Lakewood vs Taylor

[Zordinary]

Hey guys, i've always wanted to have Lakewood because i like its look (mostly) and i know it sounds amaaaazzzing, but since there are no Lakewood sponsored stores any place near me. I never got to try one. I do however have many Taylor retails. I've tried many and i like some of them. If i do buy a Lakewood, it will be fully customed to my liking, but it will be similar to the M 32CP.

Can everyone just give me some opinions? Again, ive never tried Lakewoods, looked up some reviews on youtube, they were kinda bad production quality but still sounded good.

AND the reason i want these guitars is more specifically for fingerstyle playing, and i also LOVE cut ways.

PS, could you guys give me opinions of the sound of Lakewood vs Taylors (and both spruce top rosewood back/sides) (instead of criticizing would be nice :] )

[darrwhit]

Originally Posted by Zordinary

Hey guys, i've always wanted to have Lakewood because i like its look (mostly) and i know it sounds amaaaazzzing, but since there are no Lakewood sponsored stores any place near me. I never got to try one. I do however have many Taylor retails. I've tried many and i like some of them. If i do buy a Lakewood, it will be fully customed to my liking, but it will be similar to the M 32CP.

Can everyone just give me some opinions? Again, ive never tried Lakewoods, looked up some reviews on youtube, they were kinda bad production quality but still sounded good.

AND the reason i want these guitars is more specifically for fingerstyle playing, and i also LOVE cut ways.

So you've never played a Lakewood, but you like how they look? Before you have one custom made, consider where you're drawing your conclusions from with respect to sounding "amaaaazing". If this perception is based on internet posts and/marketing material, please consider that most people (myself included) think their guitars are special. It pays to think critically about where we get our information and how we draw our conclusions.

In short, that's a lot of money to spend on a brand new guitar you've only heard through your computer from some Youtube clips. What if you don't fall in love with it? Then you're taking a big hit when you try to sell it on the use market.

On the other hand, you have played some Taylors that you like. Taylors are readily available for you to try before you buy, are likely going to be available used, and will retain their value better. I don't have experiences with Lakewood, but even if I did.... I think you'd be better off buying a guitar you know you like from first hand experience.

[Zordinary]

Originally Posted by darrwhit

So you've never played a Lakewood, but you like how they look? Before you have one custom made, consider where you're drawing your conclusions from with respect to sounding "amaaaazing". If this perception is based on internet posts and/marketing material, please consider that most people (myself included) think their guitars are special. It pays to think critically about where we get our information and how we draw our conclusions.

In short, that's a lot of money to spend on a brand new guitar you've only heard through your computer from some Youtube clips. What if you don't fall in love with it? Then you're taking a big hit when you try to sell it on the use market.

On the other hand, you have played some Taylors that you like. Taylors are readily available for you to try before you buy, are likely going to be available used, and will retain their value better. I don't have experiences with Lakewood, but even if I did.... I think you'd be better off buying a guitar you know you like from first hand experience.

yea, ive done some research obviously...i meant the look as a bonus... didnt just pull out "sounds great" from thin air.I've always liked spruce tops and rosewood side/backs (most of the ones ive tried, from man brands, all sounded pretty sweet to me, but i like the lakewood design a lot). After hearing a lot of samples, i'm pretty confident that Lakewood wouldnt be a guitar that i would regret buying, but at the same time i don't have any first hand experience with it so its still a risk ( i still doubt i would regret it though). However i do like the customizations that Lakewood offers. I'm also down with Taylors, i've tried many, but they sound okay, i like the brightness a lot and i know i also wouldnt regret buying a Taylor especially because i can have first hand experience, i wouldn't go wrong. And yes, i am aware that i can customize Taylors.

PS, could you guys give me opinions of the sound of Lakewood vs Taylors (and both spruce top rosewood back/sides)

[emmsone]

Right now a friend of mine is making the exact same choice, except near us, we have several stores that stock Lakewood, and as usual the Taylors can be found almost anywhere.
What I found from our playing was that we absolutely loved the sounds coming from the dreadnaughts and my friend has now decided that his dream of a M32 is no longer the way forward for him as he also found the dreadnaughts to sound "better", especially with the way and what he plays. We both have different tastes in guitar sounds but both felt the dreads had something about the sound that was just fantastically good.
For me, the M series guitars varied too much between wood combinations, and there were a lot due to how much customisation is available. We played about 10-12 in 1 shop and 4 or 5 in another, so I can't tell you which were spruce/rosewood and if thats the one we ended up liking or not. But of all the M series we played, I did like the Sungha Jung signature above the regular M ones we played because it had a slightly different neck that felt more comfortable to me and I definitely didn't enjoy the lightly wider Ulli Bögershausen neck, but thats personal preference.
I believe there are numerous neck options, and although similar, I could definitely feel differences in all the guitars I played. Unless you get a chance to play one, I personally wouldn't be 100% confident ordering one blind because of this.

On the other hand, I've played a few Taylors too, I've never been the worlds biggest Taylor fan and it may be because I've mostly played the lower end models. I'm under the impression that they all had the same neck, but I can tell you the higher end ones definitely feel better whether they are the same or not.
I was mostly playing the 3 series and then ended up playing a few 9 series and the new 8 series. I tried to get a Grand Concert size in each (thats the size I would get for myself and when I went Taylor testing my friend wasn't with me). Started with a 3 series, felt ok, sounded decent, no complaints, but didn't blow me away. Then played the 9, GIANT leap in sound quality, but then played a new 812ce 12 fret spruce/rosewood. It might be the nicest sounding guitar I've ever heard, crystal clear highs, surprisingly good bass for the GC size and fantastically balanced sound, even with my weird random playing style, my non-guitar playing brother mentioned he couldn't believe just how much better that guitar sounded then the others I had been playing.

Anyway, back to comparing the 2, with the Lakewood the sound varied so much between each wood combo and every guitar seemed to play slightly differently, if I was to buy one, I'm not sure I could order one custom without knowing exactly which bits I wanted, i'd have to play a bunch until I felt which one was the right one make notes of the exact spec and then go order. You may have to day trip it somewhere to find one just to confirm its exactly what you want.
Personally, i'd take that Taylor 812ce 12fret all day long, every day, although my next guitar is pretty much certain to be a 00 size Stonebridge as the several that i've played are blindingly good and yet about 1/2 to 2/3rds the price of that new Taylor.

(side note, i'm very biased towards the smaller bodies and 12 fret guitars)

I hope that helps somewhat.

Dave

[Zordinary]

Hey thanks man! thats the kind of response i wanted haha!
Ive tried some 800 series, mostly one that was around i think 3.5 or 3.7 thousand dollars, i believe its the 816ce (or maybe 814ce? but i dont think 814 is that expensive) and i liked it. But i actually found it too crisp, too bright, it felt really irritating to my ear playing it :S I did enjoy a lot of the Taylor guitars though, personally i love dreadnoughts too just because im a tall guy and also their sounds appeal to me, however i've been trying guitars at smaller sizes and they sound pretty good too. Again for me i would be buying the Lakewoods blind and thats the scary factor. Personally i do like Taylors, i have one myself (a low end model though) and i have played a lot of taylors in general, they all got that bright sound, and the 800 series sounded bright and also snappy (again which i for some reason didnt like, i expected to enjoy that sound to be honest). I'll be mostly play percussive fingerstyle on this guitar, what do you think about the Lakewood sounds? could you be a bit more specific? do they sound a bit more warmer? more straight forward plainer sound? And i also prefer the narrow Taylor necks, which i have customized on my desired Lakewood (i've already made a full custom set on Lakewood, just need to purchase it if i do buy it). Thanks for the help man! If you go check these guitars out again, make sure to up date me on your impressions!

[lalowdwn1]

I've played this one, and the price is so superb that I'd forget about a custom order - https://www.shorelinemusic.com/music...lakewood-m-32/

[PTC Bernie]

For what it's worth, I've never purchased a guitar that I haven't had the chance to play first.

But that's just me.......

[jaymarsch]

My experience in playing both Lakewood and Taylor is the difference in feel in the neck. Taylor feels fast and thin. Lakewood's is wider at the nut and a bit chunkier feeling in the hand (at least for me). But if it is a custom than I would imagine you could get any spec you wanted.

Tone wise, my ear favors Lakewood, but that would probably depend on wood choice and size as well. And your ear is the one that has to be satisfied, not mine.

The Lakewood at Shoreline looks like a good prospect. Good luck with the search.

Best,
Jayne

[darrwhit]

I just re-read my post, and I didn't phrase my response very well. It wasn't my intention to sound critical but I think in quoting the OP, I may have sounded as if I was mocking the use of "amaaazing", and I'm really sorry that my post wasn't better articulated. I just wanted to publically apologize.

I hope that the guitar shopping goes well, Zordinary, and that you end up with a great guitar whichever path you choose.

[Jim]

If it were me, I would not pay a large amount of money on a guitar if I had no personal experience with the brand and what they sound and play like. You say you know Taylors and do not prefer their balanced tone and that in general you like guitars with a deeper 'richer' tone which to me sounds like you are describing Martins and Collings acoustics. My personal preference between these two is Collings for their exceptional consistent exceptional quality from one guitar to the next. Have you ever played a Collings?

[dereklaney]

I have played 5 lakewoods, and purchased two of them. And I've also played dozens of Taylors and never purchased one.

To my hands, eyes, and ears Lakewoods are significantly better instruments. Most factors I can think of -- wood, build, appearance, tone -- favors Lakewood. However, I'd admit that the Taylor necks are a little more comfortable to play.

[ewalling]

Originally Posted by PTC Bernie

For what it's worth, I've never purchased a guitar that I haven't had the chance to play first.

But that's just me.......

In the present guitar-buying world, I think that really is 'just you' (or at least you and a minority)!

[PTC Bernie]

Originally Posted by ewalling

In the present guitar-buying world, I think that really is 'just you' (or at least you and a minority)!

I know, and I accept that.

[zmf]

Originally Posted by ewalling

I think that really is 'just you' (or at least you and a minority)!

Hey -- careful -- I resemble that remark.

[Mark80]

Hi,

Both taylor and lakewood are well made guitars. If you are comparing the 814 and M32, 814 is made of Sitka spruce, hence it a more punchy tone which I like it if I am doing strumming. The brightness of 814 can be bring down by changing the Tusq saddle to bone or ivory saddle I think. M32 is of European spruce, hence it will generally have a more ringing tone and also it will have more overtones. It will sound nice for fingerstyle playing I feel.

Both are great but I think you need to try both to find out which suit your playing better.