Tacoma DM8C-E2

1999 Tacoma DM8C-E2 Roadking (now called the RM6C), from Tacoma, Washington. A cutaway dreadnaught with 22 frets, it comes with their E2 "Tone Bar" active piezo pickup made by EMG. Features include: Offset Paisley Sound hole, Satin Finish, Solid Sitka Spruce top, Mahogany back and sides (I'm not sure if sides and back are solid mahogany on the 99 models), rosewood fingerboard with medium jumbo frets, 1.75" nut width, Graphtech nut and saddle, "Voiced Support" bracing system, clear satin pickguard and very simple looking. No abalone purfling and soundhole trim. I give it a 9 because I love the look of it.

This guitar is a blast to play. The location of the soundhole means I can hear what comes out of the guitar 10 times better than when it's located at the center of the guitar. The neck is wider than the average guitar, which suits my fingers perfectly. Plus it's designed like an electric with the neck being a bolt on and flatter on the bottom. It's also not as deep as a traditional acoustic being only 3.75" deep, it's very comfortable to play. Strangely enough, this does not take away from delivery a good rich bass sound, as well as excellent mids and highs. I also have a Tacoma DR-20 which I love for it's deep, rich, rosewood sound, but I find myself playing this one much more often. I use this with a Fender Acoustasonic Jr. and a Fishman GII equalizer. Without the equalizer, the piezo is a bit hot with the trebles and mid ranges screaming at you.

The guitar is super light, and looks near perfect. Again, it's a very simple but elegant guitar. It's built for sound more than looks. Because of that I think it would be easy to spot any problems, but there are none. For such a light guitar, it's solid as a rock.

I'm a garage guitarist, but I think any instrument, if treated well should handle live playing. This one does seem built to last for a long time. I plan on giving it to my kids someday!

Warranty is a limited lifetime warranty and transferable for $50.00. I have had some luck reaching them, but haven't needed their services. I will take the guitar in to my local dealer for support.

I have been playing about 25 years, but consistently for the last 3. I own a Tacoma DR-20 as well. I would be very upset if this were lost or stolen because I enjoy playing it so much, but if it were, I have my eyes set on the rosewood version of this guitar the RR8C, with either the Fishman or L.R. Baggs pickups.

Again, I love the dreadnaught size and sound of this guitar and the comfort of playing a thinner body. When comparing to ALL the other guitars on the market, you can't beat the quality and value of a Tacoma. Period.

This is a 2001 Tacoma DM8C-E2 Roadking. All Tacoma's are made in their single factory in Tacoma, Washington. It is a cutaway dreadnaught with 22 frets. It is a solid Sitka spruce top, solid mahogany backs and sides (the models before 2000 were laminated mahogany sides), mahogany neck, rosewood fingerboard. It has the strange offset paisly soundhole that you see on the Chief and a few other Tacoma models. The E2 version has the most basic of pickups systems, a piezo....it is attached to the inside via a velcro pouch, and a patch cable plugs in through the rear strap button. The finish is satin. The bridge is pegless, it uses crescent shaped grooves to hold the strings. I must say it works very well. It has Gotoh tuners...this is the first time I have played a guitar with them and I like them a lot. I am not sure the exact dimensions of the neck, but it is definately a bit wider than most acoustics, and much wider than my telecaster, which I really like. It is also rather thin, thinner than my telecaster and much thinner than my alvarez, which makes it very easy to play. Mine came with a nice hardshell case.

I like the sound a lot, it is extremely powerful, vibrant, sharp, and shimmers quite a bit. It favors midrange. I left the Elixer strings on it. This contrasts with Martins I have played, which I have thought to be boomy, soft and warm, favoring bass, and a bit louder. My Alvarez regent sounds dull, boring, and incredibly weak in comparison. It sounds great fingerpicked or flatpicked. I played it through my Peavy session 500 steel string amp and it sounded fabulous. I found it particularly easy to get the guitar in tune, and it seems to stay in tune extremely well all over the neck. I am not sure why, but I love it. I have more trouble tuning (perfectly!)my Telecaster than this Tacoma.

The guitar seems to be setup extremely well. No buzz on any string anywhere on the neck. The action is moderate to low, which is fine for me. The guitar is very plain, but the woods used and the craftsmanship make the guitar very beautiful to my eyes. Very well done.

I haven't had the guitar for long, so I cannot say for sure. The guitar is extremely light. I have heard this is partly due to Tacoma's bracing method, which allows a lighter construction with equal sturdiness. I will have to wait 20-30 years and see how it does.

Tacoma offers a limited lifetime warranty, which makes me feel real good.

I really do like this one. I have been playing for ten years or so, most of that spent grinding away on two Alvarez regents I own. A few years ago I got into the electric thing, picking up a Fender Telecaster and an Ibanez S540, but I wanted to get back into the acoustic thing. I have liked all the Tacoma's I have played, and primarily compared them to Larivee, Martin, Taylor, and Guild. Of these other four, Larivee was my favorite. My budget was very limited, I couldn't spend more than 700$, and this really limited my choices. The low end Martin's really didn't impress me, although the D28 and D35 I played were exceptional. I don't really like the generic dreadnaught looks of the Martins, but they really do sound fabulous. The Taylor's were fine, but absurdly overpriced. The Baby Taylor wasn't anything special as far as I could tell. The Larivee's were fabulous, and some were even reasonably priced, and I really considered them. The Guilds were nice, but none of them clicked for me. I chose the Tacoma because it sounds really fabulous, and was quite cheap. If it were stolen, I would go play Larivee's and Tacoma's and choose between them again. Some people have a problem with the way the Tacoma looks (the head, the bridge, and the offset soundhole), and all I have to say is 'get over it'.