Guitar Tricks Insider February/March Digital Edition | Page 54

GEAR REVIEW

While playing the 214ce, I was amazed at how
big and rich the tone sounded for a guitar that’s
slightly smaller than a big dreadnought. It’s also
very comfortable! Electric players will dig the
low action and easy playability right out of the
box. The cutaway body makes higher regions of
the body easy a breeze to access on the ebony
fretboard. For instance, it was easy to play the
intro to Bon Jovi’s “Wanted Dead or Alive.”

What the 214ce lacks in bells and whistles of the
more expensive Taylors, it certainly makes up
for in sound, playability, quality, and comfort.
The tonal characteristics on this guitar are all
you’d expect from a high quality acoustic. The
guitar projects loudly – whether strummed with a
pick or played finger style; and I was impressed
with its tonal characteristics. Both low and high
notes are clear and defined in all registers of the
fretboard, and chords sound lush and rich. When
plugged into an amp, the Expression System, a
proprietary piezo pickup, replicates the acoustic
tone of the guitar magnificently. It’s certainly
easy to become captivated by the sound. In fact,
my wife had to pry me away from the guitar on
several occasions!

FEATURES
The 214ce is constructed from a variety of woods
including a satin finished solid Sitka spruce top,
layered rosewood sides and back, sapele for
the neck, and an e &