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View Poll Results: recommendation
taylor 814 21 24.14%
gibson j45 57 65.52%
martin 000-17,16sm,Om 5 5.75%
taylor 717 BE 5 5.75%
Multiple Choice Poll. Voters: 87. You may not vote on this poll

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  #16  
Old 12-28-2022, 08:38 AM
bluemoon bluemoon is offline
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I think of Sitka topped 814ce as a Swiss Army knife although I preferred x braces Taylor based on my sampling. I haven’t played the Alamo custom but keep in mind the Adirondack will take a while to break in versus Sitka. Also Taylor’s customer service is top notch. For j45 I love the shape and while different that a dread does kind of play bigger. I love the tone of a 45 and it adapts well to 90s rock and a lot of style. Fit and finish has varied wildly on the gibsons I’ve played.

Question to think about

What’s your primary playing position? Standing or sitting
Do you want to play plugged in or fully acoustic?
Is neck radius important ?
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  #17  
Old 12-28-2022, 08:43 AM
Guilty Spark Guilty Spark is offline
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Maybe a Gibson Country Western........?
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  #18  
Old 12-28-2022, 08:52 AM
zmf zmf is offline
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Hate to be that broken-record "go play the guitars" guy, but it sounds like you need to hang out the some guitar shops, play the stuff you like to play on a bunch of guitars, and wait for the obvious to happen.
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  #19  
Old 12-28-2022, 09:28 AM
rule18 rule18 is offline
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I voted for the J45 because I've loved everything about mine for 20 years, gigging, standing, seated, strumming, cross-picking and finger picking.

However, the best advice you've received in this thread is to go play them all, and all the others you may not know about yet. We're happy to help spend your money, but we don't need to be happy with your choice.
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  #20  
Old 12-28-2022, 09:33 AM
leew3 leew3 is offline
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I'm going to recommend the Taylor 814 as more versatile than your other options. However, I'd recommend an older X braced 814. I have a 2012 814ce and while the electronics need some eq tweaking (Voiceprint DI to the rescue) it has opened up well and has great bass response and strong fundamentals all over the fretboard.
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  #21  
Old 12-28-2022, 09:51 AM
radioregime radioregime is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bluemoon View Post

Question to think about

WhatÂ’s your primary playing position? Standing or sitting
Do you want to play plugged in or fully acoustic?
Is neck radius important ?
I will primarily play sitting down, almost never plugged in. My current guitars are 8.5” and 12” radii and i dont mind the 15” of the taylor. I do prefer the 1.65” nut width of my strat though.
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  #22  
Old 12-28-2022, 10:39 AM
mcduffnw mcduffnw is offline
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Where do you live and would you be able to travel...short or long distance...to find a really good guitar shop, or two, and play the guitars that interest you, which is THE very best way to buy a guitar...or...are you unable to travel and will have to purchase online?

What is your budget? What is the absolute max $$$ you would be willing to spend?


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  #23  
Old 12-28-2022, 10:59 AM
jeanray1113 jeanray1113 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SalFromChatham View Post
That Taylor is small, and rosewood backed. Probably a quite amazing fingerstyle guitar. Strummer? The J45 is better.

Dreads tend to be where the strumming is at, especially in that genre.The Hummingbird, Martin D18, 28, and 35 - all great choices.

Smaller acoustic that is a great strummer.. the Martin 000-15m. I also think the 000-18 and 28 are pretty versatile.

Finally, I just consigned a guitar that I’m obviously not keeping, but you might like the model. the Iris OG. It sounds richer and fuller than a small Gibson, and very much like a 000-15 or 000-18.
I wouldn’t call the GA body small. The lower bout is just as wide as a dread, but the “waist” makes it more comfy to play. They work, at least IMHO, for fingerstyle and strumming quite well.
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  #24  
Old 12-28-2022, 12:04 PM
radioregime radioregime is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mcduffnw View Post
Where do you live and would you be able to travel...short or long distance...to find a really good guitar shop, or two, and play the guitars that interest you, which is THE very best way to buy a guitar...or...are you unable to travel and will have to purchase online?

What is your budget? What is the absolute max $$$ you would be willing to spend?


duff
Be A Player...Not A Polisher
I live in California and can go around to try it all. If i find the right one in person, is it safe to order a better deal online and have the same expectation? Or could there be enough variance, model to model, in wood quality and construction quality that its best to buy the one you played, even if that means less of a discount?

My max is $5k. I was able to get deal offers on guitars retailing at $6k for $5k as well. But based on my preference for adirondack and rosewood, but willingness to buy sitka as well, this price range seems good enough to include everything. I was able to find a lowden that met all the criteria (f32) but i didnt like the tone for the genres i play. I know it would be a great quality guitar. But the tone wasnt right for me.
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  #25  
Old 12-28-2022, 12:16 PM
ScottSD ScottSD is offline
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I can't speak to the 814 VS the J45 but I can tell you if you're looking at the Grand Auditorium Taylors consider a Grand Symphony. They are very similar in size except the lower bout is just a bit wider (1/2" I think) hence more base. I have both and can't really tell the difference size wise. The GS comes strung with mediums but does just fine with lights. Love my GS.

Scott
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  #26  
Old 12-28-2022, 01:14 PM
radioregime radioregime is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ScottSD View Post
I can't speak to the 814 VS the J45 but I can tell you if you're looking at the Grand Auditorium Taylors consider a Grand Symphony. They are very similar in size except the lower bout is just a bit wider (1/2" I think) hence more base. I have both and can't really tell the difference size wise. The GS comes strung with mediums but does just fine with lights. Love my GS.

Scott
So the GS and GA feel about the same in your lap? But the GS sound is better and more dread like when strumming than the GA by a significant amount? Do you have the soundhole version?
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  #27  
Old 12-28-2022, 01:21 PM
ScottSD ScottSD is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by radioregime View Post
So the GS and GA feel about the same in your lap? But the GS sound is better and more dread like when strumming than the GA by a significant amount? Do you have the soundhole version?
I've got a V braced 714CE and a '11 Cocobolo GS Fall Ltd. It's not a totally fair comparison because "Cocobolo" and I'm not big of the V bracing. Interestingly enough, you can stuff a GS into a GA case. I know this because Guitar Center sales guys did it to another GS (756CE) I bought there.... Not that I'd recommend it.

Scott
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  #28  
Old 12-28-2022, 02:52 PM
Aahzz Aahzz is offline
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I've been seriously underwhelmed by the V-braced Taylors - played an 814CE yesterday that just left me cold. Picked up a 114 and it just sounded so much more balanced, and better - the 814 was just dull. I've felt pretty much that way about every V braced Taylor I've played to date, so I'd vote older 814CE, or something else entirely.
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  #29  
Old 12-28-2022, 03:02 PM
DBW DBW is offline
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I voted J-45 but I would actually recommend that you go with a Gibson Hummingbird given that you've been playing electric mostly. Of all my acoustics, the Hummingbird has the most electric-like fretboard.
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  #30  
Old 12-28-2022, 03:05 PM
guitar12 guitar12 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by radioregime View Post
I live in California and can go around to try it all. If i find the right one in person, is it safe to order a better deal online and have the same expectation? Or could there be enough variance, model to model, in wood quality and construction quality that its best to buy the one you played, even if that means less of a discount?
There will always be variance for sure, but probably a wider variance between J45 models than 814 models. As a result, if you find one of either model that really floats your boat I would buy it and not worry about saving by ordering from afar.

Rob
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814ce, gibson, j-45, martin, taylor

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