Taylor Guitars 455-CE

This is a Taylor 455CE, with Indian Rosewood sidea and back, with a glossy finish on the top, back, and sides, satin finish on the neck. Purchased from the Music Emporium in Lexington, MA. Great staff, all high end stuff, much wider acoustic selection than you'll find at any of the chains. I spent a couple of hours playing a 355CE, 355CE Koa, and a 454CE (the Grand Auditorium), and picked this one out of the bunch. This particular guitar was a special run from 2003, with the Indian Rosewood instead of the Ovangkol(sp?). Ebony board, spruce top, ebony bridge, etc. This guitar replaces an Alvarez AJ60SC, which is great Korean made 12 string for the money (about $700), but didn't have the definition, ring, and playability of the Taylor 455CE. The Taylor ES sound system is also much better than the Alvarez's, although the Alvarez did have an on board tuner, which was kind of cool. Sold the Alvarez on EBay. The Taylor Expression System also provides only three knobs, Vol, Tone, Bass, so it looks clean on the guitar. The neck itself is what I would call wide/thin. If you like the older chunky Martin necks, you probably won't like this one, although with the satin finish, it plays very easily. Came with a very sturdy hardshell case.

This guitar is a secondary one for me, as I am mostly an electric blues/rock player, many Strats and a couple of high end Gibsons. I use this for playing around the house, writing new material, tracks on my home recording set-up, etc. I haven't gigged out with it yet, although I'm sure I will at some point. I use a Crate 125D acoustic amp, and the Taylor ES system sounds great through it, and it also sounds great straight through my Mackie PA with JBL EON's PA system. The sound of the guitar is pristine, and highly defined. It has a great, clear ring to it. It is mellower, even quietier, than my one Martin, an MC28 (Grand Auditorium), which kind of suprised me. It's not as big and loud as I would expect a jumbo bodied 12 string to be, but it does sound great.

The factory set was ok, action was a little high for me, especially because it's a 12 string. I had the guys at Music Emporium shave a couple of 32nd's off of the bottom of the bridge saddle, now the action is fine. It's a joy to play, one of those guitars that you just keep going on, and all of a sudden it's an hour later.

I don't think there will be an particular issues in the reliability/durability department. The main issue with any acoustic guitar is the challenge of controlling the environment. I have all of my guitars hanging on a wall in my office, which is not really recommended, but I keep the humidity at arond 48-52% year round. I like to look at them, and just grab one and play it, not drag it out of a case. If your going to do this with any fine acoustic instrument, you have to control the environment properly.

Haven't dealt with Taylor, but I'm not concerned. Read a couple of reviews about premature fretware on Taylors, but I doubt that will be an issue as this is not my primary instrument. Also, the local dealer, Music Emporium, has been around forever, and I'm confident that they will provide support as well.

I've been playing for over 35 years (yikes!), from Sabbath to SRV, Hendrix, Clapton, Beck, and Pink Floyd. If the guitar was stolen, I would probably get another one, but wouldn't find the deal that I got on this one. Half of the fun of buying a new guitar is the hunt! You'd be hard pressed to find a high end guitar with these features, overall sound and playability for $1,400. If Martin had a guitar in this price range and category, I would check it out, but they don't.

This is a Fall 2003 Limited Edition model (designated 455ce-L2), launched to promote the new Neve designed Expression System. It has Rosewood back and sides, rather than the standard Ovangkol on the 400 series. The body is the Jumbo shape, but still fairly shallow and manageable. The 455 has few adornments other than pearl dot inlays down the ebony fingerboard. This model has Grover tuners, but I believe 2004 models use Taylor's own new tuners. The spruce top has a gloss finish, as have the back and sides, unlike the standard 400s.

I bought this guitar purely for the sound and I've owned all sorts of 12-strings in the past 30 years from the cheap end (Kay and Eko) right through Ovations, Guilds and Martins. Wonderful power and sustain; warm sound; far better than the usual tinkly, tinny, lap-top pianola sound of some 12 strings. The beauty of this guitar, though, is the Expession System electronics. Taylor provide a comprehensive guide to their ES system with an available DVD for demos and set-up suggestions. Personally, I don't like a lot of EQ and usually mike up my Martin HD28 for better reproduction of the nuances of the guitar. The Taylor is an absolute pleasure to plug in. I've played it on a small 15watt Carlsboro practice amp, and gigged using a Fender Acoustasonic 160 watt and a Marshall ASD100. There is only one word to describe the ES system: superb. This guitar has made me a Taylor convert. I've got two Gibsons (J45 Rosewood and J185 Custom Shop) that I play "plugged" and I like the neutral Gibson pick-ups, but this Taylor is fantastic.

I have to admit that I can find nothing wrong with the finish and build quality of this Taylor and I'm a pretty fussy guy. Right down to the hard case, the attention to detail and quality is exemplary. I've always found something wrong with every Gibson or Martin I've ever owned, even if it's something minor like a slightly misaligned clasp on the hardcase, or a small glue overflow on a neck join, but there's nothing on this Taylor.
The action is slightly high at the bottom of the neck. It's within manufacturer recommended tolerances but a tad high for a 12-string for my liking. Next set of strings I'll shave a little of the bridge. Taylors have a really solid feel and this guitar's no exception. The neck feels slightly narrower at the top than other Taylors I've played but still has that same wide, solid feel that's distinctive. It's really noticeable putting down my Gibson J45 and picking up the Taylor, but I'm growing to like it.

Haven't owned it long enough to put it to the test, but it oozes solidity and durability.

Taylor documentation is impressive. Much better website than Gibson or Guild; much tidier and more organised website than Martin. I've found the company excellent to deal with so far. My only gripe would be that their quarterly magazine Wood & Steel is not automatically mailed to non-USA owners. I read it online but I'd like to have hardcopy to browse.

I'll reiterate what I've already said. This guitar has converted me to Taylor after being a Martin player for 30 years and a huge Gibson fan. I've owned over 20 acoustic guitars and rarely kept any one of them longer than 4 or 5 years. I buy "player's" instruments. I don't go for fancy, elaborate "specials", or top end models. After many of years of playing I've settled on a small stable of 5 or 6 guitars that are good enough and pleasurable enough for me to keep them as long-term investments to play and cherish. This Taylor is one of them. I'll probably buy a 410ce or a 710ce in the near future. Other than that I have the two Gibsons mentioned above, a Martin HD28, and an Ovation Balladeer. I guess I'd only swap or sell this Taylor for something like a hand-made Musser, but that's serious money! I'll give this guitar 10 because of the phenomenal price I got it for. I'd think twice about paying full retail even though the guitar is a quality instrument.

2001 455ce made in USA. 12-string. Solid top, good electronics(fishman onboard prefix plus) Ovangkol back and sides, sitka spruce top, mohogany neck with ebony fretboard, rosewood headstock. Gloss finish top with satin finish back and sides. Jumbo body style. Grover tuners. Mid sized neck. Comes with Taylor SKB case.

Great full sound. Like rosewood. Great for heavy rhythmic strumming and light strumming. Sounds incredible through though PA system.

The guitar has great low action. No buzzing! Perfect condition. No factory flaws.

Great for live playing. Looks like it will last a LONG TIME! Would use it in a gig without a backup anyday.

Never had any problems with the guitar in the first place. Taylor always sends the latest catologes and sent me a few free pick guards. (one of which I put on my other Taylor)

Been play a little over two years own a Taylor 614ce as well and plan on buying more in the future. If it were stolen I would buy it again. If I could change anything about it I would like to have an abolone inlay rosette. Other than that It's perfect. GO BUY ONE!!!!