I bought a Taylor 150e 12 string. Thank you to all the employees at Taylor Mexico for making me the sweetest sounding most beautiful guitar that plays like butter. It gives me soooo much pleasure. THANKYOU 🇬🇧💘
Thanks for the tour! I recently bought a 224ce-K DLX all koa guitar that was made in this factory. What an amazing instrument, and it looks fantastic. Thank you to all those workers in Tecate that made my guitar! Mucho respeto!
As an owner of 3 Taylor's, I can't thank you enough for this opportunity to see how they are made. I own a Taylor solid body electric a TZ5 and a GS mini plus.😮😊
Thanks so much for this video. I'm a huge Taylor fan and a proud owner of a prototype 100e with a mahogany top. I'll probably never get to visit the Taylor factory so this virtual tour is really appreciated.
Watching this while playing my new GS Mini Mahagony I bought today. Went to the store to buy strings and played this thing and fell in love. Put the guitar on hold, went home to get my Mexican Martin guitar and trade it in towards the mini. This thing blows the Martin GPC XE out of the water. It's so resonant and nice to play. Great feeling too.
What a lot of people don't realize is that Taylor's guitar factory in Mexico is less than an hour's drive from their USA Factory. Building right across the boarder is one of many brilliant moves by Bob Taylor. The quality standards of the two factories are identical, the factory in Mexico just leverages the wage scale of Mexico as USA labor is very expensive and that's how Taylor can sell a GS Mini for around $500 USD retail and everyone still makes enough profit to stay in business.... Bob Taylor has said in interview that he could begin building the 900 series in Mexico within two weeks and the build quality would be identical to what they do in their USA factory but their customers demand USA built for the high-end product.... All of this is forward thinking for where the world is headed. I'm not the biggest fan of Taylor's high end guitars. I just prefer other brands, but I respect Bob Taylor as an inventor and business man so much.
Thank you for the great tour. I have been to the El Cajon factory twice over the years and it is an amazing thing to see. If you are a guitar or even wood working buff I highly recommend the trip.
Got a GS Mini Koa a few weeks back. What a voice! And absolutely gorgeous! Had every intention of dropping 2k on a Martin but ran across this Taylor for $899. Amazing little guitar. Made right there in that factory.
They do a decent job with the woodworking. I do wish they paid more attention to setup. I had to faintly crown a couple of uneven frets and really grind down the saddle to meet the usa standards.
Thank you for this tour from a beginner guitar player, and owner of two Academy 12 grand concerts (one w/Taylor ES-B) that came with gig bags, and two Taylor GC cases on order. The Ebony Project, and Taylor Guitars engineering (NT neck, V-bracing, Academy series armrest and more) and their great support videos.
Charles Branch thank you Charles and thank you for sharing about your journey! Taylor guitars do some pretty amazing things and build a fantastic instrument to boot and we hope you enjoyed a small glimpse into their world!
@@CasinoGuitars Thanks, I'm here again after watching the intro of you two guys hanging' in front of the Por Favor. Keep on havin' fun! I just remembered, it's only two days 'til Tuesday's Taylor Guitars Primetime 6 p.m. Pacific on TH-cam.
I like your factory tour videos. I had never seen one exclusively for acoustics, so this one's a nice one for me. How about a tour of your store and the surroundings of it, your town seems pretty nice.
It's so interesting to compare factories and processes - this factory is very different from the Japanese Yamaha factory (Yamaha is more of a custom shop) and the Chinese Yamaha Factory (quality but very high production). The Seagull (Canada) factory is somewhat of a smaller version of this factory. On one hand, since these are lower end models, you don't see the level of attention by one or two people on each single guitar. I think the secret sauce with Taylor is in the design and specs and adherence to those (woods, etc.) in the factory. The Taylors sound better than the Seagull and mid-Yamahas (to my ears - and to many others). Personally I'd have done more of a scripting of a video like this - but the important part is shown here - that the company has invested in the factory and it's not some dump they built on the cheap. A 214ce - as they say in waynes world - IT WILL BE MINE!
I always heard that Taylor 214ce was veneer back and sides, but it’s a veneer of that particular wood all the way through. Like all rosewood, or all Koa, but obviously that’s not true. They are gluing the back inside and outside back veneer to poplar as the core.
Not sure why you think this - vast numbers of our cars and trucks (my VW) made in Mexico - and Mexican Fenders (Strats) have gotten better and better (mine is American, tho). Here's the deal - I can't afford an 3K+ American Taylor. But I can maybe get one of these. Taylor clearly separates their lines - and if you look at the guitars you can tell. You still get the sound, but you don't get the really fancy piece of furniture at under $1300.
Have your guitar made in California USA by Mexican workers or in Mexico by Mexican workers. Take your pick LOL No problem making them in Mexico an hour's drive from the US factory so long as good quality control is in place.
@@LairdDavidson A lot of truth to that....unless one is spending north of 4K or 5K where you might get a special person assigned to the guitar. Personally I am in favor of mass production because it allows more of us to have the good stuff.
So much of the time (cost, investment) is in waiting. When woods have to be stored for years - after being dried for weeks, this all cost money. In terms of actual labor hours when a human is actively working on a guitar, case or the parts for it- it can't be very long! But since the wood may have landed there 2 years back, giving a start to finish is tough! Really rough - probably 4 hours of labor to 10 hours for the guitars in this factory, while 10 to 30X as much for a hand built one-off guitar (100+ hours).
23:38 Looks like a maple body for a 618ce? Says proto on it? Are they constructing sections in Mexico with final assembly in CA? Thus made in USA? Hmmmm.
That one was a proto 214ce Dlx maple lam piece. We love when they do the protos and try to get all that we can. This was a cutaway as well:) thanks a ton for watching!
They are doing so much good for the community around the factory, good paying and safe jobs for the people in Tecate, and Still making a killer guitar!
Taylor Guitars Primetime webcast is on TH-cam live Tuesdays at 6 p.m. Pacific (8 p.m. Central) with Jay Parkin, Andy Lund, and a special guest, discussing a specific topic. June 23 was "Torture Testing Taylor Guitars" and it was observed, as Aaron Dablow says in the Casino Guitars tour video, that the Tecate factory was a blank canvas, so they had the advantage of designing the plant layout from scratch, incorporating ideas and innovations for each function, aiding the workflow. These ideas are being incorporated at El Cajon, as circumstances allow.
Flamed ebony is not attractive. Fortunately my fingervoard is consistent in colour and grain.Even Bob Taylor admits the seconds ebony from Madagasscar is seconds ebony. He's on video admitting it as being re-usable ebony.
Taylor cases are far too heavy for use. My Taylor case stays in the closet because it is useless to me. I use other-brand lighter cases to take my Taylor guitar to gigs. Also, the Taylor cases fit far too tightly to accommodate a guitar strap. Again, useless junk to me.
To see a kid save his money for years and years and then to think that he spends $1300-$1500 per Taylor guitar top of the line from Mexico only to find out did the sides and back or built with a bunch of scrap wood it's pretty disgusting. I think it's great that Taylor has thought enough to try to conserve and use all of the wood but then to charge what they do for the finished product is absolute bullshit. I own two Taylor guitars that I personally will be getting rid of as soon as possible. Sorry, I would rather pay $15,000 for a guitar that is made of quality solid, tops, bottoms, and sides instead of paying $1300-$1500 for a guitar that is nothing but scrap wood. I think it's pretty shameful. But anything to make a dollar, right?!!
You took bullshit. Layered back and sides is much stronger and more stable. The sound comes from the solid spruce top. My 12 string 150e sounds sweeter than any 12 I’ve tried 😉
With these highly efficient factories and cheap labour I do not understand why Taylor has to charge so much for their cookie cutter guitars. (Actually I do understand.... it's called greed.)
1. That factory is not very automated. 2. Some wood is stored for years - that cost money. 3. Mexican wages, including benefits, are $10 an hour - sometime more. It's not like the "old days". 4. When I was young a Martin was $500 and a cheap guitar was $90. Adjusting for inflation, a 200 series Taylor would have been about $150 back then - which is not bad! 5. Taylor is fully employee owned. I'm sorry that you don't approve of people making a living. But a cheap Yamaha and you get a lot of guitar for the money, but it does not sound like these.
Looks like to me the backs and sides are made from trash wood with a very thin veneers that do nothing to enhance sound, poplar wood is good for nothing are you serious! Why don't they just make this guitar from pine pallets and Dutch boy paints! $1,600 for polished ply wood?
The back and sides add little to the tone, just ask Ovation guitars about it. It's the top that really makes a difference. Laminate has some positives like making a more durable body. Helps you get a less expensive guitar too. At least Taylor are using a reasonably good quality made in house laminate unlike many Mexican Martin guitars that use HPL and plastic resin fretboards. HPL is horrible but the guitars still manage to sound good.
@@LairdDavidsonWrong, I have two Martins a D-35( rosewood )and D-18 (Mahogany) Both have solid spruce tops, but the back and sides are two solid different tone woods, They sound completely different! The back and sides do add to the tone.
Nobody complains about the quality of Taylor guitars unless you are working for another company. People debate tone, At the price point of their Mexican made guitars in bulk, they are made as well as any major manufacturer. First of all, most of these guitars are well under $1,600.00.
@@mrgetrealpeople You are really comparing a D-35 and D-18 to the guitars in this price point? Go play your guitars and be happy people have quality choices that won't break the bank and helps them play.
th-cam.com/video/fAmqliLFXpw/w-d-xo.html Checkout the factory tour that we did at the Taylor US Factory!!
I bought a Taylor 150e 12 string. Thank you to all the employees at Taylor Mexico for making me the sweetest sounding most beautiful guitar that plays like butter. It gives me soooo much pleasure. THANKYOU 🇬🇧💘
Thanks for the tour! I recently bought a 224ce-K DLX all koa guitar that was made in this factory. What an amazing instrument, and it looks fantastic. Thank you to all those workers in Tecate that made my guitar! Mucho respeto!
As an owner of 3 Taylor's, I can't thank you enough for this opportunity to see how they are made. I own a Taylor solid body electric a TZ5 and a GS mini plus.😮😊
I just bought a Taylor Academy 12e. It was built in this factory! 🙂 Neat to see behind the scenes, the work that went into making it. Thanks!
GRACIAS TECATE POR HACER POSIBLE QUE NOSOTROS LOS MUSICOS PODAMOS TENER EN NUESTRAS MANOS BELLOS INSTRUMENTOS! ADMIRO MUCHO SU TRABAJO!
Thanks so much for this video. I'm a huge Taylor fan and a proud owner of a prototype 100e with a mahogany top. I'll probably never get to visit the Taylor factory so this virtual tour is really appreciated.
Russ checkout our Taylor US Factory Tour as well!
Watching this while playing my new GS Mini Mahagony I bought today. Went to the store to buy strings and played this thing and fell in love.
Put the guitar on hold, went home to get my Mexican Martin guitar and trade it in towards the mini. This thing blows the Martin GPC XE out of the water. It's so resonant and nice to play. Great feeling too.
I’m not the only one that feels that way it seems. I’m still waiting on my gs mini mahogany and it’s hell waiting
I got my Taylor GS Mini-E Koa PLUS today, very nice :)
Lucky! Still waiting on mine.
I bought a GS Mini-e Koa right before they announced the Plus model. My local Taylor just got in the first Plus and I think I might have to upgrade.
I tried one yesterday and I was blown away by the sound of it. I'm on my way to get me one!
Don't be surprised when the bridge pops off. They are very prone to that.
@@arctichare8185 what? Im playing daily my GS mini and everything is fine. Maybe you put strings with a big big gauge
What a lot of people don't realize is that Taylor's guitar factory in Mexico is less than an hour's drive from their USA Factory. Building right across the boarder is one of many brilliant moves by Bob Taylor. The quality standards of the two factories are identical, the factory in Mexico just leverages the wage scale of Mexico as USA labor is very expensive and that's how Taylor can sell a GS Mini for around $500 USD retail and everyone still makes enough profit to stay in business.... Bob Taylor has said in interview that he could begin building the 900 series in Mexico within two weeks and the build quality would be identical to what they do in their USA factory but their customers demand USA built for the high-end product.... All of this is forward thinking for where the world is headed. I'm not the biggest fan of Taylor's high end guitars. I just prefer other brands, but I respect Bob Taylor as an inventor and business man so much.
Thank you for the great tour. I have been to the El Cajon factory twice over the years and it is an amazing thing to see. If you are a guitar or even wood working buff I highly recommend the trip.
Got a GS Mini Koa a few weeks back. What a voice! And absolutely gorgeous! Had every intention of dropping 2k on a Martin but ran across this Taylor for $899. Amazing little guitar. Made right there in that factory.
I am so excited to see the Fabric in Mexico I hope they better job my our brother by America!
Did I hear that right? 8:12 They're coming out with a 222-Koa this year? That would be so awesome. 😍
kemigyrl1 that was indeed a prototype...yay! Stay tuned and we’ll
Let you know more as we learn it!
Never know this factory was in Mexico, Taylor did a good job here.
They do a decent job with the woodworking. I do wish they paid more attention to setup. I had to faintly crown a couple of uneven frets and really grind down the saddle to meet the usa standards.
@@MasterYoshidino no one cares
Thank you for this tour from a beginner guitar player, and owner of two Academy 12 grand concerts (one w/Taylor ES-B) that came with gig bags, and two Taylor GC cases on order. The Ebony Project, and Taylor Guitars engineering (NT neck, V-bracing, Academy series armrest and more) and their great support videos.
Charles Branch thank you Charles and thank you for sharing about your journey! Taylor guitars do some pretty amazing things and build a fantastic instrument to boot and we hope you enjoyed a small glimpse into their world!
@@CasinoGuitars Thanks, I'm here again after watching the intro of you two guys hanging' in front of the Por Favor. Keep on havin' fun! I just remembered, it's only two days 'til Tuesday's Taylor Guitars Primetime 6 p.m. Pacific on TH-cam.
Very nice facility! I love my 110ce and 214ce and big baby. So many tasty protos just hanging around
I love the new American Dream smaller prototype. Mmm😮
Great tour, thank you. I can smell that aroma.
Glad you enjoyed it, we love those tours
Yes very good but can you please round the edges of the nut on the gs minis they seem to be a bit on the sharp side ...👍🎸👍
I bought a Taylor 110 E Super Excellent , sounds like a $4000 CF Martin . Ebony is the best material , violins have used it for centuries .
That GS mini koa is now a best seller 😂😜👍 I’m going to look at one tomorrow and if I like it, buy it, and a Spark 40 amp
I like your factory tour videos. I had never seen one exclusively for acoustics, so this one's a nice one for me. How about a tour of your store and the surroundings of it, your town seems pretty nice.
Great suggestion! Its in the works :)
It's so interesting to compare factories and processes - this factory is very different from the Japanese Yamaha factory (Yamaha is more of a custom shop) and the Chinese Yamaha Factory (quality but very high production). The Seagull (Canada) factory is somewhat of a smaller version of this factory.
On one hand, since these are lower end models, you don't see the level of attention by one or two people on each single guitar. I think the secret sauce with Taylor is in the design and specs and adherence to those (woods, etc.) in the factory.
The Taylors sound better than the Seagull and mid-Yamahas (to my ears - and to many others).
Personally I'd have done more of a scripting of a video like this - but the important part is shown here - that the company has invested in the factory and it's not some dump they built on the cheap.
A 214ce - as they say in waynes world - IT WILL BE MINE!
Wow!!! Incredible video.
I always heard that Taylor 214ce was veneer back and sides, but it’s a veneer of that particular wood all the way through. Like all rosewood, or all Koa, but obviously that’s not true. They are gluing the back inside and outside back veneer to poplar as the core.
This is really cool!!! I´ve never seen a guitar factory:D
It was a fun trip thats for sure!
Got my Mexican made 114e a few weeks ago. Guess I just watched it in production. Haha. This is a good, informative video though. Thank you.
I have a 210CE 2021 and I love it.
If these factories like Martin and Taylor can make affordable guitars Gibson should take note as well
9:33, what's the term he's using to describe the particular CNC machine? The captioning is not picking it up. It's saying "the doll".
That sales manager doesn’t know much about Taylor guitars. But one thing he know for sure, GS Mini sales made up most of his pay cheques.
You didn't show or mention them, but ¿do they make ukuleles in Tecate?
have a 214ce and it is a very good guitar from Mexico
Love my 224CE-K DLX
Is there a discount when you buy at the factory?
Love it!
When a top guitar maker like Taylor uses a factory in Mexico it is the begining of the end. Like genuine American Indian beads made in China.
Not sure why you think this - vast numbers of our cars and trucks (my VW) made in Mexico - and Mexican Fenders (Strats) have gotten better and better (mine is American, tho).
Here's the deal - I can't afford an 3K+ American Taylor. But I can maybe get one of these.
Taylor clearly separates their lines - and if you look at the guitars you can tell. You still get the sound, but you don't get the really fancy piece of furniture at under $1300.
Have your guitar made in California USA by Mexican workers or in Mexico by Mexican workers. Take your pick LOL
No problem making them in Mexico an hour's drive from the US factory so long as good quality control is in place.
@@LairdDavidson A lot of truth to that....unless one is spending north of 4K or 5K where you might get a special person assigned to the guitar.
Personally I am in favor of mass production because it allows more of us to have the good stuff.
Moronic, racist comment
Those unheatlhy snacks and drinks makes people sick. Unbelievable that this guy said that that is the good stuff...LOL
And they have to pay for those unhealthy snacks. Better to bring some healthy local snacks to work with you.
Agreed.
So how many days on average do you think it takes to complete a guitar from start to finish?
So much of the time (cost, investment) is in waiting. When woods have to be stored for years - after being dried for weeks, this all cost money. In terms of actual labor hours when a human is actively working on a guitar, case or the parts for it- it can't be very long! But since the wood may have landed there 2 years back, giving a start to finish is tough!
Really rough - probably 4 hours of labor to 10 hours for the guitars in this factory, while 10 to 30X as much for a hand built one-off guitar (100+ hours).
why is the all koa guitar sound good?
Just got a new gs mini. What does GS stand for?
Grand Symphony.
Hi,I interested to work in this guitar manufacturing company,how to applied
23:38 Looks like a maple body for a 618ce? Says proto on it? Are they constructing sections in Mexico with final assembly in CA? Thus made in USA? Hmmmm.
That one was a proto 214ce Dlx maple lam piece. We love when they do the protos and try to get all that we can. This was a cutaway as well:) thanks a ton for watching!
👍😍🤩👍
Probably the dealers pay 350 a piece for a GS mini
I paid naerly $2,000 AUD fora Taylor 214 CE and love the guitar BUT the gig bag case is an insult. GRR !!!
Far lighter than the wooden case though 😉
so all this workers can get the guitar for a 50% discount...
It's too bad this factory cannot be in the U.S.
They are doing so much good for the community around the factory, good paying and safe jobs for the people in Tecate, and Still making a killer guitar!
Taylor Guitars Primetime webcast is on TH-cam live Tuesdays at 6 p.m. Pacific (8 p.m. Central) with Jay Parkin, Andy Lund, and a special guest, discussing a specific topic. June 23 was "Torture Testing Taylor Guitars" and it was observed, as Aaron Dablow says in the Casino Guitars tour video, that the Tecate factory was a blank canvas, so they had the advantage of designing the plant layout from scratch, incorporating ideas and innovations for each function, aiding the workflow. These ideas are being incorporated at El Cajon, as circumstances allow.
9:28
Plsss help me i want guitar ❤️❤️
Flamed ebony is not attractive. Fortunately my fingervoard is consistent in colour and grain.Even Bob Taylor admits the seconds ebony from Madagasscar is seconds ebony. He's on video admitting it as being re-usable ebony.
No safety glasses, steel toed shoes, hearing protection, protective gloves. Figures it's Mexico.
12:28 that guy has protective gloves and glasses but you are right, every one of them needs it, especially protecting their hearing! its so loud there
@@A-Wa loud? They’re having a conversation at normal speaking volume
A better country than the USA - An American
@@TheRealJaded lol
That‘s mit made with love, but with terrible noise in an ugly factory where no one smiles…
That‘s what 5,000 dollar guitars should come from. 😢
Laminated sides for a grand and made in mexico, Taylor are a joke.
What a rip off a cheap poplar veneer covered GS mini is , worth 400 not 1199
Taylor cases are far too heavy for use. My Taylor case stays in the closet because it is useless to me. I use other-brand lighter cases to take my Taylor guitar to gigs. Also, the Taylor cases fit far too tightly to accommodate a guitar strap. Again, useless junk to me.
To see a kid save his money for years and years and then to think that he spends $1300-$1500 per Taylor guitar top of the line from Mexico only to find out did the sides and back or built with a bunch of scrap wood it's pretty disgusting. I think it's great that Taylor has thought enough to try to conserve and use all of the wood but then to charge what they do for the finished product is absolute bullshit. I own two Taylor guitars that I personally will be getting rid of as soon as possible. Sorry, I would rather pay $15,000 for a guitar that is made of quality solid, tops, bottoms, and sides instead of paying $1300-$1500 for a guitar that is nothing but scrap wood. I think it's pretty shameful. But anything to make a dollar, right?!!
You took bullshit. Layered back and sides is much stronger and more stable. The sound comes from the solid spruce top. My 12 string 150e sounds sweeter than any 12 I’ve tried 😉
With these highly efficient factories and cheap labour I do not understand why Taylor has to charge so much for their cookie cutter guitars. (Actually I do understand.... it's called greed.)
1. That factory is not very automated.
2. Some wood is stored for years - that cost money.
3. Mexican wages, including benefits, are $10 an hour - sometime more. It's not like the "old days".
4. When I was young a Martin was $500 and a cheap guitar was $90. Adjusting for inflation, a 200 series Taylor would have been about $150 back then - which is not bad!
5. Taylor is fully employee owned. I'm sorry that you don't approve of people making a living. But a cheap Yamaha and you get a lot of guitar for the money, but it does not sound like these.
Looks like to me the backs and sides are made from trash wood with a very thin veneers that do nothing to enhance sound, poplar wood is good for nothing are you serious!
Why don't they just make this guitar from pine pallets and Dutch boy paints!
$1,600 for polished ply wood?
The back and sides add little to the tone, just ask Ovation guitars about it. It's the top that really makes a difference.
Laminate has some positives like making a more durable body. Helps you get a less expensive guitar too. At least Taylor are using a reasonably good quality made in house laminate unlike many Mexican Martin guitars that use HPL and plastic resin fretboards. HPL is horrible but the guitars still manage to sound good.
@@LairdDavidsonWrong, I have two Martins a D-35( rosewood )and D-18 (Mahogany)
Both have solid spruce tops, but the back and sides are two solid different tone woods,
They sound completely different!
The back and sides do add to the tone.
@@mrgetrealpeople My GS Mini Koa was half the price you mentioned. I suspect this is why.
Nobody complains about the quality of Taylor guitars unless you are working for another company. People debate tone, At the price point of their Mexican made guitars in bulk, they are made as well as any major manufacturer. First of all, most of these guitars are well under $1,600.00.
@@mrgetrealpeople You are really comparing a D-35 and D-18 to the guitars in this price point? Go play your guitars and be happy people have quality choices that won't break the bank and helps them play.
Don't market the mini........for the beach. Not at the prices they are now. I wouldn't take my koa ...to the ⛱