By Pappy
I wrote a while back about the Taylor Find Your Fit event and how my fit was a 616CE. It clicked in a way that I had never experienced before where it just felt and sounded like it was made just for me. Fifth Fret writer PT likened the experience to Harry Potter finding his wand at Olivander’s shop where wand after wand was disastrous, but when the right one was picked, the room lit up magically. The wand was perfect for Harry and this guitar was perfect for me.
So after I got home I emailed the good folks at Taylor Guitars and asked if they would be interested in sending me a 616CE to review and to see if the fit was still right or if this was a case similar to trying on clothes in a department store where they look great there, but at home, under your lights… Not so much.
They accepted the proposal and sent me the 616CE. The box arrived and I let it sit for about four hours in my house, still in the box, to give it time to adjust to the temperature (it had been in a sweltering truck all day and my house is not nearly that hot and sudden changes in temperature or humidity to cause some serious damage to any guitar and this was one guitar I definitely did not want to damage. I felt like a kid who snuck out of bed at Christmas, saw the presents, but knew I had to go back to bed otherwise my folks would know I was snooping. My foot was bouncing and I kept staring at the box.
Soon…
Then it was time. I opened it up and pulled out the case.
Let’s talk about cases for just a second here: In Bob Taylor’s book he was talking about how cases usually come in fairly generic sizes that say “fits most X” kind of guitars which actually means “fits no guitar.” Well, it fits no guitar PERFECTLY. And if you’re buying a guitar that is as high-quality as a Taylor is, then the case it’s wrapped in should mirror that quality. So Taylor makes their own cases. You know when you see it in there, but especially when you put the guitar back in the case that it was made specifically for that size. There’s no wiggle room for the guitar to bang around in and everything from the pad under the headstock to the luxuriousness of the lining to the excellent stitching around the case to the awesome outside material to the (my favorite) heavily padded handle, this guitar case is the best guitar case I have ever seen. It’s weighty, but not overly so (I bet the fact there’s a fully hollow guitar inside helps out quite a bit) and it’s comfortable to carry around.
And it’s beautiful.
Also, not to sound weird or anything, but when I pulled it out it smelled new (the case). I could still smell the glue and it reminded me of buying a new car where there is no bad histories, missed oil changes, wrecks, etc. Just potential and that new car smell to reinforce the fact that this is brand new.
The guitar inside was stunning too! The 616CE features flamed big leaf maple back and sides (the flame sides poke out from the case a bit almost like a tease of what’s to come when you pull the guitar out), a beautiful Sitka Spruce top, an abalone soundhole rosette, an Indian Rosewood headstock overlay, white binding, tusq nut and saddle, 20 frets and the Taylor Expression System.
As far as wood goes, I’ve never seen better examples of them in my life. There are small things with the guitar I have on loan that I think are particularly interesting and lend a LOT of “natural” feel to the mix. For one thing, the grain in the Spruce top is not uniformly heading in the same direction. There’s one small part where there’s a bit of an upswing and then back down to where it was going. I like little imperfections like this because it makes the wood look more REAL (which it is) and less fake. Perfect stuff looks fake to me because, hey, nothing’s perfect all around. On the back of the guitar the flame doesn’t go all the way to the edge, and this is another example that I like because if the flame (which is already huge) went all the way to the end, it would look artificial.
No, there are little pieces of this that impact nothing tonally, but just remind you that you’re playing a real guitar, not something concocted in a lab using artificial materials.
The feel of the guitar was top notch. Taylor is known for making some of the best guitars in the world and it was their necks in particular that gained them sales in the beginning because they were comfortable. Not too thick, like vintage guitars, not so thin your hand would cramp after a while of playing, but occupying a nice middle ground where playing chords was just as easy as playing leads and you weren't hindered in any way by the thickness.
Notes jumped off the fretboard and was constant in quality the entire way up the neck. There was no buzz and the action wasn't high at all. Even when you strummed aggressively, it took what you had and asked for more. The fragile appearance is a trick and one I think that is mainly associated with the price. You don't want to risk hurting it because you spent a good chunk of money on it, NOT because it can't take it. It can take it.
Finger-picking was easy and the notes sounded beautiful, hybrid picking was great and featured a very balanced tone as opposed to other guitars that would either shine on the treble end of the scale, leaving the bass unarticulated or the bass side drowning out the treble's melody. And, of course, when strumming, everything leapt out in a very nice balance and little things you do, the nuances of your playing, come through nicely. Open chords sounded lush and full, octaves didn't sound thin and weak comparatively, even power chords shined on this guitar.
Sound-wise, the guitar was flat-out amazing. I would LOVE to bring out a counter-point, a statement that brings balance and lets you know that I'm not biased, but I am. I have to be, because this guitar was picked out of the litter after multiple attempts and clicked with me more than any other guitar in the line (and the history of my playing). It is the perfect guitar for me and when I was playing it to review, I honestly asked myself why there wasn't more reviews for this guitar out there and why other guitars were so popular? I mean, I know that other brands are popular because of this or that, but even within Taylor Guitars, this guitar is poorly represented by buyers on the Internet. Could it be the flamed maple that's too eye-catching, or the fact that it doesn't featured tried-and-true or "vintage correct" wood pairings? Could it be because Taylor Guitars is famous mainly for the slightly smaller 14 size? The price can't be the issue because there are other guitars that are of equal price or more that have more of a vocal group on the net, so really, what's the deal?
Well, whatever the reason, this guitar is a hidden gem that isn't quite so hidden. It stands out in the crowd visually thanks to its beautiful appointments and also sonically by producing some seriously beautiful tones that have a force, presence, beauty and power that other acoustics may have in one area or another, but rarely all and all together as amazingly as this one. This isn't a diamond in a rough, this is a diamond in a room where you aren't looking for a diamond right now because you're really into rubies. This guitar will almost certainly make any player immensely happy and if you get the opportunity, I implore you to try it out. I was almost certain I would prefer something a little more "accepted" as in rosewood and spruce in a 14 size body, but when I played the 616CE, I was floored, so do yourself a favor and try to forget how unique it is. Close your eyes and play and see what YOU think.
Ah, but don't take my word for it. I recorded a ton of stuff with this guitar, a bunch of sound samples showing off different aspects of the guitar and two videos. I had fully intended and even attempted to take photographs, but because I was using a different camera in a way I wasn't used to, I had neglected to notice that the focus was high (which is great for child portraits) and because of that, most of the pictures looked fuzzy and was unusable. So I asked Taylor for a picture and they sent me this head-to-toe of the guitar, still looking magnificent.
Hey, I promise here and now that when I get mine (and I do plan to get my own, but with some custom appointments from their Built to Order catalog. I'm currently saving up), I will photograph it a LOT and post pictures and probably even more videos. I seriously doubt it will sound different as all of my customizations are cosmetic because I REALLY don't want to change the sound, so I'll leave sound samples out of my future review for my own custom 616CE.
Listen to the samples, watch the videos, drool over the photos and see for yourself why I'm so head-over-heels for this slice of heaven that was delivered to my doorstep.
Taylor 616CE Paper Moon by Fifth Fret
Taylor 616C Power Chords and Octaves by Fifth Fret
Taylor 616CE Fast Stuff by Fifth Fret
Taylor 616E Hybrid Picking by Fifth Fret
Taylor 616CE Flatpicker's Delight by Fifth Fret
Taylor 616CE Caprice by Fifth Fret
Taylor 616CE Olde English 800 (sans vocals) by Fifth Fret
XXX---XXX
This post is brought to you by Guitar Noize! Guitar Noize is one of my favorite blogs. It's also one of the biggest guitar blogs out there offering readers news, reviews, giveaways, lessons, press releases, interviews, an ebook on expanding your skills and it's all wrapped up in a slick page design (seriously, guitar cords as borders? That's awesome). Check them out, put them in your RSS reader (like Google Reader) so you can read all the posts and stay up to date in the world of guitar.
The feel of the guitar was top notch. Taylor is known for making some of the best guitars in the world and it was their necks in particular that gained them sales in the beginning because they were comfortable. Not too thick, like vintage guitars, not so thin your hand would cramp after a while of playing, but occupying a nice middle ground where playing chords was just as easy as playing leads and you weren't hindered in any way by the thickness.
Notes jumped off the fretboard and was constant in quality the entire way up the neck. There was no buzz and the action wasn't high at all. Even when you strummed aggressively, it took what you had and asked for more. The fragile appearance is a trick and one I think that is mainly associated with the price. You don't want to risk hurting it because you spent a good chunk of money on it, NOT because it can't take it. It can take it.
Finger-picking was easy and the notes sounded beautiful, hybrid picking was great and featured a very balanced tone as opposed to other guitars that would either shine on the treble end of the scale, leaving the bass unarticulated or the bass side drowning out the treble's melody. And, of course, when strumming, everything leapt out in a very nice balance and little things you do, the nuances of your playing, come through nicely. Open chords sounded lush and full, octaves didn't sound thin and weak comparatively, even power chords shined on this guitar.
Sound-wise, the guitar was flat-out amazing. I would LOVE to bring out a counter-point, a statement that brings balance and lets you know that I'm not biased, but I am. I have to be, because this guitar was picked out of the litter after multiple attempts and clicked with me more than any other guitar in the line (and the history of my playing). It is the perfect guitar for me and when I was playing it to review, I honestly asked myself why there wasn't more reviews for this guitar out there and why other guitars were so popular? I mean, I know that other brands are popular because of this or that, but even within Taylor Guitars, this guitar is poorly represented by buyers on the Internet. Could it be the flamed maple that's too eye-catching, or the fact that it doesn't featured tried-and-true or "vintage correct" wood pairings? Could it be because Taylor Guitars is famous mainly for the slightly smaller 14 size? The price can't be the issue because there are other guitars that are of equal price or more that have more of a vocal group on the net, so really, what's the deal?
Well, whatever the reason, this guitar is a hidden gem that isn't quite so hidden. It stands out in the crowd visually thanks to its beautiful appointments and also sonically by producing some seriously beautiful tones that have a force, presence, beauty and power that other acoustics may have in one area or another, but rarely all and all together as amazingly as this one. This isn't a diamond in a rough, this is a diamond in a room where you aren't looking for a diamond right now because you're really into rubies. This guitar will almost certainly make any player immensely happy and if you get the opportunity, I implore you to try it out. I was almost certain I would prefer something a little more "accepted" as in rosewood and spruce in a 14 size body, but when I played the 616CE, I was floored, so do yourself a favor and try to forget how unique it is. Close your eyes and play and see what YOU think.
Ah, but don't take my word for it. I recorded a ton of stuff with this guitar, a bunch of sound samples showing off different aspects of the guitar and two videos. I had fully intended and even attempted to take photographs, but because I was using a different camera in a way I wasn't used to, I had neglected to notice that the focus was high (which is great for child portraits) and because of that, most of the pictures looked fuzzy and was unusable. So I asked Taylor for a picture and they sent me this head-to-toe of the guitar, still looking magnificent.
 |
| Courtesy Taylor Guitars |
Hey, I promise here and now that when I get mine (and I do plan to get my own, but with some custom appointments from their Built to Order catalog. I'm currently saving up), I will photograph it a LOT and post pictures and probably even more videos. I seriously doubt it will sound different as all of my customizations are cosmetic because I REALLY don't want to change the sound, so I'll leave sound samples out of my future review for my own custom 616CE.
Listen to the samples, watch the videos, drool over the photos and see for yourself why I'm so head-over-heels for this slice of heaven that was delivered to my doorstep.
Taylor 616CE Paper Moon by Fifth Fret
Taylor 616C Power Chords and Octaves by Fifth Fret
Taylor 616CE Fast Stuff by Fifth Fret
Taylor 616E Hybrid Picking by Fifth Fret
Taylor 616CE Flatpicker's Delight by Fifth Fret
Taylor 616CE Caprice by Fifth Fret
Taylor 616CE Olde English 800 (sans vocals) by Fifth Fret
XXX---XXX
This post is brought to you by Guitar Noize! Guitar Noize is one of my favorite blogs. It's also one of the biggest guitar blogs out there offering readers news, reviews, giveaways, lessons, press releases, interviews, an ebook on expanding your skills and it's all wrapped up in a slick page design (seriously, guitar cords as borders? That's awesome). Check them out, put them in your RSS reader (like Google Reader) so you can read all the posts and stay up to date in the world of guitar.
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