Taylor Next-Gen Builder's Edition 324ce Grand Auditorium Acoustic-Electric Guitar

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.

Long-Tenon Neck Joint: Taylor's proprietary long-tenon design features a tenon that protrudes beyond the neck heel and extends deeper into a precision-routed pocket in the body’s neck block. This changes the wood coupling in a way that’s comparable to traditional guitar necks. The long tenon increases the stiffness of the heel, which translates into more low-end resonance and a deeper, warmer, more open sound.

Instant Action Control: The Action Control Neck refines the micro-adjustability of Taylor's standard neck design with a new shimless design that allows a player to make easy, quick micro-adjustments to dial in the string height for any situation. You don’t have to remove the neck or even the strings.

Neo-Tropical Mahogany Top Woods: Harder, denser woods like mahogany and koa that are used on the back and sides of a guitar are sometimes used as tops. Their stiffness initially translates into a bright tone and tends to need more play-in time to open up, but the more a mahogany-top guitar is played, the more it develops overtones that contribute to a fuller, richer sound. A mahogany-top guitar might appeal to rootsy players who like a little extra punchiness in their tone.

Origin: India, Central and South America

Goes Well With: Blues and roots players, anyone who likes an slightly more burly or punchy quality to their tone.

Claria™ Pickup System: Taylor's Claria™ System combines a reimagined under-saddle piezo pickup with a proprietary preamp. Designed to deliver easy plug-and-play acoustic sound in any setting, it was refined alongside live sound engineers, guitar players, and recording professionals in real-world settings over several years. Crafted for reliability and versatility, Claria™ delivers clear, natural sound and features a wide range of tone-shaping control, making it easy to dial in old-school lo-fi warmth, pristine modern detail, and everything in between. Taylor's designers talk about Claria’s™ development and why it will appeal to players.

Claria™ Controls: Volume, Mid Contour & Tone:Central to the Claria™ System design are the simple tone-shaping controls featuring three knobs located discretely in the soundhole: Volume, Mid Contour and Tone. Watch and discover how you can unlock a sweeping range of acoustic sounds with simple tweaks, allowing you to plug in and play with the amplified tone you want in any scenario.

Beveled Cutaway: Released as part of the Builder’s Edition line in 2018, Taylor's beveled cutaway design provides a more player-friendly feel for guitarists who utilize every inch of the fretboard. It features a compound design with a smoothened edge along the corner of the body between the end of the cutaway and the neck heel, providing a more comfortable feel for the fretting hand. The new cutaway design also incorporates a finger bevel on the guitar’s top, a resting surface for the pinky finger near the highest frets of the guitar. Together, these elements allow the player to reach the entire fretboard without changing hand positions.

General

• Number of Strings: 6 String


• Orientation: Right Handed


• Body Shape: Grand Auditorium


• Bracing System: Scalloped V-Class Bracing with Relief Rout


• Cutaway: Beveled Cutaway


• Color: Tobacco Kona Burst


• Electronics: Claria™ Pickup System


• Case/Bag: Taylor Deluxe Hardshell Brown

Body

• Top Wood: Neo-Tropical Mahogany


• Back/Side Wood: Sapele


• Rosette: Faux Pearl Single Ring


• Back Configuration: 2-piece No Wedge


• Body Binding: No Binding; Chamfered Edges


• Armrest: Beveled Neo-tropical Mahogany


• Top Finish: Satin


• Back/Side Finish: Satin

Neck

• Neck Wood: Neo-Tropical Mahogany


• Fretboard Wood: West African Crelicam Ebony


• Neck Profile: Standard Carve


• Fretboard Inlay: Grained Ivoroid Weathervane


• Fretboard Binding: West African Crelicam Ebony


• Neck Finish: Satin

Peghead

• Nut Width: 1-3/4"


• Peghead Veneer Wood: West African Crelicam Ebony


• Scale Length: 25-1/2"


• Peghead Inlay: Grained Ivoroid Weathervane


• Peghead Type: Paddle


• Peghead Binding: None


• Peghead Finish: Satin

Other

• Bridge: West African Crelicam Ebony


• Nut & Saddle: Black Tusq Nut, White Micarta Saddle


• Bridge Pins: West African Crelicam Ebony


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


• Pickguard: None


• Tuners: Taylor Satin Black with Satin Black Buttons


• Strap Pin: Black


• End Pin: Black