Players continue to discover the solid African ovangkol’s responsive, rosewood-like tone, which pairs well with Sitka spruce and can accommodate a range of playing styles with the
Taylor 412CE Acoustic Electric Guitar with Case. White binding applies a crisp counterpoint against the gloss top and mottled brown hues of the ovangkol, while the Expression System wires these guitars for high-fidelity amplified acoustic sound.
Taylor 412CE Acoustic Electric Guitar with Case Features:
- Grand Concert Shape
- Ovangkol Wood
- Expression System Electronics
- Forward Sifted with Relief Rout Bracing
- Venetian Cutaway
- 400 Series Appointments
Grand Concert (GC)
Body Length: 19 1/2" / Body Width: 15" / Body Depth: 4 3/8"
A smaller bodied guitar ideally suited for fingerstyle.
The small-body Grand Concert debuted in 1984 to meet the needs of a new wave of adventurous acoustic fingerstyle players. In contrast to the traditionally darker, boomier voices of bigger body styles like dreadnoughts and jumbos, the GC’s compact size and tapered waist kept the overtones in check. It was also more comfortable to play while sitting down, and the guitar’s slightly wider neck gave players more room for complex fingerings. The GC’s smaller sonic footprint also fit cleanly in a mix with other instruments when tracking in the studio and with a band on stage, making it a useful tool for professional session and side players. Our current generation of GC models continues to accommodate fingerstylists with finger-friendly traits like a shorter 24 7/8-inch scale length, which makes fretting easier and adds a slightly slinkier feel on the strings due to the lighter string tension. If you feel more comfortable with a small body or favor controlled overtones, a Grand Concert is a great option.
Ovangkol
Origin: Tropical West Africa
Used On: The 400 Series, Acoustic 4 Series
Over a decade ago, Taylor introduced the guitar world to a sustainable tonewood known as ovangkol. An African relative of rosewood, it's a great sounding wood that shares many of rosewood's tonal properties, with a slightly fuller midrange and a top end that's not quite as bright as maple. Being lesser known than rosewood, ovangkol has been a sleeper hit over the years, asserting itself as an instant contender among unsuspecting players who test-drive a variety of Taylor models.
Goes Well With: Most applications. Players who perhaps don't have predefined tonal preferences, who may be generalists in their style of play, and who are looking for a well-rounded, all-purpose solid wood guitar. It works well with different body shapes.
Expression System®
Natural Sound Made Simple
People love the clear, full acoustic tone of their Taylors. Why should it be any different when they plug in? That’s why we spent several years developing our own onboard acoustic pickup and preamp. Taylor’s ground-breaking Expression System® (ES) was designed to naturally amplify the warm acoustic sound of your guitar.
The ES is an all-magnetic acoustic guitar pickup system that works like a microphone to produce a pure signal and a warm, natural acoustic sound. When you plug in, you'll hear the sound of your guitar, not the sound of the pickup. No complicated controls. No tone simulators. Just a clean amplified acoustic guitar sound supported by three simple controls — volume, bass and treble.
Breakthrough Technology
Years of research brought us to a simple realization: Nothing sounds as true and musical as a microphone. With that as a starting point, Taylor’s David Hosler led the team responsible for the Expression System's breakthrough technology. Utilizing a unique Dynamic Body Sensor® mounted to the soundboard, a Dynamic String Sensor® embedded beneath the fretboard, and a discrete preamp, the advanced ES technology is unlike any other guitar pickup system.
Integrated Design
The ES was designed in-house, alongside our acoustic guitars, which allowed us to build the ES seamlessly into the design of the guitar, for an integrated pickup system unlike any other. From the design and location of the body and string sensors to the voicing of the preamp, the ES is fully optimized for the Taylor sound. The elegant design, including the non-intrusive control knobs, also preserves the aesthetic of a Taylor guitar.
The Taylor Relief Rout
Taylor's patented relief rout is a tone-enhancing voicing technique in which a groove is carved along the inside edges of the top. This groove is similar in function to the re-curve on a violin — it “loosens up” the edges of the top, generating extra flexibility without sacrificing structural integrity. We first began using this groove in 2002. The result is increased bass and volume with a balanced tone.
Venetian
Standard on all “ce” models in the 300 Series through the Presentation Series, the Venetian cutaway is known for its soft, round lines. The sloping peak of the cutaway will vary depending on the shape of the guitar. The Grand Concert, Grand Auditorium, and Grand Symphony have a steeper slope, while the Dreadnought and Jumbo are a bit flatter. Our Grand Concert nylon-string models also feature a subtle, flatter slope, while our 100 and 200 Series cutaway models incorporate our flattest slope.