Hello all,
I'm new to this forum and while I've purchased a number of Taylor guitars over the years to give as gifts (4, I think), I’ve never owned one myself until now.
I have had my eye on a v-class 914ce since sometime last fall and about a month ago when I thought I was 'ready' to take the plunge, I learned about the 2018 v-class K14ce Builder's Edition.
I started reading, watching reviews, etc. I read or watched everything I could find. The things that cinched it for me (apart from all the glowing kudos it’s receiving) included the torrefied top, vine inlay and carved cutaway. The Koa back and sides would offer a new tonal palette over my existing instruments. I've never owned anything with a 'satin' finish so I never gave this aspect much thought.
It’s been about a week now since it arrived. Visually, it’s stunning. Sonically it is unique and has a g reat deal to offer. It feels great in the hand and plays beautifully. So, you might be inclined to think it’s the perfect flattop… but if you'll indulge a newbie, I have some questions I’d like to pose to those of you who also own one and have more experience with it.
First the finish; I’m having a hard time understanding where the ‘silent’ part comes in. I’m not trying to bait anyone or come off as a troll. I honestly don’t get it. Handling this guitar creates a lot more surface noise than any of my other acoustic instruments (all finished in gloss nitro). And please don’t shoot me for this, but I’ve gone so far as to ask Taylor about polishing it. Can any owners out there tell me what your thoughts on this are? Do you find it quieter to the point of deserving this moniker? And if so, how? e.g. under what conditions?
The second question I have is what are your thoughts on how the cutaway carve was done? Unlike the finish, I find this feature to be very functional as it really opens up access to the upper registers. But the wide, black transition into open end-grain is really strange and somewhat unsightly; making it look really out of place to me. What puzzles me is why no-one who has reviewed this guitar has said a single word about how this was done. Granted, I had the instrument for several days before I noticed it, but I believe that this is largely due to the extremely dark finish inside the cutaway…
Lastly, is there anyone out there with both the K14ce BE, and a 914ce both with V-class? If so, if you had to choose only one of these based on your ability to side-by-side them, which would it be and why? I know this is a tough question, since player style/preference is infinitely diverse… but from your perspective if you have a ‘favorite’ which one is it?
Thank you in advance for taking the time to read this and for any thoughts you are willing to share…
-Mark
