Members Pepol Posted August 21, 2005 Members Posted August 21, 2005 Hey all, Well I was guitar shopping yesterday...what a great day. Went to my local shop (The Guitar Shop in case you live in Toronto...AMAZING)...I played lots of Taylors/Martins/Seagulls/Larivee/Guilds..etc etc. I decided I'm gonna stick with my original choice of the Taylor x14ce model. I just can't get over the tone, neck, feel and look of this guitar. Taylor did a fantasic job. The thing is...I can't decide between the 314ce and 414ce. Its basically African Mahogany vs. Ovangkol. A real tough choice. I know there are other differences in the two (ie: the rosette and binding) and PRICE. I was in the store for about two hours, the last hour pretty much being devoted to playing these two taylors. The store owner (Brent..awesome guy) sat with me, and continually handed each guitar to me so I can compare them on the spot...but I still can't decide. The sounds are definately different...love them both...mahogany more "warm" and the Ovangkol more "complex" for lack of a better word. At least thats what I found. Tough decision...especially since the 414ce is a bit more $$$. Have any advice? Sidenote: I dont know WHAT the hell some of you guys were talking about when you were describing the expression system (ES) as trash. It was probably the best sounding pickup/preamp system they had there. I thought it stayed FAR truer to the tone of the guitar then any of the Fishman's they had there...including the Prefix etc etc. It was a pleasure to play, no hickups or anything. Maybe the newer ones are more reliable? Who knows...Either way...I've decided on one of these two guitars...Larivee's where nice too...Martins in the same price range were not even comparable in sound or playability IMO...the upper end martins were nice...but nothing in the 1200-1800 Cnaadian range. Let me know! Any input would be great.
Members riffmeister Posted August 22, 2005 Members Posted August 22, 2005 if you liked 'em both equally well, get the less expensive one!
Members Mac_C Posted August 23, 2005 Members Posted August 23, 2005 I can't understand how someone plays a Taylor and a Larrivee and picks the Taylor.
Members IbanezShred Posted August 23, 2005 Members Posted August 23, 2005 Well I work at a guitar shop the specializes in taylor, martin, larivee, collings etc. And I have played just about every highend acoustic we have and I prefer taylors over larivee, that being said larivee makes a great guitar but i dont like their necks and they are too dark sounding overall for my tastes. I prefer the sparkely airy sound you get from taylors. Also I will say that larivee's have the best bass response of just about any make that i have played personally.
Members t60 fan Posted August 23, 2005 Members Posted August 23, 2005 I was looking at both 3- and 4-series Taylors last fall, and ended up with something much better than I dreamed of. I bought a 314-CE L7, which is a 2004 Fall Limited. The back and sides are solid Tazmanian Blackwood, a.k.a. Black Koa. It is of the same family of wood as Koa, and sounds similar in that it has brilliant highs and mids, but has much better bass than Koa to my ears. It handles strumming better than other -14's I've heard. Truly a versatile guitar with a unique voice. And unbelievably beautiful grain, highly figured with a "3 dimensional" quality to it as you look at it from different angles. I paid $1399 for it at Wildwood Music in Coshocton, Ohio and I wouldn't sell it for $2000.
Members knockwood Posted August 24, 2005 Members Posted August 24, 2005 Tried a 310 Ltd Blackwood back in January, I think. Beautiful guitar. Would have walked out with it but they wanted $1200 and at the time I was short about... $1200... I bought a 310 today and am completely smitten. Freakin' thing is absolutely flawless. Have spent as much time staring at it as playing it over the last several hours. Re. Larrivee, I love everything about them except the way their necks feel in my hand. Taylor's necks are, along with Guild's, the most comfortable I've ever encountered. All a matter of individual comfort. Also tried a 314 today that was fantastic. I can't wait to get those deadass Elixirs off my 310 and see what it sounds like with some real strings on it.
Members IbanezShred Posted August 24, 2005 Members Posted August 24, 2005 I have a 310 blackwood, I absolutely love it! I'm just a sucker for koa figure I guess
Members Pepol Posted August 24, 2005 Author Members Posted August 24, 2005 knockwood couldnt have said it more perfectly. The Larivee's sure sounded nice...but I really didnt like the neck. Nothing beats a Taylor or Guild neck. My buddy has a Guild cutaway model...they dont make that particular model anymore (was around 3K USD)...awesome neck though, maple back. Regarldess, I am leaning a bit more towards the 414ce. I really liked the Ovangkol....but up here in Canada its aorund 300-400 more dolalrs. UGH. And about the L7...I would love to own one of those...can't find them anymore though unfortunately. I went to another guitar shop a couple of days ago, played the 314ce they had there...what a difference. This one sounded so thin in comparison to the other one I played, and was set up horribly. The other one had super low action, very fast....this one...horrible. Can there really be that much of a difference between two of the same guitars!?!?! Jeeze.
Members fantasticsound Posted August 25, 2005 Members Posted August 25, 2005 I don't know why, but I've checked out Taylors, Martins, Gibsons, Larivees, Bougouis, Breedlove, McPhersons, Santa Cruz and many other boutique acoustic guitars and, frankly, not one of them is consistantly better than Taylor, IMO. More often than not I find the mid-level Taylors suit my style better than anything from the boutique manufacturers. I was really psyched to play many of these instruments, but ultimately disappointed in the tone. And it's not like the models were poorly kept or maintained. Several of these I first auditioned at Gruhn Guitar and others at the Gibson Showcase. (They stock Santa Cruz and a few others, in addition to the Gibson Montanas.) Larrivee makes wonderful guitars, but they haven't impressed me above the Taylors I've liked.
Members min7b5 Posted August 25, 2005 Members Posted August 25, 2005 Originally posted by fantasticsound I don't know why, but I've checked out Taylors, Martins, Gibsons, Larivees, Bougouis, Breedlove, McPhersons, Santa Cruz and many other boutique acoustic guitars and, frankly, not one of them is consistantly better than Taylor...... Ditto "Best" tone is subjective. For whatever reason my humble 514 is the holy grail to my ears. This is good becasue I can't afford an Olson anyway.
Members t60 fan Posted August 27, 2005 Members Posted August 27, 2005 I really, really, really love 514's (with Cedar top). If I hadn't found "that one" 314 Limited (Blackwood), I was going to buy a 514. I figured I could still get a 514 once the funds were replenished (sure hope she-that-controls-the-pursestrings doesn't see this), but finding the L7 later would be a problem. I find the mellow-yet-somehow-sparkley sound of the 514 irresistable every trip to GC or SA I make.
Members kindbud Posted August 30, 2005 Members Posted August 30, 2005 I have a 814 ce es and I've played many guitars and will continue tiring them all , but I haven
Members Pepol Posted August 31, 2005 Author Members Posted August 31, 2005 Well I finally decided. I went into a few more music shops yesterday. One of them had both the 314ce and 414ce in stock. I got to play them in a quiet room (unlike last time) and noticed a bigger difference in the tones then before. I've decided on the 414ce. Its gonna cost me around $2150 canadian...now to get some funds together...Thanks for all the input guys.
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