From product development to the production floor, it was a busy summer on the Taylor campus. Alongside our standard production models, we’ve been crafting other exciting new designs all season long — truthfully, all year long — following a diverse rollout of releases across the first part of the year with a fresh batch of inspiring new models. Here’s a selection of our latest offerings.
Builder’s Edition 814ce Blacktop
This sleek refinement of a Taylor classic is as elegant as evening formalwear.
Our cover story in the summer edition of Wood&Steel announced the first-ever Builder’s Edition version of the 814ce, our flagship rosewood/spruce Grand Auditorium guitar. That evolution came nearly a decade after master designer Andy Powers reworked Bob Taylor’s original 814ce design, refining virtually every material component of the guitar as a demonstration of our envelope-pushing pursuit of acoustic performance.
With the Builder’s Edition model, Andy embraced the challenge of further elevating a guitar that was already viewed by generations of Taylor players as a quintessential modern acoustic-electric voice (particularly for lovers of rosewood guitars) and a remarkably versatile instrument for virtually any musical application.
Advances in our tooling and manufacturing capabilities enabled Andy and the Taylor design team to level up to the mission of our Builder’s Edition standards: to enhance the overall playing experience in feel and sound. Ergonomic refinements include a beveled mahogany armrest, which offers a smooth surface for the picking arm on the guitar’s lower bout, and a matching beveled cutaway, which provides a comfortable anchor point for the fretting hand when accessing the guitar’s upper register. Chamfered body edges and subtle body sculpting round out the comfort-focused Builder’s Edition upgrades. (If you’re curious about the level of woodworking craftsmanship that goes into our ultra-premium guitars, see our video spotlight this issue on the art of making an armrest.)
One other noteworthy design detail was the introduction of a four-piece Adirondack spruce top. Used for acoustic guitar soundboards prior to World War II, Adirondack is beloved for its dynamic range (especially its volume ceiling), sweet midrange and harmonic detail. Because today’s generation of Adirondack spruce trees tends to be younger and smaller than those of past eras, we chose a four-piece configuration that requires a higher degree of woodworking craftsmanship (which we’re happy to do). It also offers a glimpse into the future of guitar making as Sitka spruce trees used for tops are increasingly smaller in diameter than the old-growth (500-600 year-old) giants of yore. You can read more about the switch to the four-piece Adirondack top in last issue’s cover story and our deep dive into the spruce-cutting process with our wood supplier, Pacific Rim Tonewoods.
This fall’s blacktop riff on the Builder’s Edition 814ce is largely an aesthetic variation, but one that dramatically transforms he visual presentation of the guitar. It boasts the same comfort-enhancing touches as its natural-finished counterpart, including a stunning full-body gloss finish that sets the 814ce apart from the rest of the Builder’s Edition family (the glossy black top is an especially luxurious touch) and the alluring Kona edgeburst color treatment for the rosewood back and sides. Other appointments include premium Gotoh 510 tuners in antique gold with a super-precise 21:1 gear ratio, a single-ring green abalone rosette, a rosewood pickguard, and Element inlays in mother-of-pearl.
You’ll find the Builder’s Edition 814ce Blacktop online at TaylorGuitars.com and at authorized Taylor dealers.
Builder’s Edition 814ce Blacktop Specs
» Top Wood: Adirondack Spruce
» Back/Side Wood: Indian Rosewood
» Neck: Neo-Tropical Mahogany
» Fretboard: West African Crelicam Ebony
» Bracing: V-Class
» Electronics: ES2
» Strings: D’Addario XS Coated Phosphor Bronze, Light
» Case: Deluxe Hardshell, Brown
212ce/222ce-K DLX
Spruce-top and koa-top Grand Concert models join the 200 Series.
With an array of tonewood pairings, body shape options and aesthetic treatments, our 200 Series boasts a stunning variety of possibilities for guitar players of every style and skill level. Matching solid-wood tops with various layered-wood backs and sides within the series gives us the latitude to add new model options on a regular basis. This summer, we expanded our 200 Series palette with a pair of new Grand Concert guitars: the 212ce and the 222ce-K DLX.
The 212ce features a solid Sitka spruce top paired with layered Indian rosewood back and sides. Together with the compact contours of the Grand Concert body shape, that wood combination delivers a clear, balanced tone with an articulate character that will be especially enticing to fingerstyle players or flatpickers who like to deploy single-note lead lines along with strummed chords. The smaller body serves up a comfortable, intimate feel and can be especially appealing to players of smaller stature. Onboard ES2 electronics deliver faithful plugged-in tone, and the patented Taylor neck ensures smooth, relaxed fretting all the way up the fretboard. Clean appointments include white binding, Italian acrylic dot inlays and a thin matte finish. The 212ce ships with a structured gig bag for storage and transportation.
212ce Specs
» Top Wood: Sitka Spruce
» Back/Side Wood: Layered Indian Rosewood
» Neck: Neo-Tropical Mahogany
» Fretboard: West African Crelicam Ebony
» Electronics: ES2
» Strings: D’Addario XS Coated Phosphor Bronze, Light
» Case: Structured Gig Bag
This Grand Concert acoustic-electric is crafted with beautiful Hawaiian koa and appointed with aesthetic upgrades worthy of our Deluxe moniker. Layered koa matched with a beautifully grained solid koa top deliver a bold, punchy midrange response with clear treble notes and a focused, woody character. Hawaiian koa’s tendency to mature with time and play means that this model’s tone will grow warmer and sweeter as the wood ages, promising years of evolving musical inspiration across genres and playing styles thanks to the guitar’s highly versatile sound.
Like its 212ce counterpart, the 222ce-K DLX features a slightly narrower nut width of 1-11/16 inches, complementing the accommodating feel of the compact body shape with a highly responsive, easy-playing feel for your fretting hand. Visual details for this deluxe model include a stunning full-body gloss finish with a shaded edgeburst treatment, black binding, a black pickguard, a single-ring rosette in Italian acrylic, Small Diamond fretboard inlays and gold hardware. This model also includes onboard ES2 electronics and ships with a deluxe brown hardshell case.
222ce-K DLX Specs
» Top Wood: Hawaiian Koa
» Back/Side Wood: Layered Hawaiian Koa
» Neck: Neo-Tropical Mahogany
» Fretboard: West African Crelicam Ebony
» Electronics: ES2
» Strings: D’Addario XS Coated Phosphor Bronze, Light
» Case: Deluxe Hardshell Case, Brown
AD26e Baritone-6 Special Edition
Looking for a different acoustic voice? Try exploring the rich and resonant tonal palette of a baritone guitar.
Fans of our baritone guitars will be pleased to know that there’s a new model heading to stores this fall. The AD26e Baritone-6 Special Edition arrives on the heels of the recent 326ce Baritone-8, complementing its 8-string partner with a more traditional six-string configuration with a B-to-B tuning.
Like the 8-string, this edition features our Grand Symphony body style, but in its traditional form (without the soundport cutaway that’s built into other GS models). The body’s full-figured dimensions and robust acoustic “lung capacity” lend themselves to a baritone voicing, and together with its longer 27-inch scale length and lower tuning, deliver a uniquely rich bass-forward sound with a deep register that opens a whole new swath of musical terrain for players to explore.
The AD26e Baritone-6 follows the distilled, essentials-first philosophy of our American Dream Series, crafted with all-solid sapele back and sides topped with mahogany. The result is a focused sound with a smooth attack thanks to mahogany’s natural compression effect when used as a soundboard. For this model, we’ve topped our easy-playing neck with a fretboard of eucalyptus and finished the body with a shaded edgeburst and super-thin matte sheen. And as part of the American Dream Series, it’s our most accessibly priced baritone ever.
Though a baritone guitar may seem like a specialty instrument with limited practical musical applications, the reality is that the AD26e, like its 8-string sibling, can serve many purposes for a creative player. Tuned a fourth lower than a standard guitar, the AD26e opens up a lower range for vocalists who struggle to hit the higher notes often demanded by songs composed for standard tuning. You can return a baritone guitar to standard tuning by placing a capo on the fifth fret.
To learn more about the varied musical applications of both 6- and 8-string baritone acoustic guitars, read Shawn Persinger’s “Baritone Basics,” which originally ran in our summer 2016 issue.
AD26e Baritone-6 Special Edition Specs
» Top Wood: Neo-Tropical Mahogany
» Back/Side Wood: Sapele
» Neck: Neo-Tropical Mahogany
» Fretboard: Eucalyptus
» Electronics: ES2
» Strings: Elixir Baritone Set
» Case: AeroCase, Gray
T5z-12 Classic DLX Special Edition
This 12-string T5z is reverse-strung and comes in Black, Arctic White or Cherry Sunburst.
A few years back, when master builder Andy Powers was designing the acoustic 12-string Builder’s Edition 652ce, he made an intriguing choice: to offer it with a reverse-strung setup — featuring the heavier fundamental string on the top of each octave string rather than the traditional pairing with the octave course on top. The reverse-strung setup is perhaps best associated with Rickenbacker electric 12-strings, notably embraced and popularized by the Byrds, the Beatles and Mike Campbell from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.
This fall, we’ve decided to bring the reverse-strung setup to the electric side of our line with a trio of special-edition 12-string T5z guitars. The sonic effect of the string setup is to emphasize more of the fundamental note since players typically have a more powerful downstroke. The result is a warmer, punchier response compared to the high-frequency octave jangle that you’ll hear from other 12-string guitars. The T5z-12 Classic Deluxe Special Edition, as we’re calling these models, will be available in a limited run in three striking colors: Black, Arctic White and Cherry Sunburst.
As with all T5z models, these are hollowbody hybrid electric-acoustic guitars, boasting our proprietary three-pickup electronics controlled by five-way switching. With a visible bridge humbucker, a concealed neck humbucker and an acoustic body sensor on board, these guitars allow the player to access a highly diverse range of tonal flavors ranging from mellow acoustic sounds to high-octane electric tones. In between, you’ll find an array of blended sounds mixing both acoustic and electric tone profiles, which can be further dialed in with two tone knobs and a volume control positioned above the fretboard extension.
In terms of playing comfort, these guitars feature a nut width of 1-11/16” and a scale length of 24-7/8”, which combine for a remarkably relaxed fretting feel that makes the neck easy to navigate for players of all skill levels. The 12-inch fretboard radius offers a pleasingly accommodating contour for everything from open chords to arpeggios and more complex phrasings.
If you’ve been keeping up with Wood&Steel or the Taylor universe in general, you might know that Andy recently updated the T5z design with an Urban Ash body, repositioned tone controls and a single F-hole compared to the two that have typically been featured in these hollowbody guitars. For the T5z-12 Classic DLX Special Edition, we’ve opted to retain the “traditional” T5z construction, which features both F-holes and the sapele body that have been standard in these guitars for many years. All three are topped with neo-tropical mahogany and are detailed with black fretboard binding, nickel hardware, Small Diamond fretboard inlays in Italian acrylic and a full-body gloss finish. Each guitar ships with a hardshell case.
You’ll find the T5z-12 Classic DLX Special Edition at TaylorGuitars.com and authorized Taylor dealers this fall.
