Taylor Guitars 214

Solid wood grand auditorium with no cutaway or electronics. The case fits like a glove and is very high quality.

This is the best sounding acoustic I've ever played. It has a very balanced tone and gets loud. The sound is inspiring in a way that no Gibson or Martin I've played has ever been able to match. Both fingerpicking and flat picking sound great with this guitar. The whole Taylor line sounds great, but honestly there isn't much difference between a 214 and the much more expensive Taylors, unless you want to impress people with how much money you can blow on a guitar. And in my opinion you can forget about a Martin or Gibson. People buy those guitars for the name, not the sound, because Taylor totally dominates where it counts.

Great action. Precise workmanship. No complaints.

I played as many guitars as I could before I bought this. This guitar's sound is inspiring in a way no other manufacturer matches. I plan on installing some electronics in the near future, which will bring the grand total I paid to under $1000. If you're into sound and playability, as opposed to look-how-much-I-paid, I think the Taylor 214 is the best new acoustic you could buy.

2004 MODEL 214, NO ELECTRONICS, GRAND AUDITORIUM BODY STYLE, NO FRILLS BUT GREAT LOOKING INSTRUMENT

TAYLOR BRIGHT SOUND BUT THERE IS A RICHNESS TO THE SOUND
VERY TOUCH SENSITIVE AND DYNAMIC. I HAVE NEVER PLAYED A GUITAR THAT SOUNDED QUITE LIKE IT. THE MORE EXPENSIVE TAYLORS HAVE A DIFFERENT SOUND BUT I LIKE THE FEEL OF THIS GUITAR (YOU CAN FEEL EVERY NOTE PLAYED THRU THE GUITAR TO YOUR BODY) VERY INSPIRATIONAL SONG WRITING GUITAR,ONCE YOU PICK IT UP YOU JUST CAN'T SEEM TO PUT IT DOWN.
I INSTALLED A "SWEETSPOT" UNDER THE SADDLE BRIDGE PICKUP AND I GET A GREAT TONE OUT OF IT THRU A TRAYNOR WR40 TUBE AMP,I GET A FAIR AMOUNT
FEEDBACK THOUGH AND I HAVE ORDERED A LR BAGGS PARA DI THAT SHOULD SOLVE THAT PROBLEM.

ACTION WAS PERFECT ON THE ONE I PURCHASED FROM GUITAR CENTER BUT I HAVE PLAYED OTHERS THAT THE ACTION NEEDED ADJUSTING.
THE BUILD QUALITY IS EXELLENT. THE FINISH IS ALL SATIN AND IS BEAUTIFUL IN IT OWN WAY

SHOULD LAST A LONG TIME AND SOUND EVEN BETTER WITH AGE

NEVER DEALT WITH THE COMPANY

PLAYING FOR 25 YEARS
OTHER EQUIPMENT,PRS CE 22, TAKAMINE LTD EDITION,AMERICAN DELUXE STRAT, IBANEZ ARTCORE, G&L SC3, TRAYNOR WR40
THIS GUITAR GETS INTO YOUR SOUL WHEN YOU PLAY IT, IT GETS THOSE CREATIVE JUICES FLOWING AND IT IS VERY EASY TO PLAY.
SO JUST GO OUT AND BUY ONE

2003, made in El Cajon, CA.
No pickup. See other reviews for features.

Incredible. I believe the cheap Taylors sound and play as well as the pricey ones. So you pay for little cosmetic flourishes, basically.
The sparkle of the highs, and the clean solid roar of the bass impressed me. This was the best sounding 214 in the store. I tested it side by side with the 110 mic/undersaddle modle I gat a week ago, and there was no contest. This is truly a better sounding guitar! The definistion of the bass notes is spectauclar. Perhaps it's the bracing and solod back and sides that do it. The narrow-waisted body style seems to aid articulation. Great guitar!

POOR ACTION: It was set way high. Even the dealer said so when he tried it. Both 214's in the store were like that. I took it home and clamped a file to my work bench and after marking it carefully, took it down about 1/16 inch. Better! Tricky job; you need to angle it to ensure the Ivorex has a slight slant on it.

No finsish flaws. Satin UV baked finish looks fine. Neck is flat as can be. Great tuners. Chrome.

No pickups this model; previous review of an 214-LDR model had complaint about a very poor undersaddle sound, real garbage.
My preference runs to the K & K Pure Western, or FantaStick blend to be installed. Don't know yet; I have a Rare Earth mag I may put in, simp[ly because feedback is such a problem in sma;;er venues where you are right next to the amp (Fender AcoustaSonic Jr.).
Baggs has a new one out that has controller inside soundhole. I may try that.
I really bought this for full sound in the room, and amping it is a minor concern. I think a clamp-on mic bracket may be best to preserve its realist tone.

I will play this in gigs. Included hard shell case whould stabilize humidity and protect it in transit. Everything seems solid, and the frets are smooth.
I really wanted one of these a long time. It will do until I can get a luthier-made unique guitar, like Goodall Jumbo or Michelletti Osprey, next time I have a spare 4 to 7 thousand to splurge!

Always excellent.

This is fine for fingerstyle, hybrid picking, folk, blues, jass and acoustic pop and rock.
I love the ease of playing, its response to nuances, and the gutsy tone. It shimmers like crystal and roars like King Kong. The sweet ring of it is captivating. It compares favorably with the Martin D-35 and yet doesn't break your bank account.
I also love the satin finish since you don't need to polish it all the time like a glossy guiatr.
I wil use this for composing, jamming and performing. This marks my 40th year playing guitar, and I fianlly have great guitars.

2003 taylor 214 Cali, Sapele back and sides, sitka spruce solid top

This guitar is great for fingerstyle and mild strumming.
Very bright tone but warm to the sustaing
Very Full and RICh

Action is low for awesome fingerstyle plucking, flat picking or shredding

Very Reliable guitar, and can withstand variable amounts of plucking pressure without buzzing

Havent had to ask for support. The dealers loved the guitar, but i got it first.. haha

14 years of playing experience. I own a taylor 814 ce and a takmine c 132s. Ibanez GA , Sammick Bass, Applause acoustic guitar,

All solid wood (huge plus), satin finish, decent hard shell case,etc... most others have listed this stuff. No cutaway or on board electronics - which in my opinion is a plus. I hate the barndoor hole that guitars with on board pre amps have and I like the look and feel of guitars without cutaways - Taylor should offer more guitars without cutaways and electronics.

The guitar sounds very nice. Its a Taylor so it has a little more emphasis on the treble end of the guitar. Very even when finger picking and sounds good strumming but the sound kind of flatens out when you strum too hard on it - but its a grand aditorium this is what one should expect. I compared this with other taylors specifically the 314 since this is a cost cutting version of that guitar. The sound is pretty close but the 314 seems to have a bit fuller sound (a little more bass), but in my opinion its not worth the extra $400 or $500 more for a 314 or 314ce, but if I could get a 314 in good shape used I might opt for that instead of the 214 partially due to the added bass.

The guitar was set up perfectly for my taste right from the store. I did not notice any finish flaws or excessive glue globs inside of the guitar. Many people are not fans of the satin/matte finsih but I actually like it, the only downside is the finish is fairly delicate any little bump or ding will surely show up on the guitar, but on a mid priced acoustic I am not going to get too crazy about that kind of thing - I kind of like a guitar to look like it has been played quite a bit, not trashed but broken in. When compared to the 314 you can feel the grain of the wood in the neck a lot more and you can kind of tell that the wood selection for the higher priced taylors is a bit more extensive. I feel that the particual guitar that I purchased has a nice flame on the backs and sides and that the top is a good piece of wood, but I have seen a few 214s that have less than desirable wood, so I would definatly suggest checking a few out before settling on one guitar.

I already mentioned the finsih. One other thing that I thought might become a problem was the location of the second strap button, which is on the side wood near the neck joint. There is a small piece of wood reinforcing the button so I don't believe that this will become a problem as long as I don't lean on the guitar while its on a strap. I also contacted taylor about that and they said that there shouldn't be a problem with that but if a crack or something like that aprears it is still covered under warrenty. I would do small shows with this guitar without a backup but anything thats kind of big I always bring along a backup, but thats mostly in case of string breakage.

I called taylor about a few things and they returned my call in about 1 hour. The people at Taylor seem very nice even though I haven't had to have any warrenty work done I trust this company.

This is a great mid priced guitar and after adding a K & K pure western pickup this is a great gigging guitar when accompanied by a lr baggs para di. I did not want to spend $1000 on a guitar that I would be gigging with and riding on trains in chicago with, I'm glad I didn't because I feel that I get the sound I want for a price that lets me not be afraid to really use my guitar. If I bought the Taylor 314 or comparable guitar, I feel I would have spent too much money and been afraid to take the guitar out of the house or let anyone else touch the guitar, let alone play it. If I were to do it all over again I would have liked to have tried out a Larrieve 3 series but when I bought the guitar I wasn't familiar with them, but I am still happy with the guitar I bought. If I were going to be buying an end all acoustic guitar that wouldn;t leave my house I think I would get a Gibson, probabily a j45, but even if I did that I think I would still need a guitar like this taylor for recording and gigging - the somewhat simple and treble rich tone of this tayor lends itself very nicely to recording acoustic rock music, better so than many high priced drednaughts and jumbos. If you want to hear recordings of this guitar in action you can go to www.halfmassive.com I used this guitar as my main acoustic on the album "Time to figure things out", you can download some songs. So I think you can get a decent idea of how this guitar sounds when recorded.

I have a 2003 Taylor 214 I bought at Guitar Center. It struck a balance between the 110 and 310 in price(more bang for the buck). It is a solid wood grand auditorium with satin finish. I love the body style and am happy with the finsh. While the tuners are not what you would get with the higher price models, they get the job done. The 214 stays tuned. The only quibble I had was that Guitar Center did not have a Taylor case to go with the guitar. The sales associate brought down a Taylor case which looked like it had been dragged around the parking lot. I refused to take it and settled for a nice SKB case. Would have perferred a Taylor case however.

It has a rich sound though not as bassey as some Martins I've owned. Sometimes get some buzzing on the high E string though that may be from my lack of experiance playing as opposed to the guitar. Sounds better than any other guitar I've ever heard in this price range.

I liked the setup, the low action made for ease of play. I could see no flaws in the wood or finish. It is top notch all the way.

This guitar could withstand live play, a day at the beach, a campfire sing, or anything else you would need it for. It is very sturdy, as I have accidently bumped it a few times with no ill effects. It needs no backup.

Made a few calls to Taylor and they were glad to answear any questions I had.

I have been playing a little over a year. In my quest to find the best guitar to learn on I went though a Sigma HD-28,Martin D-15, Martin DX before I settled on the Taylor 214. I could'nt be happier. It is a high quality, low priced guitar that satisfies. If something happened to it, I would get another. I do wish that Guitar Center had not lost the case that was supposed to go with it. That's something THEY need to work on.

My Taylor 214 was made in 2004. No pickup. Solid top. Others have described the woods and scale.

The sound of this guitar is really really great. Taylor guitars have a particular sound that I just love. Nothing about it sounds dead like gibson and martin acoustics. It's especially great when you use your acoustic for a lot of lead like I do (play a lot of flamenco and indian style music). I do have a couple of problems with the sound however. The low E string is very strange. It doesn't ring the way you want it to sometimes. It's very stacatto (sic) and punchy, and can sometimes be annoying depending on what you're playing. Also, although the action is the best you'll get on a steel string, it can be difficult to make fretted notes towards the head of the guitar ("lower" on the neck) ring properly.

The action was very low on the guitar, when I got home with it, I noticed this intolerable buzzing from fretted notes on the 3rd and 4th strings. I noticed the string was vibrating and hitting the frets, so I adjusted the truss rod some. It improved dramatically, but still buzzes if I hit the strings too hard. I really don't want to raise the action anymore, so it's something of a compromise.

Finish is very good actually. My brother dropped the guitar accidentally and there's not a mark on it at all. Still in mint condition. Strap buttons are really great, you don't need strap locks or anything. Strings also do not break easy, I would definitely gig without a backup. Side note: Although I'm not rating it, the expensive Taylor case is actually pretty fragile.

haven't dealt with taylor.

I've been playing 10 years. I own a Gibson ES-335, a Fender Strat, and a Takamine classical. This guitar is the most easily playable acoustic I've ever played. If it were stolen or lost I'd buy another because it really is a fantastic deal. I compared it to every acoustic I could find. The only one that came close was the Gibson L-130, which is another guitar that really prides itself on playability. However, that guitar is more expensive, and I didn't even like it as much as my 214.

2004 model, grand auditorium size acoustic with solid woods throughout (spruce top, sapele back/sides). Satin finish, 1.68 inch nut. Big gotoh style tuners. End strap pin and one on the top side near the heel of the neck. Comes with a nice Taylor hardshell case.

An excellent, lively tone that sounds very hi-fi and modern. Bright, chimey sound with tight bass. A friend of mine describes the bass as throaty-sounding (in a good way). Harmonically rich and bell like. Great for fingerstyle or strumming, but like a lot of Taylors, if you start bashing out chords like Captain Caveman it will start to sound more like a cymbal than a guitar. So go easy! Sounds great live or recorded.

Fantastic, A+!! Flawless in all regards. No complaints. It's got an understated look of quality about it - it's lovely! Low action and easy playing neck unmatched in this price range. It makes me feel more adventurous when I'm playing because it's so easy to play!

This guitar seems like it will last a good long while, although it feels light and delicate. I am definitely cautious with it!

I've been playing for 15 yrs +. For 700 bucks plus tax, I got a great playing, great sounding, solid wood guitar that looks great too. I'm very happy with it!

2003 Taylor 214. I originally bought a Garrison G40, had it for one night and returned it. I found the sounds dead even after replacing the strings on it with new ones, and the neck didn't suit my style of playing (gripping) it. Anyway, i went back to the music store and thought that the Seagull S6+ suited me better, until i tried a bunch of other lines and played Taylors. When i got to the 214, i just couldn't put it down. The sound truly stood out, had a great "feel" and projection to the sound, and the shape of the neck was good. I wasn't looking to spend more money, but in the end, after trying out more brands, i couldn't walk out thinking i found a guitar i truly liked, that i think should last a lifetime. I had to cough up and buy the 214, and have been very pleased with it. (It's only been a weekend but i love it!)

Sitka Spruce top, sapele sides, mahogany neck, ebony fingerboard, i love the sound and feel of the Elixir light strings on it. Lovely shape and flawless satin finish which i prefer over gloss.

Just the guitar i wanted before i knew that's the one i wanted! :-)

Great bass, great projection, clear and bright highs and separation. I was set on getting a Seagull S6 until i played the Taylor 214. In this case, i paid more and got plenty back. It's louder, more sensitive, clearer, has deeper bass than the Garrison G40 i had for one night, or S6 spruce Seagull i had wanted. Well worth the dough i spent on it.

Flawless. I love the satin finish as it makes me "feel" the wood.

Only had it a weekend but i baby all my guitars. No doubt this one should last a lifetime, quality wood and parts from what i can see.

Dont' know yet. So far no issues.

Own a Seagull S12 12 string
1991 Takamine CP132S classic
1992 PRS CE24 electric
other stuff not worth mentioning

214 L3 solid wood with Expression blue pickup system.

As mentioned by Taylor on their webpage, this guitar is great for fingerstyle and does ok with medium strumming. Punchy deep bass and well balanced sound. The pickup is a Taylor expression blue which is a version of their acclaimed expression system but with two sensors instead of three and without the volume and tone controls. This \ downgraded pickup system was a rare blunder on Taylor's behalf, I think they know this by now. It is hissssy at moderate volume levels and is worthless for recording or live performance. Taylor replaced the system with the tried and true Fishman matrix. Which really shines and is dead quite.

Sweet for fingerstyle and handles light strumming well. Don't expect to thrash out with this guitar. Flawless after pickup changed out.

Very well made guitar, fragile as most fine acoustic intruments are.

Taylor's has an impeccable reputation for support and backing their products. Use the 1 800 line and they'll call you in a couple of days.

Wanted a cosy smaller bodied for fingerstyle. It fits the bill. Fell in love with it's tone which is as good as the high dollar ones. Been playing 27 years. Also have a Larivee which is a super sweet dreadnaught plus various pro level electrics.