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Taylor 312ce-N
Martin CEO-9
VS
Playability
70
Sound
84
Build
84
Value
69
Score
79
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Playability
77
Sound
86
Build
90
Value
69
Score
84
FIND IT ON:
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Taylor 312ce-N vs Martin CEO-9

Reasons to Get
Taylor 312ce-N over Martin CEO-9

Release Year
2021 vs 2019
From a more recent year
Number of Frets
17 vs 20
Warmer neck pickup
Neck Profile
Acoustic Taylor Standard vs Acoustic Modified V
Comfortable neck that works for most people
Nut Width
1.875'' (47.6mm) vs 1.75'' (44.5mm)
Less likely to mute strings by accident and more space for fingerstyle
Scale Length
25.5'' (647.7mm) vs 24.9'' (632.5mm)
Lower action and brighter natural tone
Fretboard Radius
15'' (381mm) vs 16'' (406.4mm)
More curved fretboard helpful to play chords without muting strings

Reasons to Get
Martin CEO-9 over Taylor 312ce-N

Neck Profile
Acoustic Modified V vs Acoustic Taylor Standard
Great if you like to hang your thumb over the fretboard
Pickups Brand
Fishman vs None
Pickups from a renown brand
Number of Frets
20 vs 17
Allows to reach higher notes
Nut Width
1.75'' (44.5mm) vs 1.875'' (47.6mm)
Favors small hands, easier bar chords and other shapes
Scale Length
24.9'' (632.5mm) vs 25.5'' (647.7mm)
Easier bending, shorter fret separation and warmer natural tone
Fretboard Radius
16'' (406.4mm) vs 15'' (381mm)
Flatter fretboard makes it easier to play single notes and bend

Other Key Differences
Taylor 312ce-N vs Martin CEO-9

Back Material
Sapele vs Mango
Different Back Material
Sides Material
Sapele vs Mango
Different Sides Material
Saddle Material
Ivory Tusq vs Compensated
Different Saddle Material
Body Wood
Spruce vs Mango
Different Body Wood
Nut Material
Ivory Tusq vs Bone
Different Nut Material

Shared Features
Taylor 312ce-N vs Martin CEO-9

Bridge Material
Ebony
Same Bridge Material
Neck Wood
Mahogany
Same Neck Wood
Fretboard Wood
Ebony
Same Fretboard Wood
Headstock
3-3
Same Headstock
Strings
6
Same playing style
Body Type
Hollowbody
Warm tone, lighter and acoustic sound
Switch Positions
0
Same pickups versatility
Volume Knobs
0
Same volume control
Tone Knobs
0
Same tone control
Paint Finish
Poly
Resistant paint that ages well
Bridge
Fixed
Good sustain and needs no set-up
Type of Frets
Medium
You'll feel the fretboard when pressing down the strings

Common Strengths

  • Solid Top Wood
  • Solid Side Wood
  • Solid Back Wood
  • High-Quality Nut
  • From a High-Quality-Standards Country
  • Expensive Wood

Common Weaknesses

  • Pickup Alter Switch/Knob
  • Locking Tuners
  • High-Quality Frets
  • Compound Radius Fretboard
  • Luminescent Sidedots
  • Strap Lock
  • 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • Active/Passive Preamp

Table of Contents

Price History Comparison

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Which One is Better Overall?

After going through our comparison algorithm, the results show that the Martin CEO-9 is probably the better product overall with its final score of 84 compared to the Taylor 312ce-N's 79 score, although not by a lot.

The Martin CEO-9 wins when it comes to sound, playability, build quality. On the other hand, the Taylor 312ce-N has the upper hand when it comes to.

If you got small hands, you'll probably feel that the Taylor 312ce-N is easier to play.

Which One is Better for Beginners?

If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, the Taylor 312ce-N is the better choice.

The Taylor 312ce-N meets 5 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Martin CEO-9 meets only 4. This takes into account the type of frets, scale length, nut width, bridge type, fretboard radius, and neck profile to determine the easiest combination for new players.

New Player Friendliness

Taylor 312ce-N
  • Comfortable shape
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Tall frets
  • Comfortable neck
  • Soft Strings
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Narrow nut
  • Short scale
  • Locking tuners

New Player Friendliness

Martin CEO-9
  • Comfortable shape
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Tall frets
  • Comfortable neck
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Narrow nut
  • Short scale
  • Soft Strings
  • Locking tuners

Nevertheless, when it comes to choosing an instrument, you should pick the one more compatible with your personal style. Still, below we'll try you to give you our results as objectively as it's possible to help you decide.

Taylor 312ce-N Overview

  • From Taylor's 2021 300 series
  • Made in United States
  • 6 strings
  • 25.5"'' scale
  • 15" Fretboard Radius
  • Solid Sitka Spruce top
  • Solid Sapele back
  • Solid Sapele sides
  • Tropical Mahogany neck
  • Ebony fretboard
  • Bridge pickup: ES-N Electronics (Preamp/Active)
  • Ebony bridge
  • Acoustic Taylor Standard Set neck
  • 17 Medium frets
  • Classical Nickel tuners
  • Weight around 3.95lbs (1.8kgs)
  • Compare Specs >

Martin CEO-9 Overview

  • From Martin's 2019 Custom & Special Editions series
  • Made in United States
  • 6 strings
  • 24.9"'' scale
  • 16" Fretboard Radius
  • Solid Curly Mango top
  • Solid Curly Mango back
  • Solid Curly Mango sides
  • Genuine Mahogany neck
  • Ebony fretboard
  • Bridge pickup: Fishman (Preamp/Active)
  • Ebony bridge
  • Acoustic Modified V Set neck
  • 20 Medium frets
  • Vintage Copper Open Gear tuners
  • Compare Specs >

Sound Quality Comparison

The most important thing that will determine the tone of an acoustic guitar is the wood. Let's take a look at the differences between both .

Woods Used in Both

Mahogany wood pattern used for guitar building
Mahogany
Ebony wood pattern used for guitar building
Ebony

Mahogany is a fairly rare wood nowadays. It's used mostly for bodies due to its relatively lightweight. Gibson popularized it with their Les Paul guitars during their golden years, so this wood has a lot of good reputation behind it. The most expensive type comes from South America and it's still used by Gibson even today. Find out more about Mahogany.

Ebony is a high-end wood, so it is not cheap. It's only used for fretboards because it's also very heavy. It does an excellent job as a durable material while looking elegant. Find out more about Ebony.

Woods Used in the Taylor 312ce-N

Spruce wood pattern used for guitar building
Spruce
Sapele wood pattern used for guitar building
Sapele

Spruce has a light color with tight grain patterns. It's very stiff but relatively light. It's known for producing a well-rounded tone with a broad dynamic range. Find out more about Spruce.

It's similar to Mahogany in both color and tone. It can produce warm tones, and it's known for its beautiful figured grain patterns. Find out more about Sapele.

Woods Used in the Martin CEO-9

Mango wood pattern used for guitar building
Mango

Mango wood is a type of hardwood that comes from the mango tree. The tree is native to India, and the wood has a reddish-brown color with a grain that is similar to mahogany. Mango wood is often used in the construction of acoustic guitars because it produces a warm, full tone.

Winner: Tie.

Electronics

Both come with electronics that allow you connect them to an amplifier or interface for recording.

Winner:Tie.

Final Sound Quality Scores

Taylor 312ce-N
Sustain 90
Versatility 75
Tuning Stability 70
Sound 84
Martin CEO-9
Sustain 90
Versatility 85
Tuning Stability 70
Sound 86

Build Quality Comparison

When it comes to build quality, we like to take into account everything used to build the instrument. This includes materials, hardware and the quality control expected depending on the country where it was built. Let's see how the Taylor 312ce-N compares to the Martin CEO-9.

Country of Origin

The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. Both in this comparison where made in United States.

The United States is considered one of the best electric guitar manufacturers in the world. A guitar made in this country is supposed to have world-class quality control. Nowadays, guitars made in other countries can beat some of the ones made in the US, but most of the time, this country offers the best you can get. Of course, that comes at a price.

Winner: Tie

Nut Material

If you want your guitar to stay in tune and sound good, you need a well cut nut. Nut quality can be inconsistent even when comparing two copies of the same model. The best way to make sure you're nut will be well done is by getting a nut made by an expert company like TUSQ or Micarta.

The Taylor 312ce-N has a Ivory Tusq nut. Ivory used to be considered the best material for guitar nuts due to its beauty, durability, and the rich harmonics and sustain you could get from a guitar with it. However, the way to obtain it is simply unethical. Enter TUSQ ivory nuts, which are made synthetically to imitate ivory. Technically, it's better than ivory because it is consistent piece-to-piece, while natural materials can vary a lot, even if they're made from the same.

On the other hand, the Martin CEO-9 comes with a Bone nut. It's a type of nut found in high-quality instruments. They sound similar to Ivory since they give a lot of sustain and a bright sound (at least when striking open strings). The only problem they can run into is that you may get a bone piece that simply doesn't sound as well as others because that's just how natural materials are.

Winner: Tie.

Fret Material

Most fret wire is made of nickel silver. This material eventually wears down after a lot of use and most instruments end up needing a complete fret replacement. However, some expensive models come with stainless steel frets. This is what you should aim for if you can afford it.

Unfortunately, none of them come with stainless steel frets.

Winner: Tie.

Tuners

Both come with regular tuners. The Taylor 312ce-N's are Classical Nickel while the Martin CEO-9's are Vintage Copper Open Gear

Winner: Tie.

Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:

Strengths & Weaknesses
Taylor 312ce-N
  • Made in United States
  • Expensive Wood
  • Ivory Tusq Nut
  • Electronics
  • Ivory Tusq Saddle
  • Solid Top Wood
  • Solid Side Wood
  • Solid Back Wood
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Locking Tuners
  • No Top Brand Pickups
  • No Compound Radius Fretboard
  • No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • No Strap Lock
Strengths & Weaknesses
Martin CEO-9
  • Made in United States
  • Expensive Wood
  • Bone Nut
  • Top Brand Pickups
  • Electronics
  • Compensated Saddle
  • Solid Top Wood
  • Solid Side Wood
  • Solid Back Wood
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Locking Tuners
  • No Compound Radius Fretboard
  • No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • No Strap Lock

Final Build Quality Scores

Taylor 312ce-N
Quality of materials 81
Features 75
Quality Control 95
Build Quality 84
Martin CEO-9
Quality of materials 86
Features 85
Quality Control 100
Build Quality 90

Playability Comparison

Let's now compare their playability. Bear in mind that the instrument will feel different depending on your hand size and play style. That's why you should always test before buying. But if you can't or want a second opinion on it, we can still take a look at each of the important measurements of the instrument for you. This way, we can predict how easy a guitar might be to play, or how different it will feel compared to the other.

Remember that, even though the difference might seem small, every inch counts when it comes to feeling of the instrument in your hands. Any variation can completely change how comfortable a guitar feels in your hands.

Nut Width

Taylor 312ce-N Nut Width
Taylor 312ce-N Nut Width
Martin CEO-9 Nut Width
Martin CEO-9 Nut Width

The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, the Taylor 312ce-N has the wider nut with 47.6mm (1.875'') vs 44.5mm (1.75''). This is a 3.1mm (0.125'') difference

This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Taylor 312ce-N, especially closer to the nut. However, it's also easier to play without muting strings accidently. This favors people with big hands.

Scale Length

Taylor 312ce-N's Scale Length
Taylor 312ce-N's Scale Length
Martin CEO-9's Scale Length
Martin CEO-9's Scale Length

The scale length is one of the things that influences playability the most. This is the distance between the nut and the bridge and will affect everything from low action allowance, difficulty to perform bends, fret separation, and even tone.

The Taylor 312ce-N has the longest scale: 25.5". The Martin CEO-9 is only 24.9" long. This is a 0.6'' (15.2mm) scale length difference.

This longer scale means that the strings need more tension to get in tune. This is good if you want to avoid fret buzz, which can happen when the strings are too loose and touch the frets while vibrating. This is especially important when playing in lower tunings. This will also let you reduce the gap between fretboard and strings (low action) to make them easier to press down. However, this higher tension will also make it harder to perform bends and vibratos as the strings will feel stiffer.

This also means that the frets have a longer separation between each other, so this will make it harder for people with smaller hands when playing some chord positions.

Another characteristic of a longer scale is that it makes the guitar sound 'snappier' or brighter. This is due to the extra separation between harmonics and overtones produced by the tension. This influences tone more than any other factor (except the pickups).

Lastly, remember that you can also affect the tension of the strings by changing your string gauge. You can use a thicker gauge for more tension and a lighter one for less tension.

Neck Profile

Taylor 312ce-N Neck Profile
Taylor 312ce-N's neck profile
Martin CEO-9 Neck Profile
Martin CEO-9's neck profile

No single neck shape is better than others. However, most people tend to prefer a thinner necks because it doesn't get in their way when playing fast and most hand sizes can adapt to it pretty well. However, some people still prefer thicker necks for a better grip, especially if they have big hands.

In this case, both have different neck shapes:

The Taylor 312ce-N has a C type of neck. This is what you'll find in most modern guitars. Most people feel like the thickness of a C neck is simply the less intrusive one for playing fast, while at the same time allowing you to grab the neck easily for resting if you want to.

The Martin CEO-9, on the other hand, has a V neck. This neck shape was more common during Fender's early years. Some people like it because they use their thumb over the edge of the fretboard to press the lower strings. It's rather thicker than most modern necks, so it's not usually used for playing fast solos.

Fretboard Radius

Taylor 312ce-N Fingerboard Radius
Taylor 312ce-N's Fingerboard radius
Martin CEO-9 Fingerboard Radius
Martin CEO-9's Fingerboard radius

Most guitar fretboards are not flat; they usually have a curve or arc across their width. A curved fretboard will make it easier to perform chords without muting strings, while a flatter one will make it easier to play single notes, which is good for bending and soloing in general. The best fretboards have a compound radius that varies across the fingerboard, but they're not common since they take a lot more work to build.

In this case, the Taylor 312ce-N's fingerboard radius is smaller, which means it's more curved than the Martin CEO-9's. This extra arc will make playing chords easier in this model. You won't be as likely to mute the strings, especially if you have big hands. However, playing single notes and bending will be easier on the Martin CEO-9.

Still, both tend to favor soloing over chords, so if you're looking for a guitar for playing rhythm, you might want something else with a radius closer to a Stratocaster's 9.5''.

Hand Size Comfortability

Everyone has a different hand size, and that's why it's recommended to try a guitar before buying, even if others tell you that it's comfortable to play. However, we can know whether a guitar favors small or large hands just by knowing its exact measurements.

And after taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that the Martin CEO-9 favors large hands more than the Taylor 312ce-N.

Taylor 312ce-N:
Big Hands
Small Hands
Martin CEO-9:
Big Hands
Small Hands

Fret Size

Taylor 312ce-N and Martin CEO-9 Frets Size
Both have a similar Medium fret size

Both have a Medium fret size. If you like feeling the fretboard when you play, but also appreciate some easiness to press down the frets, this size offers a good balance for that.

Final Playability Scores

Taylor 312ce-N
Bending & Vibrato Ease 75
Chord Playability 65
Solo Playability 70
Playability 70
Martin CEO-9
Bending & Vibrato Ease 80
Chord Playability 80
Solo Playability 70
Playability 77

Specs Side-by-Side

Taylor 312ce-N vs Martin CEO-9
General Taylor 312ce-N Martin CEO-9
Brand: Taylor Martin
Year: 2021 2019
Strings: 6 6
Made in: United States United States
Series: 300 Custom & Special Editions
Colors: Natural Natural
Left-Handed Version: Yes Yes
Body
Type: Hollowbody Hollowbody
Body Material: Solid Sitka Spruce Solid Curly Mango
Sides Material: Sapele Mango
Back Material: Sapele Mango
Bridge: Ebony Ebony
Neck
Neck Joint: Set Set
Tuners: Classical Nickel Vintage Copper Open Gear
Fretboard: Ebony Ebony
Neck Material: Tropical Mahogany Genuine Mahogany
Decoration: Small Diamonds Corian 42 Snowflake
Scale Size: 25.5" 24.9"
Shape: Acoustic Taylor Standard Acoustic Modified V
Frets: 17 Medium Nickel Silver 20 Medium Nickel Silver
Fretboard Radius: 15" 16"
Nut: Ivory Tusq Bone
Nut Width: 47.6mm (1.875'') 44.5mm (1.75'')
Electronics
Bridge Pickup: ES-N Electronics (Preamp / Active) Fishman (Preamp / Active)