Taylor BT1 Baby Taylor
This instrument is discontinued

The Baby Taylor - an A&C Hamilton Review

Our review model came with a nice even grain across the Solid Spruce wood top, although a slightly uneven natural colour. One point to note if you come to look at Taylor guitars is that when building their guitars, they don`t pick their woods on colour, they pick them on the quality of grain. The evenness of grain ensures a balanced, even tone. So no two Taylor guitars of the same model are ever going to look quite alike. Made in Taylor`s Mexican factory, the quality of build is extremely good.

The smaller scale neck on travel guitars often bigger handed guitarists like myself have issues getting about. The smaller gap between frets and thinner neck can make it difficult to adjust, and intonation can be difficult to sort, but I found with the Baby Taylor that it was actually very comfortable to get about on and it had a good even tuning right across the board.

The sound of the guitar was firstly loud and bright, thanks to the springy Spruce top and thin laminated Sapele body. It had quite a mid-range sound as you`d expect for a body so small, but with surprisingly good access to the bass and top ends. With its slightly bowled back, the Baby Taylor design means it can push out better volume than many other acoustic travel style guitars. Overall I found it well balanced and satisfying, and certainly not `boxy` as you might expect. I would go to say that it would be mistake to classify this guitar as strictly for travel purposes. The sound is so good you would be forgiven for keeping this on hand as a practice or recording piece - it`s definitely up to the challenge.

Cosmetics are kept to a minimum at this level, but the Baby Taylor definitely has its charms. The first aspect of looks that struck me was the etched-in rosette that put me in mind of a cigar box, with a Celtic motif adding a touch of finesse around the soundhole. Secondly the absence of binding around the body and satin finish maintains a folk-feel; simple and sweet. The bolt-on neck that Taylor are famous for is included on this design, although to a more basic level - the screws holding the neck to the body are visible on the Ebony fingerboard. A visual quirk, but theyre too high up the fretboard to be a nuisance in terms of playability.

Taylor`s blurb focuses on the portability and versatility of this guitar. I would agree that it`s fantastic in those terms, but the label `travel guitar` doesnt quite cover it. It`s a terrific sound from such a small body, far superior to any other 3/4 sized guitar I`ve tried before, with a very full, well balanced sound. Great feel on the neck, excellent playability - the Baby Taylor represents an excellent way into the Taylor range and is a very capable acoustic guitar.