Bought a Taylor 214ce-k DLX before Christmas - Having buyers remorse

[Black-n-Nan]

Very strange, do not see any signs of glue inside.

For me it best sounding guitar I have ever played. Just replace saddle and bridge pins from Bob Colosi . And installed armrest from John Pearse.

[anjoga]

Originally Posted by jklotz

I tend to agree with Bob w. A guitar needs a while to settle in and stop trying to still be a tree.



That being said, are you a pick guy or fingers? The reason I ask is if you are using a thin pick, do yourself a favor and try some different heavy picks. You'd be amazed at the difference it makes.

I have many varieties of picks in all shapes and thicknesses. One day the heavy picks sound great, the next they are dull and thuddy and the thinner picks sound better. Rinse, repeat on a weekly basis.

[hermithollow]

You might have buyers remorse because you paid full retail, but it could be worse - You could have seller's remorse because you lost your shirt when you sold it.
It looks like a pretty nice guitar, and that little bit of glue squeeze out is a non issue. At this point (where your head is at) you probably won't find a guitar that suits you any better. One thing you could learn from it is whether or not you want to play guitar.

[jrb715]

I can't possibly tell you what to do, but I am surprised at how many folks advise you to keep it and try to love it. You're bored with the tone. This just seems like a prison sentence to me. If I were in your position--and although I haven't been with guitars, I certainly have been with other things--I would swallow the loss and sell the guitar.

I also would start all over again playing more guitars and let the top of my budget be a little fuzzy. I've found myself in your position more than once by setting a hard cap on what I would spend, when with spending a little more I would have been a lot happier with the purchase.

[anjoga]

There is so much great advice on both sides in this thread. I'm going to carefully consider all of it before I make any permanent changes. Thanks again to everyone that took the time to respond.

[RalphH]

Originally Posted by anjoga

There is so much great advice on both sides in this thread. I'm going to carefully consider all of it before I make any permanent changes. Thanks again to everyone that took the time to respond.

Good. One thing that is on your side now is time. There is no return window to hit. . By all means, go play some others, see if they float your boat - you may find a guitar that blows your mind. Also play this and see if it grows on you. There's no right answer we can give - you need to decide in the end. Just don't rush into losing a load of money.

[cliff_the_stiff]

Originally Posted by jrb715

I can't possibly tell you what to do, but I am surprised at how many folks advise you to keep it and try to love it. You're bored with the tone. This just seems like a prison sentence to me. .

I’m OCD, I inspect the details all the time. Little things get under my skin, however- I also recognize that my frustrations cause isn’t always clear-
So before I decide to take a 40% hit on my 1500 dollar instrument, I might just try the 40 dollar strings, or changes in approach or an action adjustment to accommodate med strings and a lower action-
Or ditch the Elixer 80/20 coated for Bronze, or Plectrum flat wounds, or Santa Cruz Parabolic strings...
Lot’s of things to try before dumping it off and taking a hit.
Continue to play with it until it tells you what it is it’s missing- then you can be prescriptive about the qualities you want in your next one.

You might find that what you really want is a sweet Martin J-40!

[anjoga]

I decided to buy the guitar a little gift and see if we can get back to the music and away from the drama.

I installed a set of Taylor ebony w/abalone bridge pins to replace the stock plastic ones, and restrung with a set of D'addario XT phosphor bronze 12's.

I'm really happy with the result so far. These might be the strings I use regularly on this guitar going forward. The new bridge pins look great too.

So far, so good!

[cliff_the_stiff]

Originally Posted by anjoga

I decided to buy the guitar a little gift and see if we can get back to the music and away from the drama.

I installed a set of Taylor ebony w/abalone bridge pins to replace the stock plastic ones, and restrung with a set of D'addario XT phosphor bronze 12's.

I'm really happy with the result so far. These might be the strings I use regularly on this guitar going forward. The new bridge pins look great too.

So far, so good!

That’s a great idea on the bridge pins. I’m going to suggest the same to my buddy!
AGF Wins again!

[sford52]

There are a lot of good suggestions put forward, and to top it off, you seem to be approaching your issues head on.
So all I can add is that I think that is a really beautiful guitar there. Give 'er a fair chance, it looks like she has a lot of good music in there.

[Borderdon]

Respectfully suggest you can’t look in the sound hole while you’re playing, won’t notice imperfections in the guitars interior if you’re playing—— learn something new perhaps ?
Hope you can re-kindle your enthusiasm, good luck with it.

[Lakewood_Lad]

I'm a bit late to this party but what is the set up like on the guitar? Is it easy to play? What's it like to play bar chords? If it's hard to fret or it buzzes then it will be an unsatisfying experience and you can probably get that sorted out at the shop or by a local guitar tech or luthier. The shop should do it for nothing, the luthier might charge but it will be a lot less than the cost of a new guitar.

I note that you've made a few changes and you're now satisfied with the sound so there's no need to go into anything else about it. I hope you keep it for a few months more at least so that when you do decide to change it you'll have a clearer idea of what you're looking for.

Best wishes. We're all still learning, whether we realise it or not.

[Shredmaster007]

If you sell now, then what would you buy? I'd jam through it and play a lot more guitars before getting rid of it. Two of my friends have 214 dlxs and they both sound and play great for what they are, it could certainly be a worse scenario pickle.

I have the same epic OCD tendencies (and not just with guitars) and I find they relax a bit when I put myself in a different environment. Go play an open mic or jam with some friends and you'll probably forget about your qualms at least for a little while!

In the end you might just have to go through a bunch of guitars to see what you like - I started with a Taylor 310kce (which I was ignorantly and blissfully satisfied with for 10 years!) then tried out a Seagul S6, 000-15, a J15, a J45 each for a year or so and now have a Takamine P5DC. Don't even get me started on the electrics / amps and drums...

[RP]

An elephant in the room that I'm curious about is why the OP paid retail if he already knew from his background with basses that there are better deals to be had. I ask this as one who does far too much guitar buying/selling but tries to minimize the damage by either purchasing used or getting decent discounts...

[Texsunburst59]

I think your 2 biggest mistakes is that you bought a new guitar, and since your a bass player, you had no idea what to look for.

Based on this , you should have probably gone to as many guitars shops and pawnshops in your area, and auditioned as many used acoustics as you could.

I don't ever buy new guitars anymore, and haven't for over 12 years.

I picked up a '09 Taylor 210 E in killer shape at a pawnshop at the end of this last year.

It was filthy and had autographs all over the top of the guitar.

I took it home and cleaned it up, and you'd never recognize it if you saw what it looked like before it got cleaned up.

Because of it's condition and the autographs, I was able to get an amazing deal on the great guitar.

I picked this 210 E acoustic for $258.

It sounds and plays great, and is an amazing value for what I paid.