Taylor Big Baby Review

Taylor… Easily one of the greats in the industry. Taylor Big Baby… Easily one of the best guitars in its category.

We all know Taylor, and the brand doesn’t come cheap with most of its signature guitars coming in the $1000 to $2000 price range. This fact alone already rules out most budding musicians looking for a budget entry-level guitar to practice with.

So, in an attempt to bridge this gap, Taylor unleashed the Taylor Baby series. You’ve probably already met the Baby Taylor. And if you liked it, then you’re definitely going to love the Taylor Big Baby.

The Taylor Big Baby, as the name suggests, is a bigger (although younger sibling) to the Baby Taylor. And our review today will be taking us through the ins and outs of this instrument. We’ll find out what exactly makes this axe tick as well as other places where we feel Taylor could have done a much better job.

Our rating: (5 / 5)

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Who Should Get The Taylor Big Baby?

Like we explained a bit in the introductory section, Taylor made this as a budget guitar for people looking for an entry-level axe for practice. So, it’s targeted mostly at beginners.

It does not come in the full dreadnought body size that most experienced players are more accustomed to. This is more of a three-quarter dreadnought. So, it’s not too big or too heavy or too bulky.

If you a petite sized person looking for a guitar that won’t feel too overwhelming, then you need the Taylor Big Baby. Plus it also makes an excellent choice for beginners who want to start their musical journeys with a bang. This presents a much higher quality than you’ll find on most starter guitars.

Intermediate players who are looking to make an upgrade from their current budget guitars, will also love this. And especially if you’re really into the fingerpicking thing, the Taylor Big Baby will more than satisfy you.

In fact anyone who’s been itching to try their fingers at a Taylor but can’t afford to lose an arm and a leg is welcome to try for the Big Baby experience.

PS: It can also work as a travel guitar too!

The Taylor Big Baby At A Glance – Is This Guitar For You?

The Taylor Big Baby might not be a full-sized dreadnought, but it can’t be relegated to just “travel guitar” either. It just sits comfortably somewhere in the middle giving its user the best of both worlds.

It’s interesting to note here that though this guitar doesn’t come in a dreadnought size, its sound is nonetheless exceptional. When this baby begins to play, it’s no baby at all. And the feel on the hands thanks to the tonewoods is absolute bliss too.

The top of this guitar is solid stika spruce while the back and sides are Sapele. And then the guitar is finished in a beautiful matte that gives the guitar such a refined look. The rosette too and the tortoise shell pickguard also add to the beauty of this axe.

Taylor does makes lookers, that’s for sure.

As for playability, the Taylor Big Baby is very playable. It comes in a slim profile, plus it’s not bulky which makes it playable for most players of any skill level.

As for sound, we already mentioned that the Big Baby projects loud. The sustain and resonance here are also pretty impressive. We particularly have to give kudos to Taylor for the choice of tonewoods here too. The X-braced solid stika spruce top plus the Sapele back and sides combine to give that crisp clear sound that can only be Taylor.

We’re not going to fib and say that this will compete with a full dreadnought Taylor, though. But all the same, this still gives a really rich sound.

We’ve covered the most important bases here, giving you a glimpse into what exactly the Taylor Big baby is about. If you like what you’ve read so far, then come with us. The full review is just right around the corner.

Highlights Of The Taylor Big Baby

Attractive and Sturdy Body

It’s not exactly instantaneous to recognize but the Taylor Big Baby is not exactly dreadnought size. It’s only about 15/16 of the size actually. It has the usual scale length of 25.5 inches but in thickness, it comes half an inch short.

Now thanks to this size, anyone will find it easy and convenient to travel with this. It can literally come with you wherever you have to go. And this looks good, guys. Really good.

With the matte finish coupled with the Sapele neck and ebony fretboard, the Taylor Big Baby wins hearts with its looks alone.

Also, it doesn’t hurt that the materials used here are strong and dependable. Plus, they come together in a premium construction which we’ve come to expect from elite brands like Taylor. So, you’re not just getting a pretty face, you’re getting a sturdy buddy that’s built to last.

Guitar people know that the choice of tonewoods is where any guitar rises and falls. The wrong choice and your guitar falls flat. There’s no other way to say it. Thankfully, you’re dodging that bullet with this guitar. Taylor made excellent choices all around.

The Stika Spruce top gives you flexibility, crisp articulation and a dynamic range in a beautiful balance. Plus the layered back and sides give your guitar a solid platform. So you won’t be getting any of the irksome buzzes that interfere with sound.

And to make your guitar extra durable, especially in the face of humidity and temperature changes, this guitar comes with layered wood. So, you see, an excellent travel guitar this makes.

Hardware

The Taylor Big baby comes really easy to tune thanks to its die-cast tuners. These tuners are first-class stuff so they make the job of tuning a lot easier.

It’s a big plus for Taylor because this is meant for beginners who haven’t mastered the art of tuning perfectly just yet. So, it’s great that the tuners are easy to use so beginners can ease into the job of tuning gradually.

Plus even experienced users would appreciate easy-to-use tuners. No one wants work especially in those dreadful first few weeks of breaking your guitar.

The saddle here is also high quality being made of Micarta.

Also, this Taylor arrives to you in a gig bag. Correct that, it’s a deluxe gig bag as Taylor calls it. The bag comes really stylish and is an excellent and thoughtful addition.

It provides a safe place to keep your baby and protect it from damage and what not. Plus, for those who are considering making this their travel guitar, a gig bag comes in handy as it makes portability easier.

Sound – Impressive Resonance and Projection almost like a Dreadnought Taylor

The Baby Taylor came with a teeny guitar voice. But in its sibling the Big Baby, Talor went big and made the sound here totally rocking. So, get ready for a big projection plus lots of sustain as well. No, it’s not quite up to a dreadnought but for a guitar this size, the sound here is big.

Also, we love the fact the sound is balanced as well. It’s sweet and yet crisp. We owe a big part of this awesomeness to the Stika Spruce top, though. So, as we said, Taylor’s choice of tonewoods was spot on.

The Taylor Big Baby is a really fun guitar. And with its powerful mid-range, this axe is something you’d love to sing along to while you play.

Now, while this strums well no doubt, if you want it to really shine, try fingerpicking. It is absolutely brilliant. So, folks who love to fingerpick, you may just have found the love of your life in the Taylor Big Baby.

For those worried about volume or the bass ends because of size, you don’t have too. The smaller body only compromises those in a really small, nearly insignificant way.

The bass ends are still clear and focused, although, understandably, they pack less power. Plus, volume is also a tid bit less but it is still loud nonetheless.

Pros Of  Taylor Big Baby

Cons Of  Taylor Big Baby

And now for the more technical details of this guitar…

Taylor Big Baby Specs

Conclusion

You can’t make a mistake going for the Big Baby – it’s a Taylor for crying out loud. It looks good, comes with excellent playability. And save a few compromises here and there due to the reduced size, the Taylor Big Baby is a fantastic, first-class guitar.