Taylor Guitars 424CE-SL

I was interested in buying a Taylor Koa for a long time. I had my heart set on the K20CE or K24CE but the prices was just way out of my league. Then I noticed this Spring 2007 Limited Edition Series and thought what the hell, i'll give it a try. My local Sam Ash had one. It is a really beatiful all koa wood guitar, glossy solid top, satin sides and back with cream binding, ebony fretboard, diamond fretboard inlays, Venetian cutaway, 1-3/4" nut width, 25-1/2" scale length, chrome hardware, Taylor Expression System pickup, and of course the black hardshell Taylor case. Just a stunning guitar.

I listened to 3 of them from different stores and they all sounded almost alike. The're sound is very different from any other typical spruce top guitar. Very dark, mellow sounding, not as loud as most guitars. But what it did have was a sound that was very very crisp and bright. It had a sustain that went on for what sounded like days. Almost like every string had it's own personality. Very unique. I fingerpick mostly but my seagull sounds more full and loud but can't come close to the complex sounds that this koa puts out. The sam ash guy said that koa takes sometime to open up but it sounded wonderful. I also plugged it in and listened to the Taylor's ES. The sound was incredible. No feedback or amplified sounds from outside the guitar. Just really the sound of clear sounding guitar strings.

If there's one thing I don't particularly like on Taylors it's the insanely low action that these are setup with. I don't have a problem necessarily with it except the the occasional buzzing. Compared to the seagull I one it's easier and quicker to play due to the ebony fretboard I guess. I'm not a big fan of the satin finish either. They should have glossed the whole thing. would have made for really spectacular sight. The other thing I don't like too much was the wood grain on the back had a couple of the "nuts" from the tree that didn't go well with the design, but no one's going to see the back much anyway. The front is where the beauty is!

I really don't know how durable these types of woods are at all. Right now I'm babying my to no end and I'll try to keep it in perfect condition for as long as I can. I intend on traveling with it for a few wedding gigs I have lined up. It seems solidly built so I expect it to go a long way.

Haven't dealt with Taylor directly yet.

Again the sound is not big and full, but very detailed, complex and crisp. Great for fingerpicking, but I would use my seagull for general ryhthm strumming. I am very glad with my puchase so far. I really enjoy comparing the seagull to the koa and just loving the beautiful distintion that the koa has. If it was lost or stolen I'd be in trouble becuase It would be a while before I could afford another one. I recommend trying one before you buy, some people might not like the low volume of this particular model.