Taylor GTE Urban Ash Review & Thoughts

[nashtele]

I feel fairly conflicted about this one and thought I would post a review here for anyone curious about this model.

Contents
1. Tone
2. Playability
3. Size and form factor
4. Curb appeal
5. Conclusions

1. Tone
At a quick glance, I would describe the sound as articulate in the way that the Taylor brand would generally be expected to sound. It sounds very clean and well-made with clear, long, steady ringing out from each individual string and note with very little in the way of minuscule little buzzes here or there or inconsistencies from this string to that one, etc. It sounds precise, harmonically stable, again like a Taylor should. All of this to say, it generally sounds like a ~1.5K$ guitar befitting its price, and whatever is going on with these sustainable woods doesn't really change the overall presentation of this thing too drastically when you strum a few chords, play some lines and so on.

All of the sonic characteristics listed above, I believe, are coming from the construction, the engineering, the quality of the work and the precision of the machining that Taylor is bringing to the table. But I will not waste any more time getting to the point: there is also something missing here. I think it is fair to say that the guitar lacks the warmth you would expect at its price point, and my suspicion is that this is because of the "urban ash" back and sides. In transparency, my main guitar is a Martin M-36, so I tend to think that Taylors sound a bit clinical to begin with, and I may be biased accordingly. That said, I am not the most discerning consumer of guitar woods, and I've never owned anything made of cocobingo or whatever, so for me to really notice a difference between this and my other guitar is somewhat telling. In terms of frequency, the high end sounds like typical Taylor, sparkly, but somewhere down into the mids the floor drops out and there is a space where I would expect the wood to present a more notable character, but I'm not really hearing much with this guitar in that zone. The volume is there, with consistent presentation across the frequency spectrum in Taylor fashion, but the character is lacking in comparison to great wood, I think. Reminds me a bit of the way Hannibal Lector describes Clarice... good engineering has given this guitar some length of bone but it's only one generation removed from pure laminate, so to speak.

As the factory strings have aged a few weeks, the sound has rounded out a bit in a way I like, so I am cautiously optimistic to see what a set of Martin Monel Lights brings. I can report back if anyone is curious. I also don't think anyone has much of a read on how this "urban ash" will age, or if there is anything to suspect there in terms of upside.

2. Playability
The guitar plays extremely well. The fretwork is excellent, the setup is excellent, the tuning stability is excellent, the intonation is excellent, etc. Tense, springy, loud. Responds well to chords up the neck, sevenths, ninths, Harvest Moon, and so on.

3. Size and form factor
Physically, I love this size and shape. The guitar has a nice round bout with some depth to it that makes it feel substantial in the right ways while obviously still fitting into a smaller form than a full-size acoustic. It doesn't feel small.

Sonically, it's the other way around. There is a bit of a "small guitar" sound going on here. I hear it more with picking and strumming, less with fingerstyle or finger strumming. There is no getting around the size of the box at some point, and all the bracing and tech and design in the world aren't going to change the laws of physics... or so this guitar would lead me to believe. I wouldn't say this is a demerit, or anything specific to this model, so much as a neutral observation from someone who generally likes larger guitar sounds.

3. Curb appeal
The black nut, modern inlays, dark ebony fretboard, flawless construction and dark urban ash (?) body all present a pretty sleek aesthetic. I haven't seen a guitar like this. Modern, urban, different, sharp. I feel like you could find this thing in the living room of a new-build condo of a bachelor who lives in like, maybe Denver or Sacramento, not too big of a city, not too small, in an interesting-ish enough neighborhood but there are some chain restaurants around as well, early 30s professionals who go the gym without too many hangups, probably just fornication city in there. I wouldn't know exactly but the guitar's look really works. The guitar comes with a nicer version of the GS Mini case which makes for a great package to take along on a trip as I did recently for the Thanksgiving holiday.

4. Conclusions
This is a really well-made American Taylor that plays extremely well, sounds legit, and may offer something of a way forward in terms of next steps for an industry that needs to figure out how to deal with changing inputs. I would understand ebony to be a compromised input as well at this point, so I was curious to see the fretboard (admittedly quite nice) and wonder about whether or not the environmental impact is real or marketing. Regardless, there is clearly a real problem with sourcing woods so I'm here for the change in general.

Looking around at what else that money would buy you, I think you could probably safely secure something else in the lower $1k+ range that plays about as well, has a bit more of a classical visual aesthetic, and may sound a bit more to your liking, more traditional, in certain rooms, situations, and volume levels. That said, the GTE Urban Ash's playability, size and aesthetics all add up to a pretty compelling vibe in a guitar that sounds, frankly, pretty good. I think this would be a more competitive proposition at, say, $1300 or a little less instead of the 1700 I paid. So, while I don't really know the market up and down, I do think this guitar is maybe a few hundred dollars above where it would honestly sit from a value perspective.

I would hope that a shift to more sustainable, pedestrian woods would also allow for a price break, but that doesn't seem to be the case here. Maybe the woods are a fairly modest proportion of production costs and you are really just paying American labor for this one, but as I mentioned above, the construction and playability are super solid. Who knows where the market is going... will be interesting to see.

[mrjop1975]

Thank you for your honest and well written reviews of the Urban Ash Taylor grand theater. I tried one, and honestly, if I could get one minus the electronics, it would fit the needing something modern niche in my guitar arsenal which is mostly older Gibsons and a couple of Martin 00 sizes. I would make a suggestion: try D'addario phospher bronzes on them. My local store has suggested those to Taylor guitar customers that may not like the Elixer strings that typically ship on those. Just a thought for what it is worth.

[nashtele]

Originally Posted by mrjop1975

Thank you for your honest and well written reviews of the Urban Ash Taylor grand theater. I tried one, and honestly, if I could get one minus the electronics, it would fit the needing something modern niche in my guitar arsenal which is mostly older Gibsons and a couple of Martin 00 sizes. I would make a suggestion: try D'addario phospher bronzes on them. My local store has suggested those to Taylor guitar customers that may not like the Elixer strings that typically ship on those. Just a thought for what it is worth.

Thank you, great suggestion and I will try it out. I agree that the fresh strings certainly seemed like a less-than-ideal fit for the tonal character of the guitar.

[ribsareyummy]

I keep hearing Taylor people say that getting these reclaimed woods like the urban ash and urban ironbark are actually more expensive for them to procure because they are basically building new supply lines and processes from the ground up, as opposed to the efficiencies and supply lines that have been around for decades with more traditional tonewoods.

Makes sense, but the current GTE price is still a lot to ask in my humble opinion.

[sinistral]

What exactly does this mean?

Originally Posted by nashtele

3. Curb appeal
The black nut, modern inlays, dark ebony fretboard, flawless construction and dark urban ash (?) body all present a pretty sleek aesthetic. I haven't seen a guitar like this. Modern, urban, different, sharp. I feel like you could find this thing in the living room of a new-build condo of a bachelor who lives in like, maybe Denver or Sacramento, not too big of a city, not too small, in an interesting-ish enough neighborhood but there are some chain restaurants around as well, early 30s professionals who go the gym without too many hangups, probably just fornication city in there. I wouldn't know exactly but the guitar's look really works. The guitar comes with a nicer version of the GS Mini case which makes for a great package to take along on a trip as I did recently for the Thanksgiving holiday.

In the living room, the city, the gym, all of the above?

[zmf]

Originally Posted by nashtele

I feel like you could find this thing in the living room of a new-build condo of a bachelor who lives in like, maybe Denver or Sacramento, not too big of a city, not too small, in an interesting-ish enough neighborhood but there are some chain restaurants around as well, early 30s professionals who go the gym without too many hangups, probably just fornication city in there.

Thanks for the thorough review. Like the clever "curb appeal" part.

Could you do "curb appeal" profiles for the Taylor 210 and 814 too? I'm trying to figure out if I fit any of them. The GT definitely isn't me.

[nashtele]

Originally Posted by ribsareyummy

I keep hearing Taylor people say that getting these reclaimed woods like the urban ash and urban ironbark are actually more expensive for them to procure because they are basically building new supply lines and processes from the ground up, as opposed to the efficiencies and supply lines that have been around for decades with more traditional tonewoods.

Makes sense, but the current GTE price is still a lot to ask in my humble opinion.

That does makes sense. I was picturing them just uprooting telephone poles down the street, one at at a time as orders come in.

I agree the price is a lot to ask. My hope would be that the efficiencies come into focus over time so that this segment of the market offers a viable alternative (i.e., a little price break) over more traditional options.

[nashtele]

Originally Posted by sinistral

What exactly does this mean?
In the living room, the city, the gym, all of the above?

dig. all of the above.

[edward993]

My opinion comes as a fan of Taylor, but not a fan of what Taylor guitars have been bringing in in the past several years, so take this fwiw:

I have played two different GTs at two different stores/times and am not a fan of the GT at all; I find it overpriced for what it brings to the table.

1. Playability and QC is Taylor all the way, so no surprise there.
2. Tone is ok: not bad but not anything that moved me (of the two I tried, admittedly a puny test sample)
3. The GT's wood selections do not perk my ears or interest
4. It brings nothing that a good GC doesn't already have, while the latter has a large menu of wood options, and can be found in "modest" spec all the way up to the top-tier.

I like to think that I'm really objective about tone and playability. The GT arguably could be a good line were that the only small body they built. But with Taylor's excellent line of GCs, I find nothing in the GT that attracts me.

Edward

[nashtele]

Originally Posted by zmf

Thanks for the thorough review. Like the clever "curb appeal" part.

Could you do "curb appeal" profiles for the Taylor 210 and 814 too? I'm trying to figure out if I fit any of them. The GT definitely isn't me.

I cannot! I don't know why, but this GT just had that story written all over it. Come to think of it, I was considering moving out west a couple years back and never did... a bit of a freudian purchase..

[nashtele]

Originally Posted by edward993

My opinion comes as a fan of Taylor, but not a fan of what Taylor guitars have been bringing in in the past several years, so take this fwiw:

I have played two different GTs at two different stores/times and am not a fan of the GT at all; I find it overpriced for what it brings to the table.

1. Playability and QC is Taylor all the way, so no surprise there.
2. Tone is ok: not bad but not anything that moved me (of the two I tried, admittedly a puny test sample)
3. The GT's wood selections do not perk my ears or interest
4. It brings nothing that a good GC doesn't already have, while the latter has a large menu of wood options, and can be found in "modest" spec all the way up to the top-tier.

I like to think that I'm really objective about tone and playability. The GT arguably could be a good line were that the only small body they built. But with Taylor's excellent line of GCs, I find nothing in the GT that attracts me.

Edward

This is giving me GAS... just looked at the 312ce 12-Fret online.

[edward993]

The GC is a great line; the 12fret is stellar! And for me, a cutaway with a 12fret is the ideal way to go. Happy hunting!!!

Edward

[jricc]

Originally Posted by edward993

The GC is a great line; the 12fret is stellar! And for me, a cutaway with a 12fret is the ideal way to go. Happy hunting!!!

Edward

So agree with Edward, the Taylor Grand Concerts are great guitars.

Originally Posted by nashtele

This is giving me GAS... just looked at the 312ce 12-Fret online.

The 312 is a nice one, and for a completely different tone in a GC try the 322 or an American Dream Series AD22e.
Oh and congrats on your GT nashtele!

[Dave Abrahamson]

Ditto on the GC line. I bought a GC4 from Daves Guitars last year. Ovankal back and sides. No C No E.
I pull that one off the wall a lot.
Daddario XLs on that one. Got a free sample set. So far so good.

[CodyToonz]

I've been a Taylor guy since 1991 when I bought my first 712 which I still have. I've owned over a dozen other Taylors that have come and gone since then.
I was intrigued when the GT came out as I have a thing for small bodied guitars. I just wasn't quite ready to spend the $1500 and figured I'd wait and see what the used market brings. I bought a used one this AM from the MF used section for less than $900. It shipped today and I'll put it through its paces next week.