Taylor 416ce-LTD 2013 Spring Limited Acoustic-Electric Guitar

The Taylor 416ce-LTD 2013 Spring Limited Acoustic-Electric Guitar features a Granadillo back, sides, bridge and headstock overlay, Sitka spruce top, rock maple Progressive Dots fretboard inlay, binding and rosette, satin-finish back and sides with gloss top, Venetian cutaway, and Expression System electronics.

Taylor's Grand Symphony body delivers a boost of lower-midrange power that fits well with granadillo, a wood that shares many of Indian rosewood's tonal characteristics. The wood's slightly higher density translates into a splash of extra top-end sparkle and long-sustaining notes. Distinctive features include a granadillo bridge and headstock overlay, along with rock maple binding, rosette and fretboard inlays. All models in this series feature satin-finish back and sides with a gloss finish top, a Venetian cutaway, and Expression System electronics.

Granadillo 400 Series

The star ingredient of this series is granadillo, a Central American tonewood that boasts a rich musical heritage. Historically sourced from Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula region, it's considered a type of rosewood, although the species they procured technically doesn't bear rosewood's Dalbergia family name. The wood has been the object of Taylor's desire for some time, but it hadn't been available in any quantity with proper legal documentation until fate dropped a batch into the lap of their wood buyer, Chris Cosgrove. A reasonable price allowed Taylor to offer it in Taylor's 400 Series price range.… read more There's no telling when they'll have this opportunity again.

Sonically, granadillo is comparable to Indian rosewood, but it's harder and denser, yielding an additional bell-like ring and long-sustaining notes. The wood traditionally has been used for marimba bars because of its clear, chimey tone. Classical guitar makers later borrowed it and have been using it for at least 50 years.

Visually, this granadillo exhibits hues that vary from set to set, ranging from pomegranate reds to copper browns, in some cases with more variegation and wilder grain than Indian rosewood. For this series, Taylor also chose to bring the granadillo to the front of the guitar, using it for the bridge (with rosewood bridge pins) and headstock overlay.

The appointment package also borrows from the wood-centric design aesthetic of the classical world, featuring rock maple for the binding, rosette and progressive dot fretboard inlays. Four body styles are available, and all models feature satin-finish back and sides with a gloss finish top, a Venetian cutaway, and Expression System electronics. read less