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TAYLOR ACOUSTIC GUITARS
ON EBAY
Taylor Acoustic Guitars
Acoustic guitars come in many shapes, sizes and colors. Brand names like Gibson, Fender and Ibanez jump to the front of the mind anytime the word "guitar" is mentioned. When it comes to acoustic guitars, there is one really standout luthier that still operates a small hand crafting factory in El Cajon, California.
Taylor Guitars was the brainchild of Bob Taylor. In 1973, when Bob was 18 years old, he worked for a guitar manufacturer called American Dream. At the time American Dream was owned by Sam Radding. In 1974, Radding decided to sell the company so Taylor partnered with a colleague, Kurt Listug and later another partner, Steve Schemmer, to buy the company. It was renamed Westland Music Company.
Today, Taylor Guitars has two factories. One in El Cajon, California where most of the instruments are made and another in Tecate, Mexico that focuses on the Baby and Big Baby models as well as the Taylor guitar cases. Currently, the company has more than 550 employees and a worldwide distribution of quality acoustic guitars.
There is also the R Taylor workshop located right next to the El Cajon factory which produces a line of ultra premium instruments. The location also allows Taylor access to high grade materials and extremely skilled artisans.
Although known for their acoustic guitars, Taylor does make acoustic/electrics and, as of 2005 a few solid body electric guitars. However, the focus is on acoustics.
Taylor manufactures several different body styles, as follows:
•Dreadnought, denoted as DN
•Grand Concert, denoted as GC
•Grand Auditorium, denoted as GA
•Grand Symphony, denoted as GS
Taylor also uses numerals to denote the series of the guitar. They currently have 3-series, 4-series, 5-series, 6-series, 7-series, 8-series, 810/910 series and the LKSM or Leo Kottke Signature series. The body code (DN, GC, GA, etc..) are combined with the series number to form the model number. So, for instance, a DN3 is a dreadnought 6 string with specific materials. A12 string of the same model would read DN3-12.
The most unique feature of the Taylor guitars is the patented bolt-on neck joint, called the NT or New Technology. This NT neck fits into a pocket on the body and supports the neck all the way to the 19th fret. Others only support the neck to the 14th fret. This design gives the Taylor instrument a distinctive sustain and tone that cannot be duplicated elsewhere.
Taylor also uses a pickup system that is theirs alone, called the Expressions System. This is comprised of a noiseless (humbucking) pickup embedded in the neck with two transducers wired to an onboard preamp. This produces the most accurate amplified acoustic sound available today.
As you can see, Taylor Guitars takes pride in their workmanship and they are completely manufactured in the USA with the exception of the smaller Baby and Big Baby models made in Mexico. Either way, the quality rivals that of CF Martin.
As always, there really is no "best" acoustic guitar for a single player. Instruments need to be played and felt out to achieve the right balance. Go play a couple of Taylors and see if they fit your style and are comfortable.
Prices run anywhere from $299 for the Baby Taylors to as much as $5000 for the upper crust Koa series.
TAYLOR ACOUSTIC GUITARS
ON EBAY
Taylor Acoustic Guitars
Acoustic guitars come in many shapes, sizes and colors. Brand names like Gibson, Fender and Ibanez jump to the front of the mind anytime the word "guitar" is mentioned. When it comes to acoustic guitars, there is one really standout luthier that still operates a small hand crafting factory in El Cajon, California.
Taylor Guitars was the brainchild of Bob Taylor. In 1973, when Bob was 18 years old, he worked for a guitar manufacturer called American Dream. At the time American Dream was owned by Sam Radding. In 1974, Radding decided to sell the company so Taylor partnered with a colleague, Kurt Listug and later another partner, Steve Schemmer, to buy the company. It was renamed Westland Music Company.
Today, Taylor Guitars has two factories. One in El Cajon, California where most of the instruments are made and another in Tecate, Mexico that focuses on the Baby and Big Baby models as well as the Taylor guitar cases. Currently, the company has more than 550 employees and a worldwide distribution of quality acoustic guitars.
There is also the R Taylor workshop located right next to the El Cajon factory which produces a line of ultra premium instruments. The location also allows Taylor access to high grade materials and extremely skilled artisans.
Although known for their acoustic guitars, Taylor does make acoustic/electrics and, as of 2005 a few solid body electric guitars. However, the focus is on acoustics.
Taylor manufactures several different body styles, as follows:
•Dreadnought, denoted as DN
•Grand Concert, denoted as GC
•Grand Auditorium, denoted as GA
•Grand Symphony, denoted as GS
Taylor also uses numerals to denote the series of the guitar. They currently have 3-series, 4-series, 5-series, 6-series, 7-series, 8-series, 810/910 series and the LKSM or Leo Kottke Signature series. The body code (DN, GC, GA, etc..) are combined with the series number to form the model number. So, for instance, a DN3 is a dreadnought 6 string with specific materials. A12 string of the same model would read DN3-12.
The most unique feature of the Taylor guitars is the patented bolt-on neck joint, called the NT or New Technology. This NT neck fits into a pocket on the body and supports the neck all the way to the 19th fret. Others only support the neck to the 14th fret. This design gives the Taylor instrument a distinctive sustain and tone that cannot be duplicated elsewhere.
Taylor also uses a pickup system that is theirs alone, called the Expressions System. This is comprised of a noiseless (humbucking) pickup embedded in the neck with two transducers wired to an onboard preamp. This produces the most accurate amplified acoustic sound available today.
As you can see, Taylor Guitars takes pride in their workmanship and they are completely manufactured in the USA with the exception of the smaller Baby and Big Baby models made in Mexico. Either way, the quality rivals that of CF Martin.
As always, there really is no "best" acoustic guitar for a single player. Instruments need to be played and felt out to achieve the right balance. Go play a couple of Taylors and see if they fit your style and are comfortable.
Prices run anywhere from $299 for the Baby Taylors to as much as $5000 for the upper crust Koa series.
