Taylor 314ce Studio Acoustic-Electric Guitar - Natural

Grand Auditorium Body: Taylor's most popular and versatile body shape, the mid-size Grand Auditorium arrived in 1994 bearing refined proportions that fell between a Dreadnought and Grand Concert. While the bigger Dreadnought was traditionally considered a flatpicker’s guitar and the smaller Grand Concert catered to fingerstylists, the GA was designed to deliver on both fronts. The shape produced an original acoustic voice that was big enough to handle medium-strength picking and strumming, yet with impressive balance across the tonal spectrum, especially in the midrange, producing clear, well-defined notes that suited both strumming and fingerstyle playing. The GA’s overall presence tracks well with other instruments both in a studio mix and on stage, and singer-songwriters have embraced its utility both for composing and traveling with one guitar. Many people want a single guitar that can cover a variety of styles, which is why the GA continues to be Taylor's bestselling shape. If you want a great all-purpose guitar, the multi-dimensional GA won’t let you down.

Grand Auditorium Body Specifications: Body Length: 20" / Body Width: 16" / Body Depth: 4 5/8"

Sapele Body Wood: Sapele’s tonal output is consistent and balanced across the tonal spectrum, making it compatible with a diverse range of playing styles. It’s comparable to mahogany but its higher density tends to produce a slightly brighter sound with more top-end shimmer.

Origin: Central Africa

Sound: An alternative tonewood that joined the Taylor fold over a decade ago. It’s sometimes mistakenly referred to as African mahogany because it closely resembles the West African wood khaya, which is commercially known as African mahogany. Sapele is a highly sustainable, relatively fast-growing wood. Tonally, it does everything that mahogany does, with a little extra treble zing. Taylor will be able to offer it for a long, long time.

Goes Well With: Everything. Like ovangkol, it’s a great all-purpose tonewood that will deliver a consistent, balanced tone in a variety of playing applications, from fingerstyle to strumming.

Torrefied Spruce Top Wood: By far the most popular and common wood used for acoustic guitar tops, spruce has a long heritage in the music world. In typical Taylor style, Taylor developed their signature recipe for a process called “torrefaction” to make spruce sound even richer and more sophisticated, adding a new dimension to this much-loved wood.

Torrefaction is a process in which spruce tops (before being added to guitar bodies) are roasted in ovens typically used for drying out wood so that it can be worked. The roasting process lends the wood a slightly darker visual hue while also altering its structure slightly to give it new sonic traits. In particular, torrefied spruce tops tend to sound warmer and sweeter, giving them a played-in quality you would expect from a much older piece of wood. While torrefaction cannot replicate the effects of decades of age and play, it does provide a touch of extra sonic depth without losing spruce’s trademark clarity, articulation or volume.

Origin: Canada and Alaska

Goes Well With: Virtually all musical genres and playing styles.

Expression System® 2: The Taylor Expression System® 2 (ES2) is a revolutionary pickup design that delivers the latest in Taylor’s ongoing innovation in acoustic guitar amplification. The heart of the Expression System 2 is Taylor’s patented behind-the-saddle pickup, which features three uniquely positioned and individually calibrated pickup sensors. The location of the sensors enables a more dynamic range of acoustic sound to be captured than ever before. Together with Taylor’s custom-designed “professional audio”-grade preamp, this system produces exceptional amplified tone and responsiveness. On stage through a PA, plugged into your favorite acoustic amplifier, or direct into recording software, the Expression System 2 faithfully conveys the voice of your Taylor guitar.

Venetian Cutaway: The Venetian cutaway is known for its soft, round lines. The sloping peak of the cutaway will vary depending on the shape of the body. The Grand Concert and Grand Auditorium have a steeper slope, while the Dreadnought is a bit flatter. Taylor's Grand Concert nylon-string models also feature a subtle, flatter slope, while Taylor's 200 Series cutaway models incorporate their flattest slope.

V-Class Bracing: Taylor's patented V-Class bracing is a revolutionary new pattern — a new sonic engine — that marks a major shift away from traditional steel-string bracing patterns. By allowing the soundboard to flex naturally while maintaining rigidity along the center (in the direction of the strings), V-Class helps enhance the volume and sustain. It also creates a more orderly response from the soundboard. Up and down the fretboard, notes are full, true and consistent, with more harmonic agreement. It represents an entirely new design platform that can be adapted to different body styles in different ways to infuse each with a unique sonic personality.

General

• Number of Strings: 6 String


• Orientation: Right Handed


• Body Shape: Grand Auditorium


• Bracing System: V-Class Bracing


• Cutaway: Venetian Cutaway


• Color: Natural


• Electronics: Expression System® 2


• Case/Bag: Structured Gig Bag

Body

• Top Wood: Torrefied Spruce


• Back/Side Wood: Sapele


• Rosette: Black Plastic 3 Ring


• Back Configuration: 2-piece No Wedge


• Body Binding: No Binding; Chamfered Edges


• Armrest: None


• Top: Finish Gloss


• Back/Side: Finish Gloss

Neck

• Neck Wood: Neo-Tropical Mahogany


• Fretboard Wood: West African Crelicam Ebony


• Neck Profile: Standard Carve


• Fretboard Inlay: Faux Pearl 4mm Dots


• Fretboard Binding: None


• Neck Finish: Satin

Peghead

• Nut Width: 1-11/16"


• Peghead Veneer Wood: West African Crelicam Ebony


• Scale Length: 25-1/2"


• Peghead Inlay: None


• Peghead Type: Paddle


• Peghead Binding: None


• Peghead Finish: Satin

Other

• Bridge: West African Crelicam Ebony


• Nut & Saddle: White NuBone Nut, White Micarta Saddle


• Bridge Pins: Black ABS Plastic


• Strings: D'Addario XS Coated Phosphor Bronze Light (.012 - .053)


• Pickguard: Tortoise


• Tuners: Taylor Nickel with Nickel Buttons


• Strap Pin: Nickel


• End Pin: Black