low-end Taylor?

[traidma]

Anybody has experience with the Taylor Babies or 100, 200 series?
I'm too poor to buy a more expensive, but next week's salary should be OK with one of the cheaper Taylors...

I tried the Mahagony Baby at my local Guitar Center and it sounded pretty nice.
Anybody else knows to comment on them?

 

[philpereira]

my good friend owns a 110 and it is quite literally the best acoustic guitar ive ever played. it has a nice balance of low, mids and high sounds. a lot of acoustics i've played in the past sound like crap, and i've played some decent cheaper acoustics, like the washburn d100 that i own. but the taylor 110 blew them all away. i haven't played a higher model of taylor, but i can't imagine you could go wrong with a "cheaper" version.

 

[lesterpaul]

i have a big baby taylor and i love it it's skinny neck fits my shorty fingers..lol...but it has a nice sound for 300$s including tax, i didn't go wrong, i think it sounds good recorded too ...

 

[traidma]

Keeping my eyes on few of big babies on ebay myself. hope it'll be a worthy purchase

 

[onlyfingers]

Not for me...

After hearing Ruthie Foster at a house concert a couple of months ago, I went to GC to try some Taylors. She plays one, and gets a great deal of great sound out of it. Some soft and sublte, but most of it up tempo and hard-strummed.

I was up at about $3,500 (710?) before I found one that had great sound and played right. There is no way I would take one of Taylor's bottom-of-the-line guitars home. Now, I'm not going to pretend that spending 45 minutes with four Taylors in GC's "inner sanctum" gives me the right to comment when you asked to hear from people who have experience. Some of the Taylors I tried at GC had oxidized strings. One had very bad action. Since I am not looking to buy, I did not ask them to put new strings on the instruments and set them up properly (fix the action). But next time I do buy, I will check out a few stores, and will ask for fresh strings if I think the guitar needs them.

Also, even though you have your eyes on the 100 and 200, check out the next couple of models above. That may help you decide whether to buy now or save some more.

 

[traidma]

That's interesting to hear.. yea, usually I never try guitars above $700-800 cause I know I could never afford them.. So, I'm just trying to get the best for the available resources.. I'm sure though that $3500 Taylor sounds better than a $400 one.. too bad I dont have the money.

Thanks for sharing!

 

[Hard2Hear]

Well I own a $3200 Taylor, and I think the lower lines sound pretty darn good. Especially for the price. In fact, I'm going to pick up a baby myself cause I'm headed back out on the road. I like to have a small guitar right with me when traveling, and the babies sound the best of all the travel guitars. And I have played them all for extended periods.

I think the 214 is the standout in the budget guitars. Then again, I have seen 314's used go for less than a new 214, and the 3 series shares all the same construction as any Taylor at any price. Just different woods and finish.

I HAVE to make a comment though. If anyone played a Taylor anywhere that didn't "play right", you can be 100% sure that its the fault of the current owner of the guitar. GC does not maintain their guitars at all. They let any kid who wants to come along wank on them and destroy them, then still sell them for new prices. Try going to a store that takes care of their stock, and you will find every Taylor that leaves the factory plays as good as any guitar out there. Their consistancy is one of their most valuable assets.

H2H

 

[traidma]

Thanks a lot! That totally made me confident about buying one.

Hows the sound of the small Baby compared to Big Baby? I dont really know which to get. I'm also travelling a lot.. since my real home is in Europe.. so I thought maybe the small one would be easier to transport..

I did try both of them at GC but that was for only like 30 mins.

 

[Hard2Hear]

...I looked it up and the list on my Taylor now is actually 3800. ha.

The Big Baby is nearly full sized, and is tuned the same as a normal guitar. You tune the Baby higher, like to A, if I remember. Thats the big difference. The Big Baby is a legitimate guitar. I have seen them in recording studios I have been in as a quick grab and go guitar. They record well for some things. Its got more sound cause its tuned lower and has a fuller body. The baby is really compact, though. So if you need something just to play on in tight spots, its a good choice.

H2H

 

[KKM1]

Before i bought my Taylor 110 i spent an hour and a half in the acoustic room at sam ash and tried every guitar up to $1300 price range and the 110 sounded the best by FAR. The Martins all sounded dull. The Taylor's sound "sparkles."

 

[philpereira]

Before i bought my Taylor 110 i spent an hour and a half in the acoustic room at sam ash and tried every guitar up to $1300 price range and the 110 sounded the best by FAR. The Martins all sounded dull. The Taylor's sound "sparkles."

That's probably the best description of the 110 sound I've ever seen. It certainly does sparkle.

 

[lesterpaul]

the key ...

to my post was the 300 bucks, i wanted one to play that sounded good on the cheap, i don't want to come off like "my 300$ guitar is just as good as those 4 grand guitars" people but to be honest i played the big guitars and for me and my money and style (mostly rock and country) it's more than i'll ever need....i think they describe the "big baby" as a 15/16ths size guitar, overall it averages about 1/2 inch smaller in it's dimensions, i think it's 1/2 in. thinner in the body and mayb 3/4 in. thinner at the width of the body it may be the other way around i used to know for sure ...me personally the baby would be good to buy and keep for collecting, or to start out a child with a good guitar ( a responsible child) i think most will be happier with the big baby ....just my 2 cents

 

[traidma]

Just wondering.. would any acoustic's case would be ok for Big Baby?

 

[sile2001]

Just wondering.. would any acoustic's case would be ok for Big Baby?

Not any acoustic case. If you try to fit a regular acoustic case to a Big Baby, check the fit VERY closely. Even though it is only 1/16 smaller than a full dreadnaught, that 1/16 is enough to let it rattle around in most cases. A gig bag might be the best option (actually new Big Baby's should come with a Taylor gig bag).

 

[traidma]

Thanks!

yea, decided to go for the mahagony Baby since it will be easier to travel with.
Now I just gotta wait for my pay.. should come soon

 

[sile2001]

Thanks!

yea, decided to go for the mahagony Baby since it will be easier to travel with.
Now I just gotta wait for my pay.. should come soon

Well, if you're interested... I'm assuming you're talking about the regular Baby and not the Big Baby since you didn't mention big in this last post. If that's the case, I have a used mahogany Baby with it's gig bag in (quite literally) brand new condition, and I'm sure I can give you a better price than the store would. Let me know if you're interested and I can get you pictures, serial number, all that good stuff.

 

[traidma]

sile2001, sent you a PM.

 

[lesterpaul]

Not any acoustic case. If you try to fit a regular acoustic case to a Big Baby, check the fit VERY closely. Even though it is only 1/16 smaller than a full dreadnaught, that 1/16 is enough to let it rattle around in most cases. A gig bag might be the best option (actually new Big Baby's should come with a Taylor gig bag).

i was very surprised at the padding and quality of their gig bags, with the embriodery on it...better than some cases i've seen ...

 

[traidma]

Hey, sile2001, did you get my PM?

 

[sile2001]

Hey, sile2001, did you get my PM?

Got it and just sent you a reply.