Designed for players who crave the rich octave shimmer of a 12-string, the all-koa 264ce-K DLX serves up a vibrant, punchy tone and a gorgeous visual aesthetic. With a solid koa top and layered koa back and sides, this versatile Grand Auditorium yields a bright, focused tone that matures with play into an increasingly warm, rich, sweet sound. The slender, comfortable Taylor neck boasts a 1-7/8" nut width, inviting effortless fretting, while the Venetian cutaway provides easy access to the upper frets. A full-body gloss finish and shaded edgeburst accentuate koa's natural allure. The 264ce-K DLX ships with built-in ES2 electronics and a deluxe hardshell case.
Taylor's popular Grand Auditorium with koa's inspiring visuals and punchy, vibrant tone that gets warmer and sweeter with play over time.
Grand Auditorium Body: Taylor's most popular and versatile body shape, the mid-size Grand Auditorium arrived in 1994 bearing refined proportions that fell between a Dreadnought and Grand Concert. While the bigger Dreadnought was traditionally considered a flatpicker’s guitar and the smaller Grand Concert catered to fingerstylists, the GA was designed to deliver on both fronts. The shape produced an original acoustic voice that was big enough to handle medium-strength picking and strumming, yet with impressive balance across the tonal spectrum, especially in the midrange, producing clear, well-defined notes that suited both strumming and fingerstyle playing. The GA’s overall presence tracks well with other instruments both in a studio mix and on stage, and singer-songwriters have embraced its utility both for composing and traveling with one guitar. Many people want a single guitar that can cover a variety of styles, which is why the GA continues to be Taylor's bestselling shape. If you want a great all-purpose guitar, the multi-dimensional GA won’t let you down.
Grand Auditorium Body Specifications: Body Length: 20" / Body Width: 16" / Body Depth: 4 5/8"
Hawaiian Koa Body Woods: A dense tropical hardwood, koa blends midrange focus with extra top-end brightness and chime. The more a koa guitar is played and opens up — especially an all-koa guitar — the more its midrange overtones add warmth and sweetness to its voice.
Origin: Hawaii
Sound: Koa's tone profile blends the midrange of mahogany with the top end of maple. Due to its density, a new koa guitar tends to start out sounding a little bright and tight, somewhat like maple. But the more a koa guitar is played, the more the sound opens up, expanding the midrange and rewarding the player with a richer, sweeter, more resonant tone. A common mistake is when a bright player buys a koa guitar in part for its visual beauty, finds it to be too bright, and doesn't play it enough to allow the wood to warm up.
Goes Well With: Fingerstylists who play more with the pads of their fingers and tend to have a meatier touch. Bright players may want to experiment with different pick materials to produce a warmer tone.
Hawaiian Koa Top Wood: As a tropical hardwood, a koa top will initially project a bright and focused tone, especially together with koa back and sides, but as it's played, it matures into an increasingly warm, rich, sweet sound with healthy overtone "bloom," especially in the midrange. A common mistake is when a "bright" player buys a koa-top guitar in part for its visual beauty, finds it to be too bright, and doesn't play it enough to allow the wood to develop its resonant tone.
Origin: The Big Island of Hawaii
Goes Well With: Fingerstylists who play more with the pads of their fingers and tend to have a meatier touch. Bright players need to be careful because of koa's existing brightness.
Expression System® 2 Electronics: The Taylor Expression System® 2 (ES2) is a revolutionary pickup design that delivers the latest in Taylor’s ongoing innovation in acoustic guitar amplification. The heart of the Expression System 2 is Taylor’s patented behind-the-saddle pickup, which features three uniquely positioned and individually calibrated pickup sensors. The location of the sensors enables a more dynamic range of acoustic sound to be captured than ever before. Together with Taylor’s custom-designed “professional audio”-grade preamp, this system produces exceptional amplified tone and responsiveness. On stage through a PA, plugged into your favorite acoustic amplifier, or direct into recording software, the Expression System 2 faithfully conveys the voice of your Taylor guitar.
Venetian Cutaway: The Venetian cutaway is known for its soft, round lines. The sloping peak of the cutaway will vary depending on the shape of the body. The Grand Concert and Grand Auditorium have a steeper slope, while the Dreadnought is a bit flatter. Taylor's Grand Concert nylon-string models also feature a subtle, flatter slope, while Taylor's 200 Series cutaway models incorporate their flattest slope.
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