Baby Taylor
My Review Of The Baby Taylor
I just love writing reviews of my favorite guitars. I mean, I have so many that the list just goes on and on. The most important thing is that it provides good information for my students and my peers alike.
So, are you a beginner guitar player? Or, a seasoned guitar player who travels a lot with their guitar? Either way, it’s important for you to make a good informed decision when purchasing your first guitar or one for travel. There have been quite a few popular brands that have made headlines with their quality and playability. So, today I’m going to be taking a look at Taylor Guitars, Baby Taylor, BT2, Mahogany, Natural.
“Let’s First Take A Look At What’s Important To Review In An Acoustic Guitar”
- What Is The Top Of The Guitar Made Of?
- What Are The Back & Sides Of The Guitar Made Of?
- What Is The Neck Of The Guitar Made Of?
- What Type Of Wood Is On The Fingerboard & Bridge?
- What Is The Nut & Saddle Made Of?
- What Kind Of Machine Tuners Are On The Guitar?
What Is The Top Of The Guitar Made Of?
As you may or may not know, this is where the guitar get’s its acoustic sound and is arguably the most important part of the acoustic guitar. There are generally two different types of manufactures tops and a handful of different woods used to put on the top of the guitar (the piece where the sound hole is). These are:
- Type of Top
- Solid- This is considered to be the most sought after top of any acoustic guitar. A solid top has the best resonance, ages well & the sound of the guitar will get better over time as the guitar ages.
- Laminate- This is the lesser of the two types. Basically, laminate is a fancy word for “plywood”. It is a very very thin piece of quality resonance wood laminated together on top of much cheaper wood. This doesn’t give off the best sound. What you hear is what you get over time. So, if you get a laminate make sure it sounds great.
- Type Of Wood
- Spruce- Spruce has a more bright and clear sound. I want to say more treble. However, it has great mid bass tones also. Just think of it as a bright crisp sound where every note is distinct.
- Cedar- Cedar is a more mellow sound. Think of it as being soothing and smooth. There really is no “ting” so to speak. I really love this kind of tone.
- Mahogany- Mahogany has a strong “punchy” sound that sounds the best in the upper range. It tends to mellow out the high tones. Since the Baby Taylor is so small…. It’s no wonder they want to deepen the capabilities. I’m sure this is why it has a solid Mahogany top.
The Baby Taylor BT2 comes with a solid mahogany top.
What Are The Back & Sides Of The Guitar Made Of?
The back and sides of the guitar give strength and depending on the shape…. tone depth. Although the back and sides don’t give the guitar its overall resonance.. It is very important in the structure of the guitar.
The back and sides of the Baby Taylor BT2 are made of laminate wood called sepele. Sepele is a very strong wood similar to mahogany and has a lighter appearance. However, it comes out of Africa and is much cheaper than mahogany. Plus, it is even cheaper to produce this guitar since they use a laminate (see above for laminate description) sepele wood. As mentioned above, the most important part of the back and sides are to give strength. Whether a laminate or solid is used…. it will not affect the overall resonance of the guitar.
What Is The Neck Of The Guitar Made Of?
This one is very important. You don’t want to have a bowed neck. This can lead to the guitar sounding out of tune when you press down on the frets. You can tell if a neck is bowed by looking straight down the fret board from the headstock to the bridge. This is why a good strong solid piece of wood is imperative.
The Baby Taylor BT2 comes with a Tropical American Mahogany neck. Mahogany is a very strong wood and is very desirable in a guitar neck due to its overall strength and durability.
What Type Of Wood Is On The Fingerboard & Bridge?
The fingerboard and bridge of a guitar are usually the components that show the most wear. Your finger sweat on the fingerboard can build up grime and the changing of the strings on the bridge can show wear. This is why it is very important to have a wood that will show this wear the least. The two most popular woods for the fingerboard and bridge are Rosewood and Ebony. Rosewood is the most common wood used and ebony is a little more spendy and quite a bit harder than rosewood.
The Baby Taylor BT2 comes with both an Ebony fingerboard and Ebony Bridge. I like that Taylor went for the better wood here. It shows they care even about their least expensive models.
What Is The Nut & Saddle Made Of?
The nut & saddle are a vital part of the guitar. Any problem with these two and you’re going to have tuning and intonation problems. Basically, the nut and the saddle are what the strings press against at the headstock and bridge. If these wear excessively? That’s where you’ll have problems. For years the best material for nuts and saddles were bone. Bone was what held up the best. However, in resent years manufactures have been able to replicate bone. The company at the forefront of this is graphtech which makes Tusq. A company that makes saddles and nuts for high end guitars like Taylor, Martin & Gibson. Seagull (Godin) Guitars actually use Tusq man made ivory also.
The Baby Taylor BT2 comes with a Tusq man made ivory nut and saddle and are actually used on all Taylor models.
What Are The Machine Tuners Made Of?
Most tuner are chrome plated. But, what’s really important is if they’re sealed and permanently lubricated. This will make the tuners maintenance free and should last the lifetime of the guitar if kept in the proper environment.
The Baby Taylor BT2 comes with chrome plated permanently lubricated and sealed tuners.
What Should You Expect To Pay & What’s Included?
The Baby Taylor BT2 retails for $398 and comes with a soft gig bag. However, I’ve seen them sold everywhere for around $300. I was able to find a deal at Amazon called the Taylor Guitars Baby Taylor, BT1, Natural Acoustic Guitar – Includes: Planet Waves/GO-DPS 16 Pick Sampler (#PW-SAMPLER), Ultra Guitar Stand & Taylor Beanie, Strap & T-Shirt for just a few dollars more.
If you really want to protect your investment however. I would suggest getting a hard shell case. Amazon also has a great deal on a hard case called the SKB Baby Taylor/Martin LX Guitar Shaped Hard shell by SKB
What Others Are Saying….
“I love my baby Taylor — it’s big enough to produce a decent tone, yet small enough to be really portable. It comes with a nice little padded case, and it fits perfectly in an overhead bin. The sound is significantly fuller and louder than a Washburn Rover or Martin Backpacker. To get a better sound, you’d have to spend a lot more for a high end parlor guitar.”
Rating: 
“Outstanding playability and great sound for a guitar of this size (hard to find small guitars with a good deep end). The construction and materials are of better quality than I expected for the price.”
Rating:
“I played one of these Baby Taylor Mahogany guitars, at a friends house. She bought it to “learn to play a guitar on” I was so impressed with the quality, size, and sound, I said ” I have to have one of these”… “
Rating:
Product Reviews
5 out of 5 Stars Based on 17 reviews
Read More Reviews
“Any Complaints?”
There have been some complaints about its construction around the neck. One person didn’t like the screws showing around the 16th fret. Didn’t bug me. It’s a great beginner or travel guitar.
There was also a complaint of someone who’s had the guitar for 8 years and said the action got worse over time and the body cracked. I know guitars and this sounds like a classic humidity problem. You can’t take any guitar out of extreme heat and extreme cold and not have this problem. So, this would have to do with how the guitar was cared for in my opinion.
“Here’s My Overall Review”
Sound
This little baby packs a punch! I’m a big blues player and the guitar sounds like the first guitars played by blues legends. I was really surprised that the sound was so big. I had heard that it can be quite loud when strummed hard. But, you really have to hear it to believe it. The only better sound quality from a 3/4 size guitar is made by the same company called the Taylor GS Mini. However, it is a little smaller than the mini and rivals the mini’s volume. It doesn’t have much bass. But, what can you expect from a small guitar? I really liked the clarity and snappy punch that this guitar has.
Action
Perfect! As you would expect from Taylor. Since the neck is smaller and the frets are closer together it kinda plays like an electric guitar. I did do a quick intonation test and it was dead on. I played up and down the neck with ease. Great action on this guitar.
Reliability
This is definitely a back pack guitar that has been around for years. With the new laminate technologies out there… This guitar is rugged. It just feels well put together. It comes with the same construction as the Taylor GS Mini. So, no wonder it’s tough. This would be an awesome travel guitar.
Impression
Excellent! For a price just under $300 and backed by Taylor. You can’t go wrong with this purchase. You get great big sound, durability, action and perfect intonation. I just loved it. If I had a little more to spend I’d go with the Taylor GS Mini though. It just has a deeper bass which I like. But, the baby is a perfect guitar to throw behind the seat and take anywhere. Many professionals that I know own this guitar and travel around the world with it and have not had any complaints. I loved it. 
Here’s The Best Price I Could Find On The Baby Taylor BT2
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