Taylor 814ce-N Review

Love this guitar

More I play it , the better I like it. The tone gets better as I refine my technique,

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Hard to describe.

I've been playing, casually, for over forty years, started playing classical and stayed with classical guitars up until a few years ago when I switched to mostly steel sting. I had a Taylor 414CE-R that I played almost exclusively for two years until my old classical guitar started calling me. Long story short, I prefer the feel and dynamic range of nylon strings over steel, however… read more the neck profile and easy access to the higher frets make the Taylor far more enjoyable to play than my traditional, Spanish-made classical guitar. When I started playing the 814CE-N, I quickly decided that would be the only guitar for me until I finally shuffle off this mortal coil; I sold my 414CE-R and my Manuel Contreras and never looked back. The guitar is, I would say, understated and very elegant with the lovely maple bindings off-setting the rosewood sides; this guitar is not flashy, even the inlays are very restrained, it is simplistic beauty. The feel of the guitar is amazing, being a nylon string it feels much lighter than a steel string and the Grand Auditorium body almost melts into your lap. The sound is very hard to describe, and of course highly subjective and player-centric. I play finger style with a fairly light touch, the guitar's responsiveness is amazing. From the player's side of the experience, it is pure joy to play. On a side note, the service from Sweetwater is amazing! I ordered this guitar on a Friday afternoon and had it in my hands Saturday morning! Plus, they threw in the usual small bag of candy. Special shout out to my sales engineer, Cassie, great to work with.

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Addictive

First a shout out to Dustin Keesbury. Always available to guide me through all the products I buy from Sweetwater. I have owned this 814ceN for several months now and have literally become addicted to it. I had been working toward compleat finger style picking for a few years on my Taylor 416ce and wanted to move to a nylon. I have not hardly set it down. It hasn't been back… read more in its case since I got it. Ditto everything thing else you see in the other ratings here. I will add that the Bose PA systems are a perfect match for reproducing their beautiful tone. Thanks again Dustin for your help with that. I will be calling soon as I have my eye on the new Taylor 814ce as well!

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Taylor 814ce-N, Mellow, Smooth and Beautiful

Lifting up the case lid for the first time I beheld a beautiful work of craftsmanship. The luthiers at Taylor sure know how to form a guitar to perfection. Cradled perfectly in it's red felt case I had to slowly ease it straight out. Beautiful finish, solid construction, masterfully made. Well, the real test was yet to be had. I pulled up a stool and readied the guitar for… read more it's first (by me anyway) play - "Misty" in Eb. Right off I could tell I now owned an amazing guitar. The bass response went through my chest and the high end melody rang out pitch perfect, and oh so smooth. It was just what I wanted. The intonation at the upper registers are amazing. Remember this is a nylon string instrument and those who play traditional classical guitars know all to well that challenge. As you can tell I am very pleased with my Taylor 814cw-N. As of this writing I now have a good 80 hours on it and am enjoying it very much. Looking forward to 1000 hours and beyond. Time to put it back in the case for now (I love how it just squeaks in there...). Thanks also to Kevin at Sweetwater and the Sweetwater team for the guitar inspection, hassle free purchase and delivery.

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Piece of Art

Just received my guitar today, it's absolutely the smoothest classical I've ever played. Arrived in flawless condition thanks to the team at Sweetwater. Couldn't be happier with my decision to stick with Taylor. Thanks again to Dan Werkhoven for making sure everything went smoothly with this purchase.

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