NGD-K24ce BE and Academy 12

[Frettingflyer]

While sitting home during the pandemic and talking things over with the family, we decided we should start spending a little(we had stopped) and to support local businesses if at all possible( plush some charities of course). Wouldn’t you know my favorite local business to support would be my FLGS, which is closed, but it turns out the owner can allow people in by appointment so,
He had a nice used 514ce LTD with a cedar top, a new 912ce BE, 717 BE, 324ce BE and a K24ce BE. My plan was to sell my 522ce to ease the financial pain and have the K24ce if it spoke to me to be my hard wood top guitar. The K24 blew me away, and I had my K14 with me to compare. They had very different sounds in spite of both being KOA back and sides. Turns out the 522 sounds very different as well and my wife won’t let me sell, so we added a K24ce BE to the stable.
Since Taylor has the BOGO offer, I had planned another GS Mini for Guitars 4 Vets, a great charity, but there were none. I picked up an Academy 12, and it played very well, sounded good and the deal was done. As it turns out, my younger son loves the Academy, so it is sticking around too and another guitar will be donated when the pandemic is over. My son is playing acoustic more than ever and I must admit to grabbing the Academy for the couch sometimes. Taylor makes great guitars all up and down the lineup.
All of the guitars I tried were great, but in the end the K24 BE just blew me away. It has been getting most of my play in standard tuning the last almost 2 weeks and is a fantastic sounding and playing guitar. Incredible sustain, sounds good even capoed above the 5th fret(which I don’t do much but it still matters) and feels great.
I don’t have many pics, took a couple a bit before the rain moved in and am attaching.
Shots with the K14 and also one with the Academy. Not sure how to rotate them on here, they were upright when I selected them. I chose the size for Shutterbug so he can’t see them from space....

[mgap]

Nice Frettingflyer, very nice.

[TaylorGirl]

Congratulations on your new Taylors, FF! Enjoy your time with them....the wood is so beautiful. I've always loved koa.

[Strumming Fool]

Congrats - what a sweet pair of guitars!

[boneuphtoner]

Way to go Frettingflyer!  Quite a beautiful looking pair you have there!

Realizing these are different body sizes in comparing the 522 versus your K24, can you comment on the tonal difference in the all-hog versus the all-koa?  Specifically hardwood top to hardwood top.  I’ve heard Koa is more brilliant than mahogany but the thing I love about every hog top I’ve played is how it smooths out your tone.  And at least in my limited experience, the Taylor hog topped guitars I’ve owned and tried were more similar than they differed in comparing Back/sides with Blackwood (supposedly related to koa), urban ash, and the all-hog.  I’m specifically wondering how the koa top stacks up to the hog tops in the smoothing out of your tone.

[DennisG]

Big congratulations!

Just curious, what was the 912-BE like?

[Frettingflyer]

Way to go Frettingflyer!  Quite a beautiful looking pair you have there!

Realizing these are different body sizes in comparing the 522 versus your K24, can you comment on the tonal difference in the all-hog versus the all-koa?  Specifically hardwood top to hardwood top.  I’ve heard Koa is more brilliant than mahogany but the thing I love about every hog top I’ve played is how it smooths out your tone.  And at least in my limited experience, the Taylor hog topped guitars I’ve owned and tried were more similar than they differed in comparing Back/sides with Blackwood (supposedly related to koa), urban ash, and the all-hog.  I’m specifically wondering how the koa top stacks up to the hog tops in the smoothing out of your tone.

Hi Boneuphtoner, glad to try here, but so hard to describe tone. Thank you for the excuse to play them this morning, not that I need much encouragement. The KOA is much “brighter” or maybe “brilliant” is the word compared to the “darker” tone of the all hog. So hard to describe the difference but so apparent when played. To add fuel to the fire, the urban ash sounded great to me when I played it in the store and I am very impressed with what Taylor has done there.
As for smoothing out tone, I am not sure how to quantify that? I hear what you are saying in the hog, but while the koa is more brilliant, it is still so well balanced and I would not call it harsh, Tinny or in any way unpleasant. I do think the hog probably has more of what you refer to though both would seem that way compared to spruce, if that makes sense?
I was/am surprised by how different the two hardwoods are, fwiw.

[Frettingflyer]

Big congratulations!

Just curious, what was the 912-BE like?

Hi Dennis, the 912-BE was excellent, with the expected rosewood/spruce sound and overtones, but with comfort to the extreme. It certainly wasn’t enough to move me off my 812ce, but I was there because the K24 had the sound I was looking for. The 912 played great, sounded great and played very well up the neck as you expect with Taylor v-class braces and Taylor necks. Sounded good with the capo on the 5th as well, but that is as high as I took it on that one. The armrest on the GC is sweet and the rounded edges on the BE fretboards are really nice if you play with your fretting thumb over onto the 6th string a lot.
Hopefully the pandemic ends soon enough and you can go find one to play!

[zeebow]

While sitting home during the pandemic and talking things over with the family, we decided we should start spending a little(we had stopped) and to support local businesses if at all possible( plush some charities of course). Wouldn’t you know my favorite local business to support would be my FLGS, which is closed, but it turns out the owner can allow people in by appointment so,
He had a nice used 514ce LTD with a cedar top, a new 912ce BE, 717 BE, 324ce BE and a K24ce BE. My plan was to sell my 522ce to ease the financial pain and have the K24ce if it spoke to me to be my hard wood top guitar. The K24 blew me away, and I had my K14 with me to compare. They had very different sounds in spite of both being KOA back and sides. Turns out the 522 sounds very different as well and my wife won’t let me sell, so we added a K24ce BE to the stable.
Since Taylor has the BOGO offer, I had planned another GS Mini for Guitars 4 Vets, a great charity, but there were none. I picked up an Academy 12, and it played very well, sounded good and the deal was done. As it turns out, my younger son loves the Academy, so it is sticking around too and another guitar will be donated when the pandemic is over. My son is playing acoustic more than ever and I must admit to grabbing the Academy for the couch sometimes. Taylor makes great guitars all up and down the lineup.
All of the guitars I tried were great, but in the end the K24 BE just blew me away. It has been getting most of my play in standard tuning the last almost 2 weeks and is a fantastic sounding and playing guitar. Incredible sustain, sounds good even capoed above the 5th fret(which I don’t do much but it still matters) and feels great.
I don’t have many pics, took a couple a bit before the rain moved in and am attaching.
Shots with the K14 and also one with the Academy. Not sure how to rotate them on here, they were upright when I selected them. I chose the size for Shutterbug so he can’t see them from space....

wow!!! congrats! the k14 is so pretty, i almost bought one too!

i made a thread about how to post photos btw http://www.unofficialtaylorguitarforum.com/index.php?topic=10197.0