But ARE they good? I think I've watched every one of this guys videos on Youtube, and he has several on Taylors alone. You have to take him with a pinch of salt but he does know his stuff. His Canadian hoser-esque verbage might make him seem kinda simple so don't judge all of us Canucks that way LOLChasplaya wrote:That's because they are good. And I'm not American, perish the thought!You Americans are infatuated with freaking Taylor's. OK ducking my head here bring it back on team lol.
That being said, I will admit to the existence of good guitars that are not Taylors...
Best way to buy a Taylor?
Catman wrote:
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AcousticAl
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dburns99 wrote:
This could get interesting (ugly)...
"They're wooden guitars. They twist, they bend."
What's the guy saying? That an all-wood guitar is no good?!
Does he prefer a laminate?
Would also like to hear him properly play a guitar as opposed to strumming a few random chords.
Also watched his comparison to his 'Kay' (?) model later in the vid. His guitar sounded terrible compared to the Taylor.
Catman wrote:But ARE they good? I think I've watched every one of this guys videos on Youtube, and he has several on Taylors alone. You have to take him with a pinch of salt but he does know his stuff. His Canadian hoser-esque verbage might make him seem kinda simple so don't judge all of us Canucks that way LOLChasplaya wrote:That's because they are good. And I'm not American, perish the thought!You Americans are infatuated with freaking Taylor's. OK ducking my head here bring it back on team lol.
That being said, I will admit to the existence of good guitars that are not Taylors...
This could get interesting (ugly)...
"They're wooden guitars. They twist, they bend."
What's the guy saying? That an all-wood guitar is no good?!
Does he prefer a laminate?
Would also like to hear him properly play a guitar as opposed to strumming a few random chords.
Also watched his comparison to his 'Kay' (?) model later in the vid. His guitar sounded terrible compared to the Taylor.
dburns99 wrote:
I'm going to play even though my better judgement is telling me not to. Can you explain why you say that they are overpriced for what you get? My Taylor is Koa and Cocobolo, ebony fretboard which is like silk etc etc. What am I not getting for my money? (I don't think I'm hijacking Jay's thread, he wants a Taylor and if he is not going to get value for money he should have the chance to hear about it) I get that you prefer Martin, but if you are going to claim Taylor is overpriced for what you get then you should back that statement up.LOL I knew this would start something. Listen.....I'm not saying Taylor's are crap.....I'm just saying they're a bit over priced for what you get.
Jay- as the proud owner of a couple of Taylor's I have an opinion on your question. The best place to buy a new Taylor is at Guitar Center when they have their annual sale. Not sure when that is but it seems like it was in the summer.
You used to be able to buy a Taylor at quality guitar shops where you could sit quietly and just play without the guy next to you bangin out his version of Stairway to Heaven (old joke). But Taylor did something I feel was really shortsighted. They told the Ma and Pa guitar shops that if they didn't sell the Taylor electric line, the "T" guitars, they couldn't have their acoustic line. Basically, wiped out Taylor from the small shops and put many of them out of business as Taylor became more popular and "other" brands lost popularity.
Taylor is a huge manufacturer so all their acoustics went box retailers like Guitar Center, Musician's Friend, even Best Buy. The prices are better but you lose some of that intimate small shop knowledge and experience. I recently got into a spirited discussion with a Guitar Center employee about whether Taylors are made in Mexico. He claimed they weren't. The 100 and 200 series are made in Mexico to the best of my knowledge.
Despite Taylor's legendary manufacturing standards not all Taylors are the same. The woods differ and the sound varies slightly. And guitars that have hung on the wall for months often have dead strings (one reason Taylor now uses elixir coated strings). My point is if you are going to spend the money for Taylor you want to fall in love with it. You must play it and love the way it looks. That means big box is your only option.
I have purchased three Taylors. A 710 and an 855 from small guitar shops and a 314ce on-line from eBay. Brand new with the tags still on it. The 314 is Taylor's most popular model (I've been told). So I felt pretty confortable buying it on-line and I only paid $650 for it new. That is a steal if you check current prices!! I don't think I would have bought either of the other two on-line just due to the expense. I couldn't afford to be wrong.
If you go through Guitar Center at least they can get different guitars of the same model if you don't like the wood or sound. They may not like to do it but they can and will if they think you are serious. They will also custom order but then you have the wood thing.
If you want a higher model than you can afford, and can live with a used guitar, Craigslist is a great way to find guitars. People are hurting in this economy and if it comes to rent or food and a fancy guitar often people have to dump their instruments. I've seen some amazing deals.
Bottom line, I've never met a Taylor owner who didn't love their guitar. I suppose you could close your eyes and be happy. But if at all possible, play the guitar you wil ive with for a ong time before you buy.
Best of luck and let us know what happens. We'll see you in the Taylor Owner's Club soon!!!
p.s. Those videos are pretty useless. What type and age are the strings? The guy proved he doesn't know much about guitars when you does ALL his setup at the bridge without any adjustment of the nut. And he doesn't address truss rod adjustments either. And the quarter under the strings at the 12 fret. Looks like a high setup to me. ALL guitars deserve a good setup by a competent luthier or repair tech. Your Taylor will too. I take mine in every 1-2 years for a tune-up and it's money well spent. :cheer:
You used to be able to buy a Taylor at quality guitar shops where you could sit quietly and just play without the guy next to you bangin out his version of Stairway to Heaven (old joke). But Taylor did something I feel was really shortsighted. They told the Ma and Pa guitar shops that if they didn't sell the Taylor electric line, the "T" guitars, they couldn't have their acoustic line. Basically, wiped out Taylor from the small shops and put many of them out of business as Taylor became more popular and "other" brands lost popularity.
Taylor is a huge manufacturer so all their acoustics went box retailers like Guitar Center, Musician's Friend, even Best Buy. The prices are better but you lose some of that intimate small shop knowledge and experience. I recently got into a spirited discussion with a Guitar Center employee about whether Taylors are made in Mexico. He claimed they weren't. The 100 and 200 series are made in Mexico to the best of my knowledge.
Despite Taylor's legendary manufacturing standards not all Taylors are the same. The woods differ and the sound varies slightly. And guitars that have hung on the wall for months often have dead strings (one reason Taylor now uses elixir coated strings). My point is if you are going to spend the money for Taylor you want to fall in love with it. You must play it and love the way it looks. That means big box is your only option.
I have purchased three Taylors. A 710 and an 855 from small guitar shops and a 314ce on-line from eBay. Brand new with the tags still on it. The 314 is Taylor's most popular model (I've been told). So I felt pretty confortable buying it on-line and I only paid $650 for it new. That is a steal if you check current prices!! I don't think I would have bought either of the other two on-line just due to the expense. I couldn't afford to be wrong.
If you go through Guitar Center at least they can get different guitars of the same model if you don't like the wood or sound. They may not like to do it but they can and will if they think you are serious. They will also custom order but then you have the wood thing.
If you want a higher model than you can afford, and can live with a used guitar, Craigslist is a great way to find guitars. People are hurting in this economy and if it comes to rent or food and a fancy guitar often people have to dump their instruments. I've seen some amazing deals.
Bottom line, I've never met a Taylor owner who didn't love their guitar. I suppose you could close your eyes and be happy. But if at all possible, play the guitar you wil ive with for a ong time before you buy.
Best of luck and let us know what happens. We'll see you in the Taylor Owner's Club soon!!!
p.s. Those videos are pretty useless. What type and age are the strings? The guy proved he doesn't know much about guitars when you does ALL his setup at the bridge without any adjustment of the nut. And he doesn't address truss rod adjustments either. And the quarter under the strings at the 12 fret. Looks like a high setup to me. ALL guitars deserve a good setup by a competent luthier or repair tech. Your Taylor will too. I take mine in every 1-2 years for a tune-up and it's money well spent. :cheer:
Jay,
you should try to attend a Taylor Road show:
http://www.taylorguitars.com/events/road-show
I notice they have several events in MA & NH in May
Jim
you should try to attend a Taylor Road show:
http://www.taylorguitars.com/events/road-show
I notice they have several events in MA & NH in May
Jim
They told the Ma and Pa guitar shops that if they didn't sell the Taylor electric line, the "T" guitars, they couldn't have their acoustic line. Basically, wiped out Taylor from the small shops and put many of them out of business as Taylor became more popular and "other" brands lost popularity.
Taylor is a huge manufacturer so all their acoustics went box retailers like Guitar Center, Musician's Friend, even Best Buy.
I found the above quote incredible, so I decided to do some fact checking. According to Taylor's web site, Taylor acoustic guitars are available at 454 independent dealer locations in the U.S., and of those only 129 carry Taylor electrics. And this doesn't even include the hundreds of Guitar Centers and Sam Ashes.