The Guitar Magazine – September 2019

T

aylor’s Grand Concert model first

hit the scene in 1984 and met

with widespread enthusiasm from

guitarists who had long desired a

clear, modern sound from a smaller, more

comfortable body. This shape has been a

stalwart of the Taylor range ever since and

has straddled every level of build from the

humblest wood combinations to the most

exotic presentation-grade wonders.

The 300 series is now the first step on the

‘Taylor journey’ to feature all-solid woods

and, while a more established combination

of sapele and spruce is also available on the

312, this review instrument comes with

back and sides of Tasmanian blackwood and

a tropical mahogany soundboard replete

with Taylor’s V-Class bracing system.

While a mahogany soundboard has been

a familiar sight on steel-string guitars since

the early 1900s, this is the first example this

reviewer has encountered where the back

and sides were not also made of the same

wood. That said, some players will find

reassurance in the fact that this is genuine

South American mahogany.

Tasmanian blackwood belongs to the

Acacia family, and has garnered a reputation

in the bespoke luthiery community as

a characterful, lower-cost alternative

to another member of that genus, the

legendarily beautiful Hawaiian koa.

In the case of this 322ce, there’s almost

none of the figure that the Acacia family

is known for and to the casual observer,

this looks like an all-mahogany guitar. In

all likelihood, this was a calculated move

on the company’s behalf, to keep the

instrument within a price point.

There}s no doubt that the 322ce is an

aesthetically pleasing guitar. We’ve always

had a soft spot for the curves of a Grand

Concert and here, the combination of

this classic shape, Taylor’s elegant take

on a Venetian cutaway and the shaded

sunburst finish makes for a broodingly

elegant instrument that draws your eye

towards the headstock, capped as it is,

with a beautiful stripe of orange and

black ebony. Very tasteful.

IN USE

It’s easy to imagine that the template

for this Taylor’s slightly V-shaped

neck profile was taken directly from a

thumb-over-the-top G chord. It’s an

immediately comfortable carve for open

TAYLOR

322CE

WORDS MICHAEL WATTS

Taylo’rs much-vaunted V-Class bracing makes its presence felt in a smaller

package as we check out a Grand Concert cutaway electro featuring an

intriguing wood combination...

REVIEWS

108