The search for the right acoustic guitar can turn into a sonic odyssey even among experienced players. Chalk it up to the subjective nature of playing guitar — we each have our own personal touch, and we tend to hear tone in different ways. If you’ve ever passed an acoustic around among friends, you’ve no doubt heard how different the same guitar can sound in each pair of hands.

Each Taylor shape yields a distinctive type of sound that tends to fit certain playing applications. Another key ingredient of tone: woods. If shapes help us match the sound in our heads with the sound in our hands, woods help us personalize that sound further, much like we might flavor a meal to please our palettes.

We’ll start by considering the tonal characteristics of each of the woods we use. Remember that we’re talking in general terms here, since each tree, and even each set of wood, is different. Fortunately, here at Taylor we benefit from having listened to hundreds of versions of particular models, which has given us a good sampling of each tonewood’s core acoustic personality.

In the end, our goal is simple: to help you find the ultimate Tone