New 800 series fingerboards

[stepchildusmc]

OK, be honest now…

Are you really saying you would not care about the appearance of the guitar when that marbled fretboard showed up regardless of the level of coloring?

is it a deal-breaker? absolutely not. i like the marbling to a point. some of what i've seen is a bit much but ya know what?
it won't effect the tone whatsoever. that's what would make me buy it with over-marbling. when i'm playing it, i won't see it and that's really what it's all about isn't it?

[DennisG]

It would most definitely be a deal-breaker to me.  I think that highly marbled fretboard tends to look like camo, and that's just not appealing to me on a guitar.  A little bit of subtle streaking ... okay.  While it's true that tone trumps all, that doesn't mean aesthetics are irrelevant.

[MR XXXXX]

I think grain and color variation in wood is inherently beautiful.  Could there be a certain pattern in a certain ebony fret board that doesn't suit my eye?  Sure.  Same with a Koa guitar... I am not sure who buys a 800 series priced guitar without seeing it first? 

I do however cringe and get a bit miffed when people keep saying that "all black" ebony is the only good ebony.  Nonsense. The wood has all the same physical properties.  We were wasting, according to Bob Taylor up to 90% of the usable ebony supply, so that people could get a pure black fret board.

It is pretty clear that Taylor is trying to make a stand and change perception by putting the "smoky" (as they call it) ebony on their top selling guitars.  This is a big deal to me, as I hope it is to others.

What if there was a huge supply of Braz RW suddenly discovered, but it had weird creamy lines and streaks through it?  People would be jumping all over it.

If you haven't watched this....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anCGvfsBoFY

You should.

"Let's pretend we already ran out of ebony, and years later, we found more... but it had color variation."  - (paraphrased). 

[Captain Jim]

It would most definitely be a deal-breaker to me.  I think that highly marbled fretboard tends to look like camo, and that's just not appealing to me on a guitar.  A little bit of subtle streaking ... okay.  While it's true that tone trumps all, that doesn't mean aesthetics are irrelevant.

Yep.  The 700, 800, and 900 series guitars have become more about the aesthetics.  Not a bad thing, just my personal observation.  Taylor makes BEAUTIFUL guitars that sound and play great.  I also appreciate the use of marbled ebony for the sustainability.

If a guitar like the one pictured at the beginning of this thread showed up as one I ordered, I would be less than thrilled about it.  Seems to me that when something becomes "cool," (and I think the marbled fretboards have a cool factor), somebody has to over-do it.  I think the fretboard in that original photo is over-done.  Maybe for the effect, maybe to make a point - but beauty is a personal thing.

Taylor has always given us plenty of choices... with the marbled fretboards, you have one more "thing" to consider when making a choice.

Jim

[michaelw]

OK, be honest now…

Are you really saying you would not care about the appearance of the guitar when that marbled fretboard showed up regardless of the level of coloring?

yep ...
as long as i liked the tone

i made the mistake of buying into the technical features & "upgrades" & passed on this one -
the guitar that i bought instead of the BBT, i no longer have, but
the one that replaced it flat-out "smoked" a '42 D28 this weekend

[MexicoMike]

I suppose it's not a big issue either way - Luthiers have been staining ebony fretboards for many years -  StewMac, Luthiers Mercantile, and others sell stain for that purpose. But I do object to Taylor's philosophy re selling these fretboards and making is sound as if they are "better" than solid black (on the other hand, I'm impressed by their marketing department):

"Premium appointments include… smoky ebony fretboard." 

Looks to me like Taylor paid some money to Apple for the rights to use Steve's famous Reality Distortion Field." 

For example, on their website, the guitar depicted on the 810 pic has coloring that is barely noticeable.  IMO, what they SHOULD be doing is making it clear that the "smokey" fingerboard could be everything from barely noticeable to in-your-face garish.   

[otis66]

I knew this day would come. My next guitar will be made of carbon fiber.

[Jersey tuning]

I bought an Alvarez sight unseen. Cost about the same as a hundred Big Macs. For something costing ten times more than that, I would never buy it without first seeing and playing it.

[MexicoMike]

I TOTALLY agree with that but it seems based on posts here that a lot of folks buy sight-unseen via internet companies…  Certainly in some cases it's because they don't have any shops/whatever close enough or with any inventory and I guess, in that case there is little choice.  OTOH, companies like Sweetwater do sell new instruments with pics and you can select the particular instrument based on appearance though sound will be an unknown.

[jrporter]

Spoken like the true aficionados who were heading us right toward the cliff of having NO MORE EBONY.  Brave new world.  That marbled ebony is GORGEOUS.  Old school thinking is just that.

I think that the "gorgeousness" of marbled ebony (and the extent of marbling) is really a matter of opinion; and as Taylor transitions from a long held standard, opinions will vary widely. I don't think that anybody is trying cause an environmental disaster because they haven't warmed up to the new look in the first month...

[Strumming Fool]

I think that we've all been subjected to the whole "photo-shopping" or "air-brushing" effect, used a lot with models in an effort to create "perfect" human beings. It's time for us to accept (and hopefully embrace) the diversity that occurs naturally in all of God's creation. Try it - it can be lots of fun to challenge pre-conceived notions masquerading as rules for every eye of every beholder....

[michaelw]

But I do object to Taylor's philosophy re selling these fretboards and making is sound as if they are "better" than solid black ...

exactly how & where does Taylor make it sound as if the figured ebony is "better" than solid black

"Premium appointments include… smoky ebony fretboard."

if it is noted at all, it is the next to the last, if not the last, feature listed -
imho, an ebony fretboard is a premium appointment, which just
happens to be on every single guitar Taylor currently makes

For example, on their website, the guitar depicted on the 810 pic has coloring that is barely noticeable.  IMO, what they SHOULD be doing is making it clear that the "smokey" fingerboard could be everything from barely noticeable to in-your-face garish.

Taylor has chosen to put their interpretation of how they view the aesthetics of certain figuring characteristics -
wood is a natural substance & there will be variations & if one is going to actually invest in one of these guitars,
rather than just talking about it, then they should contact their local dealer for an "in-hand" description, imho

i imagine this may cause more headaches for dealers, as there will inevitably be some that will now ask for extremely
detailed pictures of the fretboard, bridge & headstock overlay, which there is nothing wrong with that, i'm just sayin' -
if anything other a solid black coloration on a fretboard is a concern, there are always options

http://www.martinguitar.com/model/item/975-gpcpa1-plus.html

ymmv

[MB]

What I really like about the use of the smoky ebony is that each guitar is different! It gives each guitar its own identity and look. You could have five 800 series guitars in a room and be able to tell them apart at a glance. In the new W&S Bob talked about how they used to discard the ebony that was not pure black. Since this is a resource that is in short supply, why not use it? It is still ebony and doesn't affect the sound of the guitar or the feel of the neck. It is purely cosmetic and gives each instrument its own look. Some will like it and some won't but that is not a strong enough reason to discard the streaked ebony that is limited in supply. Would that not border on irresponsibility with our natural resources? I applaud Bob for doing this! Here is a pic from the Sweetwater site of a rather extreme example. I would not order this one as I like a more subtle look, but I'm sure there are players out there who would love this look.

[Jersey tuning]

What I really like about the use of the smoky ebony is that each guitar is different! It gives each guitar its own identity and look. You could have five 800 series guitars in a room and be able to tell them apart at a glance. In the new W&S Bob talked about how they used to discard the ebony that was not pure black. Since this is a resource that is in short supply, why not use it? It is still ebony and doesn't affect the sound of the guitar or the feel of the neck. It is purely cosmetic and gives each instrument its own look. Some will like it and some won't but that is not a strong enough reason to discard the streaked ebony that is limited in supply. Would that not border on irresponsibility with our natural resources? I applaud Bob for doing this! Here is a pic from the Sweetwater site of a rather extreme example. I would not order this one as I like a more subtle look, but I'm sure there are players out there who would love this look.

This particular 814 looks like a Taylor on injured reserve.  I think they should reserve their most variegated ebony for LTD runs or BTO models, not for their flagship models which ooze consistency as a hallmark

[Strumming Fool]

It will be interesting to see the paradigm shift in thought with a greater saturation of figured ebony fretboards, bridges and headstock overlays over time...in other words, what will this conversation sound like in a year or so?