Taylor old-timers may remember the Artist Series from 1985, the first time the company crafted maple guitars with a blue finish. Over the decades, Taylor would continue to make a limited number of blue guitars, a color we’ve always liked on acoustic guitars. The C18e is the latest instrument to get this striking finish, but unlike most of the earlier versions, which went for a lighter shade, this guitar has a deep, Royal Blue color.
This is a subtly elegant beauty. The body binding, soundhole edge and heelcap are crafted from highly figured koa. The body binding blends seamlessly into the beveled armrest, a nice touch. The soundhole rosette, peghead logo, top purfling and edge trim are made from paua shell, and the fretboard inlays are a blend of paua shell and mother-of-pearl.
This guitar is based on the 618e Grand Orchestra, Taylor’s largest body style. Although this is a big guitar, its silhouette makes it surprisingly comfortable to play sitting down. It’s crafted from quilted Big Leaf maple with a Lutz spruce top, a combo that produces a warm but transparent tone. This guitar is loud, as you would expect from a big body like this, but it also responds well to a light touch. There aren’t many guitars out there that work equally well for hard strumming and light fingerpicking, but the C18e is one of them. It’s fitted with Taylor’s own ES2 pickup system with a TaylorSense guitar health monitoring unit. includes a deluxe hardshell case featuring a Western Floral design.
