Unofficial Taylor Guitar Forum - UTGF
Taylor Acoustic & Electric Guitars => Taylor Acoustic & Electric Guitars => Topic started by: jrporter on January 21, 2014, 02:57:40 PM
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Bob Taylor previews the transition.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HcfVJNOspo
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the A string on that 900 series could use a haircut
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HcfVJNOspo#t=73 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HcfVJNOspo#t=73)
hopefully the coating on the HD PBs won't have as much of a tendency to fuzz up
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Let me be the first -- and I do mean the first -- to say thank you for posting that. It was very interesting and illuminating to hear Bob's thoughts on the direction the company is headed. Bob's a humble guy and he seems to recognize that Taylor guitars can be better than ever with Andy at the helm.
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Let me be the first -- and I do mean the first -- to say thank you for posting that. It was very interesting and illuminating to hear Bob's thoughts on the direction the company is headed. Bob's a humble guy and he seems to recognize that Taylor guitars can be better than ever with Andy at the helm.
My exact thoughts. Wow...kind of like a "goodbye" of sorts. I know that Andy will be great for the company though.
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It did feel like Goodbye and Bob looks much older than some of the videos I've seen !
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Thanks for posting the link, jrporter! It's a bittersweet message, but I truly admire Bob Taylor. He is an impressive businessman, and I wish Bob and Andy the best as Taylor forges forward in the years ahead. :)
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Thanks for posting. :-) Very interesting.
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That was special.
I'm glad I had a chance to meet Andy Powers. Have never met Bob Taylor and I am sorry for that.
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There is a man that can speak from his heart. Bob knows what he wants but knows that vision belongs to the young, he knows that he will need to let go at some point. Hopefully he found the man to do.
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It did feel like Goodbye and Bob looks much older than some of the videos I've seen !
I was thinking the same thing. Does anyone know if a changing of the guard is imminent???
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Well done video... Looks like the plan is in place.
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I think its more of a transition from Larry Breedlove to the younger and, dare I say, more talented Andy Powers as chief creative luthier force in the company, rather than some form of corporate shake-up. I think Bob has stepped back a bit from guitar design for a while now, in favor of devoting his energy to projects such as sourcing sustainable supplies of wood (ebony,mahogany, for ex) and other major projects of that ilk.
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Very cool. The video was very well done -- reminds me of the great ads, website, and catalogs they did 10-15 years ago that helped draw me in to Taylor as a premium guitar brand. I feel that has been missing in recent years so I'm hoping this is a return to form.
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I love the factory direction, to be sure. But something in me is a bit sad. I "get it," of course, but am a bit sad, nevertheless, that the man who is the name is pulling back. The "goodbye" tone is not what I was expecting...
Edward
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The transition has been in the making for a while now, as most know. I sure respect the process that Bob has led in this "passing of the torch." All that I've been hearing and reading, and especially the handy work of Andy Powers has been impressive. Taylor Guitars will be in good hands for a long time it looks like!
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... Does anyone know if a changing of the guard is imminent???
some feel it's already happened
http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=326196 (http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=326196)
from how it appears, it looks like Andy has been involved
with Taylor for at least the past 3 full years & likely longer -
here is the range of instruments Andy's already built
http://www.andypowersinstruments.com/models.html (http://www.andypowersinstruments.com/models.html)
of special note, to me, are the armrest bevel, neck heel
body taper, single cut semi hollow body & ukuleles
when Andy joined Taylor, from my perspective, the "deal" was all but "done" -
what Bob has accomplished in the last 40 years is epic, imho, for a large scale guitar builder
in that through various innovative processes & being able to responsibly source & continuing
to able to use materials that other builders have stopped using for the most part because
the way it has always been done could not be sustainable & possibly not profitable
Bob has provided Andy with the tools to be able to, in essence, build Andy's
guitars on a much larger scale & for them to be more accessible to more players -
Bob has already stated where he stands & what Andy's role in the company is
The 13 fret, then "jumbo", prototype for Zac Brown, prototype X10s for David Mayfield,
Sonia Leigh's 514ce "Jackson", the redesigned 520 & 700s, the acoustic line being
phased into the standard series, the discontinuation of the solid body, baritone &
pruning of other models is all creating a much clearer idea of the big picture, to me
whether an official "statement" & "changing of the guard" is released at NAMM or not
doesn't mean anything to me, in & of itself, because it will still be Taylor Quality Guitars -
change happens, Matt Guzzetta & Bob Zink have retired, there has been a new VP of sales,
director of marketing, artist relations manager ... the next round of players have come together
Bob has laid the ground work & the journey has been an amazing one & i think that even after
he officially retires, Bob will always be involved with his company in some way shape or form -
he'll just have a lot more freedom to do what he enjoys doing &
there may not necessarily be "strings attached" to some of them
"the next 40" has already started -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HcfVJNOspo#t=176 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HcfVJNOspo#t=176)
to me, these words clarify what has been happening in the past few years, where it's going now &
i think that what's going to happen is next is going be to be like the second half of a 1/4 mile pass :o
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Happy Sad 8) My first Taylor was a 2000 Ltd.810ce LOTF and that was my intro. to the higher end price range guitars. I have had around 40 Taylors since 2001 and keep 6 at this time along with some Martins. I even recently aquired a 1976 815 Taylor , I always wanted a personally hand built by Bob, and found # 253. Built like a rock I know will be around 100 years from now. And I do have 1 Andy Powers infused Taylor the 2008 GS-LTD-B .
I need to do a post about this GS, It is THE BEST Taylor I have for the sound I was loking for. I kept a bunch of the best. Thank you Bob. You have made Insturments that improved my life.
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Thanks for posting this, jr...and thanks to Bob Taylor for his unselfish devotion to a continuing tradition of excellence in innovation for the acoustic guitar. As I said in the "icon" thread, Bob Taylor made me look at guitars in a whole different way. I look forward to Andy Powers continuing that mind expansion!
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...As I said in the "icon" thread, Bob Taylor made me look at guitars in a whole different way. I look forward to Andy Powers continuing that mind expansion!
True for me, as well. Since my first Taylor, I've come to look at acoustics completely differently. Or better yet, since Bob has made his vision a reality, I've come to see acoustics much as he has. Thank you Bob and Co!
That said, change happens. And at times for the worse; we've all seen the decline in companies we loved. So personally, I have to grant mega-large Kudos to Bob: both for for how he approached the passing of the torch as well as his choice in a the talented visionary, Andy Powers, who apparently shares the same values in the key areas that count. I love my "Bob" guitars, my R-Taylors (never gettin rid of these), as well as my 2013 616SLtd "Andy" guit. It was exciting for me to wintess and partake in "that" chapter, and now I look with anticipation to what Andy and team will bring to the next ...not to mention what Bob may have up his sleeve in his new role :D
Edward
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I was checking in on the hometown paper today (San Diego U-T), and ran across yet another take on the same news:
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/jan/22/taylor-guitars-bold-move-for-fortieth-anniversary/
Not much new, but a fun read nonetheless.
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I was checking in on the hometown paper today (San Diego U-T), and ran across yet another take on the same news:
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/jan/22/taylor-guitars-bold-move-for-fortieth-anniversary/
Not much new, but a fun read nonetheless.
Great article! BTW folks, please welcome John and his company Shoreline Music! They're also an official Taylor dealer. ;D
I noticed this pic specifically, notice the solid kerfing....I wonder if this is in the new 800 series...???
(http://i.imgur.com/WO0Fmb1.jpg)
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I just bought my Taylor 524 from John @ Shoreline and can't say enough good things about John's customer service and the wonderful instrument I now own...
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I noticed this pic specifically, notice the solid kerfing....I wonder if this is in the new 800 series...???
(http://i.imgur.com/WO0Fmb1.jpg)
Solid lining is reminiscent of the RT builds, and also repeated in the Builders Reserves. The angled bracing makes me think of the new 800 bracing, though. This likely is one of the new breed.
Edward
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I think its more of a transition from Larry Breedlove to the younger and, dare I say, more talented Andy Powers as chief creative luthier force in the company, rather than some form of corporate shake-up. I think Bob has stepped back a bit from guitar design for a while now, in favor of devoting his energy to projects such as sourcing sustainable supplies of wood (ebony,mahogany, for ex) and other major projects of that ilk.
What he said. ::)
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Taylor guitars are my mainstay -
It's good to know that skilled artisans, passionate about their work and who have a vision for the future and are recognized for their love of craft, can be found and put into place to carry on a true tradition such as this. Enjoyed the video -
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I think Taylor will be around for a long time, thanks to Bob's foresight and Andy's talent. I'd rather see a transition like this with Taylor, than an automatic handing down to a family member, who likely won't have the same passion, knowledge, and ability that Bob and Andy have.
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I hope and pray Taylor maintains the quality they have become known for. Over my 62 years I have seen so many (things) downgraded to maintain a competitive price point, to the extent of off-shore production and downright counterfeiting. Enough. I don't mind paying for quality, and I do not believe I am alone in this regard.
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I noticed this pic specifically, notice the solid kerfing....I wonder if this is in the new 800 series...???
That's not a Rosewood guitar.
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I noticed this pic specifically, notice the solid kerfing....I wonder if this is in the new 800 series...???
That's not a Rosewood guitar.
Duh....gosh, good call. Hahaha, I'll go back to my cave now...haha
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I think it's interesting to note that not a single comment here addresses Kurt Listug's influence and impact on the direction of the company. Back when Kurt had the issues with his heart, Bob publicly stated that he wasn't interested in building guitars without Kurt.
Of course Bob is the "face" of the company, but he's not "the company".
Taylor Guitars is every bit Kurt's company as it is Bob's. It will be interesting to see what role Kurt decides to take when Bob does decide to retire.
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That's not a Rosewood guitar.
from the coloration, it looks like it could be maple, but the grain pattern of the
wood that the bracing is on resembles very wide grain spruce or, possibly, ash
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I think it's interesting to note that not a single comment here addresses Kurt Listug's influence and impact on the direction of the company. Back when Kurt had the issues with his heart, Bob publicly stated that he wasn't interested in building guitars without Kurt.
Of course Bob is the "face" of the company, but he's not "the company".
Taylor Guitars is every bit Kurt's company as it is Bob's. It will be interesting to see what role Kurt decides to take when Bob does decide to retire.
kurt looks like he's doing very well
(http://media.utsandiego.com/img/photos/2014/01/22/gas_taylors336106x006_t940.jpg?13521e6083d8523caab49d2c279efbd88a38372c)
since the timeline that was on the previous iteration of the website has disappeared,
unless someone has been following Taylor for a while now, or has gotten one of these
(http://elderly.com/images/books/670/49-331191.jpg)
(http://larryfire.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/bob-taylor-guitar-lessons-book-hdr1.jpg)
or viewed this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moyc-Tgc5gQ (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moyc-Tgc5gQ)
they may not have an idea of how vital kurt listug's role is, but i also think that
tj baden, who is no longer with the company, had an extremely vital role as well
would there be Taylor Guitars without kurt ???
without the loans to buy westland music company from sam radding, it could have fizzled
out right then & there, or, american dream might still be on the headstock, or, since Bob
was doing a lot of the building, it could have turned out like dana bourgeois & pantheon
http://www.pantheonguitars.com/ (http://www.pantheonguitars.com/)
Bob would have had to buy out steve schemmer's share on his own &
then found a way to market them, as well as building them :o
if there had not been the first Fadal at the end of the 80s, the models available were the
X10/50, X15/55 & X12 & it could have stopped right there, with the 500-900s, walnut &
koa models, gloss body, preNT neck, fullerplast finish & possibly no X14s or baby series
sam was still at 3 years ago & go guitars are still being made, along with a parlor
http://www.go-guitars.com/index.html (http://www.go-guitars.com/index.html)
when the times comes, there will be the right people in the right place
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I hope that the lack of communication to customers about the Solid body discontinuation isn't indicative of their new Customer Service attitude. It's just not like them to do something less that and not give current owners the chance to purchase accessories, like loaded pickgards, before they stopped selling them. The few that were available on E-bay, through a dealer, sold out in less than a day. imagine how much money Taylor could have made from sales to existing owners if they told us to get what we wanted before it was too late. I always planned to get additional pickgaurds with different pickup configurations. Had i known there was a closing window of opportunity, i would have taken advantage of it. Now, I'm just disappointed. This isn't theTaylor way!
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Models and specifications are subject to change without notice.
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I hope that the lack of communication to customers about the Solid body discontinuation isn't indicative of their new Customer Service attitude. It's just not like them to do something less that and not give current owners the chance to purchase accessories, like loaded pickgards, before they stopped selling them. The few that were available on E-bay, through a dealer, sold out in less than a day. imagine how much money Taylor could have made from sales to existing owners if they told us to get what we wanted before it was too late. I always planned to get additional pickgaurds with different pickup configurations. Had i known there was a closing window of opportunity, i would have taken advantage of it. Now, I'm just disappointed. This isn't theTaylor way!
I can understand where you are coming from but it was the right decision to get out of electric. Taylor knows what they are good at and are focusing all of effort on that.
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I can understand where you are coming from but it was the right decision to get out of electric. Taylor knows what they are good at and are focusing all of effort on that.
Martin likewise went into both Electric (and Archtop) guitars and bailed on both. However, I do recognize the disappointment of the previous poster regarding the abruptness of the pulling of the solidbody line--while it might have been a gradual company phaseout, it sure must have seemed abrupt--and quite inconveniencing-- to solidbody owners.
I wonder how close to the chopping block nylon-stringed and baritone 6 guitars are.
12-fret guitars, especially GC's, seem to have grabbed some significant corporate traction at Taylor. Introduced around the same time as the Bariton 6- and 8-'s.