both Taylor and Martin are great companies that have their own distinctive culture and traditions. Obviously Martin has been around a lot longer, and this is reflected in their instruments and corporate culture. I've toured both factories (highly recommended), and it's impressive how these companies can produce 100s of instruments a day and nonetheless instill fine craftsman values into their work.

I own a 15-year old Taylor Signature Model that I try to play every day. It's a custom lefty dreadnaught with a Florentine cutaway, and it still looks like a new guitar. I can't really compare to much else in terms of playing (since I'm left-handed), but it's hard to imagine getting much better!


AndyT
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Sun Dec 06, 2009 6:52 am

That makes me wonder. How many guitars are made and how many are sold every year? Lets not count the El Cheapo knockoff toys. Real guitars.


rbrisson
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Sun Dec 06, 2009 9:07 am

Both the main Martin and the Taylor factories--where the "real" guitars are made--are pretty sizable and both have been expanded over the years (reflecting the general boom in fine guitar-making over the past couple of decades). Taylor relies heavily on CNC manufacturing (allowing for insanely fine tolerances), and Martin on tried and true tradition. There's obviously still a lot of fine handwork going on in both factories. During the tours you can exchange words with the guys working at each stage of the manufacturing process, and they clearly are into what they are doing. It was amazing watching an ornately appointed Martin coming off the line--cost? $25,000 (I believe it was a Gene Autry special or something like that).

I vaguely recall both companies speaking generally about growth and numbers of instruments being built, but this was a while ago, so the numbers would have changed by now. They also give some numbers on how many hours it takes to build a guitar, and how many people handle it before it's put in its case for shipping. So yes, it would be interesting to know exactly how many guitars are currently being built in each of those factories.


dennisg
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Sun Dec 06, 2009 11:41 am

According to Taylor, they sold about 80,000 guitars last year. It's a tribute to them that they can produce such a large number of guitars while maintaining such extraordinary quality.

- Dennis (in Seattle)


AndyT
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Sun Dec 06, 2009 2:20 pm

Lets say we take the top 10 makers. If each of them makes 50,000 guitars a year, that's half a million. Then we can add in all the smaller makers for say maybe another 50,000. Where are all of these guitars? That is a huge amount of guitars being produced all the time. Who is buying them? Is it the same half a million players buying new ones every year? I think not. With numbers like that, there should be a guitar in every home in the world by now.

No wonder Bear is pushing Taylor so much. LOL Commissions are hard to come by with that much competition.


rbrisson
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Sun Dec 06, 2009 3:50 pm

Well, if we're only talking the top ten fine guitar makers, then I'm not sure if we'll find ten that sell 50,000 or more guitars. Let's say by "fine guitars", we're talking about those over $1000. For the known brands, like Taylor, Martin, Yamaha, Gibson, Guild, et al, only a fraction of their total numbers are guitars over $1000. For Taylor, I'd wager only about half of those 80,000 are over $1000. I'm not sure if there are more than a handful that sell 50,000 guitars over $1000 a year.

There is a thriving market, relatively, of finely crafted custom guitars by professional luthiers (like Symogi, Klein, Collings, Bourgois, Lowden, et al), but when you consider that a luthier's shop will only make a few dozen guitars a year at most, then this is only a small part of the total of the fine guitars sold.

Here's my list of possible candidates of top ten fine guitarmakers with the largest numbers (I'd bet most of these sell only a few thousand guitars over $1000 a year):
1) Breedlove
2) Alvarez (and Yairi)
4) Martin
5) Ovation
6) Taylor
7) Yamaha
8) Takamine
9) Seagull
10) Gibson
11) Fender
12) Guild


bigmo
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Sun Dec 06, 2009 7:18 pm

I know we are just talking arbitrary numbers here, but the quality of guitars under $1000 has sky rocketed in the past decade.

If you were talking Breedlove, you'd have to be talking about their Atlas series. I doubt they sell a heck of a lot of their upper line in terms of quantity. If you ever get a chance to play one, do yourself a favor and run away, lest you lighten your bank account. My Northwest is like a religious experience every time you play.

How about Blueridge? They are a fantastic guitar for the money and they too have their upper line of guitars.

Oh and Washburn, maker of the lowest of the low also makes a decent line of higher end acoustics.


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