Take a look at Larrivee
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Each is very different. I like his reaction, although Taylor's are still darn nice! :biggrin: A wood plank....but a very pretty and good great sounding one at that!
I own a high-end Taylor and thankfully have a local store that carries pieces from the acoustic line (Elderly's...great store!). The Angelus I've played is spectacular. What makes it good? I don't know, magic dust I guess. "Another planet" is so true, and not just because the sound/craftsmanship are so outstanding, there are plenty of high-end acoustics out there. It's because they truly are their own thing. They're not another high-end acoustic. They were engineered and built to be a PRS Acoustic. Upon first strum, its readily apparent these are something special.
As a player, I know I have to follow my ears. Win for PRS there. Unfortunately, like many, I also let my eyes and wallet make some of the decisions. If I was in the ~$5K range for a new acoustic, I would have a hard time taking the PRS over a Taylor Presentation. Or, just buying a 914 and using the rest of the $ for a new amp and pedals. I love the Angelus, but I'd have a hard time plunking down that kind of cash for a guitar that has the aesthetics of a 7-800 series Taylor.
Full disclosure: In a perfect world, I'd just have both! :top:
Well I hope you're happy. You went and totally buggered the whole thing up. Now it's useless. I might as well just delete the whole damn thing and forget about it. My dream of creating the most famous thread in internet forum history is dashed. What will I ever do now?
:laugh:
I've had several 800 and 900 series Taylors...this is a taste thing, so take these comments as you will.
If you buy a guitar with your eyes (in the case of Taylors I'm guilty!), or because you like the playability, Taylors are great. I don't think they're on the same sonic plane as Collings, or some of the other builders.
Having also had higher-end Collings, Martins, and a Larrivee over the years, I prefer the more traditional methods of construction over a bolt-on for richness of sound, especially for recording. I find that Taylors don't satisfy.
Regardless, there's absolutely no doubt in my mind that the PRS acoustics coming out of Maryland are the finest sounding acoustic guitars I've ever played; live with one, and it becomes even more apparent that they're just special instruments.
As for decor, there's a richness of the materials and simplicity of design in a PRS that just works for me. You can hear the quality of the materials chosen, as well as liking their appearance.
In contrast, Taylor builds a nice guitar, slaps a bunch of bling on it, and calls it "better," and I say this because I don't often hear much of a difference between their high end and low end offerings. In other words, I've bought them and found myself regretting it.