Taylor is proud to reveal a luxurious update to the 900 Series, bringing an array of tonal and aesthetic refinements to our most elegant class of rosewood/spruce guitars. The 900s now boast many of the same tone-enhancing upgrades first unveiled with the revoiced 800 Series in 2014, along with a new, detail-rich appointment scheme whose centerpiece is a gorgeous hand-carved ebony armrest.
“These 900s really are a story of bringing everything from the musically revoiced 800s to a dressed-up package for the person who wants that,” says Bob Taylor. “We really feel like the buyer of this guitar needs to be honored with something truly special.”
Because the 900 and 800 Series share the same rosewood/spruce tonewood pairing, the same 800 voicing blueprint was applied to the 900s. Tone-enhancing strokes include customized bracing and wood thicknesses for each body shape to bring out their unique tonal personalities; the use of protein glues for the bracing and bridge to enhance the tonal transfer; and ultra-thin gloss finish to help boost the volume and responsiveness. As with the 800s, players can expect greater warmth, midrange, balance and sustain, on top of rosewood’s natural “high-fidelity” tonal complexity. The end result is a more musically inspiring all-around playing experience.
The addition of a contoured ebony armrest on the new 900s blends a sleek sculptural detail with the ergonomic benefit of a more comfortable playing experience by softening the edge where one’s strumming arm rests.
In revamping the appointments, both Bob Taylor and Andy Powers wanted to honor the pedigree of elegant sophistication that has come to define the aesthetic of the 900s. The end result is a smooth fusion of wood and abalone details that showcase the finest in Taylor craftsmanship.
Click on any of the images in the gallery below to enlarge.
The body’s ebony armrest tapers seamlessly into ebony binding along the body, complemented by an ebony-bound soundhole, fretboard and peghead, and with an ebony backstrap. Koa purfling frames the paua abalone top edge trim, including the fretboard extension. The rosette is paua framed in ebony and koa. A new “Ascension” fretboard and peghead inlay scheme incorporates mother-of-pearl and pink abalone, the latter of which was sustainably harvested from a well-managed fishery cooperative in Baja, Mexico.
The new 900 Series is currently available in three body styles, the Grand Auditorium 914ce, the Grand Symphony 916ce, and the Grand Concert 912ce 12-Fret. For more on the redesign, see the cover story of the summer 2015 issue of Wood&Steel.
