Taylor’s 400 series guitars have long been built with ovangkol back and sides, but at the 2016 Summer NAMM show the company announced that it will also be offering Indian rosewood as an option for the series. With the exception of various limited editions, Taylor has reserved rosewood for its higher-end models (in particular the 700, 800, and 900 series), so this is welcome news for guitarists wishing for a rosewood Taylor at a more affordable price. We had a chance to check out the new 414ce-R.

The grand auditorium 414 has been in Taylor’s line for many years, available in several configurations. The 414ce-R includes standard 400-series appointments, including white binding on the body and the fingerboard, a rosette of white and black rings, and dot position markers. The guitar has a forward-shifted X-bracing pattern and Taylor’s “relief rout,” which is designed to produce a more responsive top. Like most new Taylors, the 414ce-R includes the company’s Expression System 2 (ES2) pickup system.

Taylor’s grand auditoriums are known for the their versatility, and this 414ce-R demonstrated why. The guitar had a full and muscular sound, equally capable of handling strumming with a pick and more delicate fingerstyle playing, with the bass response and punch that rosewood is known for. Plugged into a Fishman Loudbox Mini, the guitar had a great amplified sound suitable for most performance situations without requiring any further processing.

SPECS: Grand auditorium body with cutaway. Solid Sitka spruce top. Solid indian rosewood back and sides. Ebony fingerboard and bridge. 25.5-inch scale. 1¾-inch nut width. Enclosed nickel tuning machines. Expression System 2 electronics. Made in USA. $2,918 list. Taylorguitars.com

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