Taylor 312ce 12-Fret V-Class Review

Everything you've heard is true.

Ok so like every Taylor, this guitar is awesome. The neck is so easy to play. The body is comfortable. It looks better in person. On that though, the descriptions talk about the guitar has satin finish and it does, except the spruce top (on mine, the top is most definitely gloss). What makes it special is how big the sound is for what feels like a small guitar. The 12 fret… read more design makes the cowboy chords even more comfortable (at the expense of losing the 19 and 20th frets, which I don't ever play when on acoustic). That pushes the bridge back and just like the big reviewers say, the bass is massively improved (sometimes it's almost too much). I love concert bodies, so much more comfortable to play. This is the loudest concert size guitar I've ever played. I'm not sure if it's the v bracing or not (first time with V brace) but the sustain on this guitar is surprising. Notes will ring out for days and often times the unplugged guitar almost sounds like it has an active plate reverb. The ES2 pups are pretty good

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Great guitar

I purchased this guitar upon the recommendation of a friend, when I mentioned wanting a 12 fret and a smaller bodied guitar than my Martin hd35. I have a 12 fret Alvarez, which is a fine little blues box, but wanted something to bridge the difference between the two. I had purchased a Martin gpc 16e, my first Martin,prior to the 35. All are great guitars with their own unique qualities.… read more Wanting an all solid woods guitar and my budget, the Taylor was chosen upon the recommendation of an owner and Mason Bouvier of Sweetwater. Initially I thought there was an issue with the faulty tone controls when initially plugged into a pignose hog battery amp. The volume produced excessive static and the bass, treble had no effect? Plugging into my Fishman artist acoustic amp proved that the issue was with the hog,which works fine with electric guitars. I don't have the technical knowledge to understand that, but I'm certain that Mason will have the ability to explain the situation. Thanks to Mason, Sweetwater, the techs, Chuck, and all involved in the organization for their commitment to excellence and and the no interest payment plan which makes quality instruments available to everyone.! I highly recommend this guitar to finger pickers, light flat pickers, it is not not a heavy bass boomer, but it is so balanced in the sound the Martin boom and volume is not missed unless you're picking with other dreadnought sized guitars. Amped or miced it holds it's own. It should be suitable for most acoustic situations. It does what it was designed to do, very comfortable body, neck size, stays in tune, beautiful finish, unless you're"muscle memory" trained, you may miss the fret markers on the fretboard? If you're mostly hard driven bluegrass, rock, or country, this is probably not the best choice, but it's not a dreadnought so that's how it works! Enjoy!!

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Another Taylor Another Winner

I've never played a Taylor I haven't liked, but recently I started downsizing my guitars for pain and comfort reasons due to getting older. I purchased a 712ce close to a year ago but wasn't sure I wanted to try a 12 fret at that price point having never played one. So I took the plunge with a more modestly priced 312ce 12 fret and I'm very happy with it. I was afraid trying… read more a 12 fret might make me want to switch out my 14 fret guitars but so far that's not the case so the 712ce stays. The comfort level of this 312ce 12 fret is significant and I believe the bridge placement being closer to the middle of the soundboard allows this guitar to punch well above it's weight. I'm sure the V class bracing is doing it's part here too. It definitely makes some songs I play much easier to play with the nut being closer to me. I don't dread playing a barred F chord anymore. I sold a 316 to help fund this guitar so you can't go much further in the opposite direction than that. Sure the bass response isn't what the 316 was but I never feel like I'm losing out in that department. The bass is strong for a guitar of this size and is actually more articulate, which I like a lot. It's nice having two very similar guitars physically, that sound completely different from each other but also sound exceptional on their own. It's fun having the different sound and functionality in two different guitars that make it hard to choose which one to reach for. Before I end this review I should mention that I've switched out the Elixir strings on all of my guitars to Ernie Ball aluminum bronze and I really think this is what Taylor should be shipping their guitars with. These strings bring every guitar I've tried them on to a new level of sonic performance and I'm finding they last almost as long as Elixirs for five to six dollars cheaper per set. Don't get me wrong, all Taylors I've bought and played sound great with Elixirs on them but the Aluminum Bronze bring these guitars to a whole new level. I highly recommend this guitar and it won't be my last 12 fret.

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Great comfortable guitar

I am pretty new to guitar and have been playing a used dreadnought guitar i bought which was nice. However, unless you were sitting in the right chair it was uncomfortable to play. This 312ce 12 fret fits the bill perfectly. Small enough to play on the couch but it still has great sound. I look forward to playing this guitar for years to come. The service at Sweetwater is great.… read more Cole was very helpful in ordering and he even called a week or so later to make sure everything was good with the guitar. Who does that anymore these days? Cole and Sweetwater, that's who. Only problem buying a nice new Taylor is now i want another one.

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Best guitar I’ve ever held

This guitar feels like it was crafted for me personally. The slightly smaller hand-feel and the easier chord formations combined with the expected consistency of Taylor's guitars just make this the most playable thing I've ever seen in my life. This is my third time buying from Josh Strid and evening during this terrible pandemic he was able to respond to me while working from home… read more from his work cell phone. Very cool. Thanks again.

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