Anyone held a Taylor solid body yet?

[LoveBandit]

http://www.taylorelectricguitars.com/

http://news.harmony-central.com/Newp...dy-Prices.html

LB.

[Sage]

Haven't messed with one firsthand, but all of the tones I've heard out of the intro videos on their website sound like absolute ass.

[Kap'n]

[troll]Unless their electrics are better than their acoustics, I don't really have any interest. [/troll]

[Gravity Jim]

A couple years, I think it's been, since I got a huge case of GAS for a Taylor acoustic.... mostly because they look great and because Snuffy Walden endorses them.

I played 20 of them, ranging from the $1,200 neighborhood up into their 4K models. Guess what? Not one of them sounded as good as my broken-in MIA Washburn Cumberland (the guitar I thought I needed to replace to sound more like Snuffy). Right down the line my $800 Washburn was louder, sustained chords better, was more balanced across a much wider response.

Since they I've figured out that Sunffy Walden makes that sound with his hands. It's all in his bare-fingered picking, the way he slides into notes, and some very nice mic preamps.

[Rickenjangle]

Nope.


I love my Taylor Acoustic. And the T5 Thinline is loved very much by a couple of my friends.

[rudutch]

I like them but not enough to part with my Martin DR

[daddyo]

I assume we are talking about the Taylor solid body here, not the acoustics.

Seems OK but I can't help think they are reinventing the wheel. For instance:

All that fuss about a perfect neck joint and it is still a bolt on. I know from a technical stand point there is nothing wrong with a bolt on and no doubt Taylor's is a work of engineering genius - but viscerally, when I spend big $$$ on a guitar that looks like a Les Paul, I want a glued together set neck. All Taylor has to do is lose the bolt hole and squirt in some glue.

Special super duper Taylor pickups. The T5 electric pups were dogs and I bet these new ones will get tossed in favour of boutique pups. Even Edwards can smell the coffee and gives you USA Seymour Duncans.

Wood choices. The guitar is sapele. To me, viscerally, I think sapele is for more budget guitars. Maybe I'm thick but I want real mahogany from the Americas, not an equivalent. Plus the tops are thinner veneers. Sure they look cool but for the money, I want a real piece of wood.

I have no doubt there is a technical explanation for each of my rants but my gut tells me to buy a SC245 for about the same money.

[Joobsauce]

I can't comment about their solid body's.

But for their acoustics, I've heard them, but it's just not good enough to part with my 68-69 Silvertone acoustic. It's just got a tone that no other guitar I've played or heard can come close too. Very dark room, bassy tone instead of the trebly sound most other "high dollar" acoustics sound like.

Plus, it's got 38-39 years of mojo to go with it. Dings, scratches, scuffs, and a slightly bowed neck. But I love it to death, definitely my favorite guitar, even over my strat. I should just go pick up another one on ebay for 1-200 dollars, just to convert to electric strings and put in a strat neck pickup.... oh well eventually.

[Cogs]

That Taylor solidbody looks just like a Les Paul. Gibson should sue.

[cooltone]

I think that the Taylor solid bodies look great. Very classy and classic design. I'd love to try one. (I think more color/ finish options would've been cool, though.)

[hippiebob01]

Rickenjangle, thank you. Have you seen her without the curls?

http://imgsrv.us99.com/image/wusn/Us...aylor_hair.JPG

I would have asked her to prom last year.

Also, I agree that the clips of the new electric sound like complete ass. I get the same tones out of my $30 Harmony from JC Penney.

[Offshore Angler]

Man, it sounds like poop on the video! What were they thinking?

[trevorus]

I think part of the problem with the sound on the video is the guys are using excessive gain. They need to run it through a tube screamer and a DRRI or something of the sort. Even a Vox AC30. If you're going for high gain, you're probably not going to buy a Taylor.

[Joobsauce]

I'm surprised, it can pull off a good ibanez/washburn shred tone in this video quite well-
http://www.taylorelectricguitars.com...ault.aspx?id=5

and here's your tone for you, it actually sounds good. I might have to pick up some of those pickups to put in the next guitar I build.
http://www.taylorelectricguitars.com...ult.aspx?id=13

I'm surprised.

[NeoFauve]

I played the $1200 white one, w/the mini-HB's for a decent while, through a Vox AVT-something.

Granted, this was in GC- I liked some of the sounds quite a bit. I didn't quite have a handle on what each switch position meant.
The feel of the neck (thin & flattish) was especially uninspiring for me. That's kind of how I feel about most of their acoustics too.

Nicely put together, some novel techniques (neck joint & bridge design), but they don't excite me.

[NeoFauve]

That 2nd clip is way more informative.

Joob- It'd probably be tough to purchase Taylor's p'ups a la carte anytime soon, if at all.
If you like how they sound, check out other guitars with mini's.
Their wiring scheme may be unique, but they pretty much do what Gibson/Epi/SD mini-HB's do, or Filtertrons. GFS's take on F'trons might be the most affordable way get that kind of crisp HB thing.

A number of Reverend guitars are available with their variation on a F'tron too, and the necks are much more Fenderesque than this Taylor. Less expensive too.

[CzarSketch]

i'm pretty curious about this guitar... Taylor is anything if not innovative and I loved the T5... I think this is a lot more evolutionary than revolutionary as the press releases claim. gotta get my hands on one to play it...