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Taylor GT 811e
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes
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Playability
82
Sound
86
Build
87
Value
70
Score
85
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Playability
82
Sound
86
Build
80
Value
88
Score
83
FIND IT ON:
Sweetwater logoMusician's Friend logo
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Taylor GT 811e vs Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes Specs Comparison
Taylor GT 811e Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes
General
Brand: Taylor Martin
Year: 2020 2022
Strings: 6 6
Made in: United States Mexico
Series: 800 Custom & Special Editions
Colors: Natural Natural
Left-Handed Version: Yes No
Body
Type: Hollowbody Hollowbody
Body Material: Solid Sitka Spruce Solid Spruce
Sides Material: Rosewood Sapele
Back Material: Rosewood Sapele
Bridge: West African Crelicam Ebony FSC Certified Ebony
Neck
Neck Joint: Set Set
Tuners: Taylor Nickel Mini Chrome Enclosed Gear
Fretboard: West African Crelicam Ebony FSC Certified Ebony
Neck Material: Tropical Mahogany FSC Certified Sipo
Decoration: Element MOP Pattern Custom Shawn Mendes (MOP Pattern)
Scale Size: 24.125" 24"
Shape: Acoustic Taylor Standard Acoustic Junior
Frets: 20 Medium Nickel Silver 20 Medium Nickel Silver
Fretboard Radius: 15" 16"
Nut: Black Tusq XL Ivory Tusq
Nut Width: 43.4mm (1.71'') 44.5mm (1.75'')
Electronics
Pickups: Expression System 2 Electronics (Preamp / Active) Fishman Sonitone (Preamp / Active)
Hardware
Strap Lock: No No
Hardware Color: Nickel Chrome

Reasons to Get
Taylor GT 811e over Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes

Country of Manufacturing
United States vs Mexico
Built with higher quality standards
Nut Width
1.71'' (43.4mm) vs 1.75'' (44.5mm)
Favors small hands, easier bar chords and other shapes
Body Shape
Grand Theater vs Auditorium Mini
Slightly smaller than a Grand Concert with a shorter scale
Scale Length
24.125'' (612.8mm) vs 24'' (609.6mm)
Lower action and brighter natural tone
Fretboard Radius
15'' (381mm) vs 16'' (406.4mm)
Easier to play chords without muting strings

Reasons to Get
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes over Taylor GT 811e

Release Year
2022 vs 2020
From a more recent year
Pickups Brand
Fishman vs None
Pickups from a renown brand
Nut Width
1.75'' (44.5mm) vs 1.71'' (43.4mm)
Less likely to mute strings by accident and more space for fingerstyle
Body Shape
Auditorium Mini vs Grand Theater
A compact version of the Auditorium size
Scale Length
24'' (609.6mm) vs 24.125'' (612.8mm)
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
Value Score
88 vs 70
Better price/quality relationship

Other Key Differences
Taylor GT 811e vs Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes

Back Material
Rosewood vs Sapele
Different Back Material
Sides Material
Rosewood vs Sapele
Different Sides Material
Saddle Material
Synthetic Bone vs Ivory Tusq
Different Saddle Material
Bridge Material
West African Crelicam Ebony vs FSC Certified Ebony
Different Bridge Material
Neck Wood
Mahogany vs Sipo
Different Neck Wood
Nut Material
Black Tusq XL vs Ivory Tusq
Different Nut Material

Shared Features
Taylor GT 811e vs Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes

Body Wood
Spruce
Same Body 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
Number of Frets
20
Same maximum octave
Paint Finish
Poly
Resistant paint that ages well
Bridge
Fixed
Good sustain and needs no set-up
Neck Profile Type
C
Comfortable neck that works for most people
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
  • 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

Price History Comparison

SET PRICE ALERT

Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes Prices

SET PRICE ALERT

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Hand Size Comfortability

After taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that both favor small hands .

Taylor GT 811e:
Big Hands
Small Hands
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes:
Big Hands
Small Hands

Beginner Friendliness

Both meet 5 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness. 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. If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, you can't go wrong with either of them.

New Player Friendliness

Taylor GT 811e
  • Comfortable shape
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Tall frets
  • Short scale
  • Comfortable neck
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Narrow nut
  • Soft Strings
  • Locking tuners

New Player Friendliness

Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes
  • Comfortable shape
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Tall frets
  • Short scale
  • Comfortable neck
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Narrow nut
  • Soft Strings
  • Locking tuners

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

Ebony wood pattern used for guitar building
Ebony
Spruce wood pattern used for guitar building
Spruce

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.

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.

Woods Used in the Taylor GT 811e

Mahogany wood pattern used for guitar building
Mahogany
Rosewood wood pattern used for guitar building
Rosewood

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.

Rosewood is an almost purple-looking wood that is used mainly for fretboards since it's heavy, rare, and expensive. It's sometimes used on acoustic guitar bodies to create stronger warm tones. Find out more about Rosewood.

Woods Used in the Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes

Sipo wood pattern used for guitar building
Sipo
Sapele wood pattern used for guitar building
Sapele

Sipo wood is a type of hardwood that is native to Africa. Regarding its tonal properties, the low end is full and rich, while the highs are clear and articulate. This makes for a very well-rounded sound that is perfect for any style of music.

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.

Winner: Taylor GT 811e.

Electronics

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

Winner:Tie.

Final Sound Quality Scores

Taylor GT 811e
Sustain 90
Versatility 85
Tuning Stability 70
Sound 86
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes
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 GT 811e compares to the Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes.

Country of Origin

The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Taylor GT 811e is built in United States while the Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes is made in Mexico.

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.

Mexico has been for a long time where Fender has built their semi-premium series. If you don't want to overpay for a wellp-built instrument, a guitar built in this country by a good brand always offers good value for the money.

Winner: Taylor GT 811e

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 GT 811e has a Black Tusq XL nut. TUSQ nuts are usually the highest quality you can get. Black TUSQs are made from a special slippery material that helps the strings get back to its original position (one of the keys to tune stability).

On the other hand, the Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes comes with 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.

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 GT 811e's are Taylor Nickel Mini while the Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes's are Chrome Enclosed Gear

Winner: Tie.

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

Strengths & Weaknesses
Taylor GT 811e
  • Made in United States
  • Expensive Wood
  • Black Tusq XL Nut
  • Electronics
  • Synthetic Bone 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 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes
  • Expensive Wood
  • Ivory Tusq Nut
  • Top Brand Pickups
  • Electronics
  • Ivory Tusq Saddle
  • Solid Top Wood
  • Solid Side Wood
  • Solid Back Wood
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Locking Tuners
  • Made in Mexico
  • No Compound Radius Fretboard
  • No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • No Strap Lock

Final Build Quality Scores

Taylor GT 811e
Quality of materials 86
Features 75
Quality Control 100
Build Quality 87
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes
Quality of materials 86
Features 85
Quality Control 70
Build Quality 80

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 GT 811e Nut Width
Taylor GT 811e Nut Width
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes Nut Width
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes Nut Width

The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, the Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes has the wider nut with 44.5mm (1.75'') vs 43.4mm (1.71''). This is a 1.1mm (0.04'') difference

This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes, 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 GT 811e's Scale Length
Taylor GT 811e's Scale Length
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes's Scale Length
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes'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 GT 811e has the longest scale: 24.125". The Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes is only 24" long. This is a 0.125'' (3.2mm) 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 GT 811e Neck Profile
Taylor GT 811e's neck profile
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes Neck Profile
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes'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.

Both the Taylor GT 811e and the Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes have a C-shaped 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.

Fretboard Radius

Taylor GT 811e Fingerboard Radius
Taylor GT 811e's Fingerboard radius
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes Fingerboard Radius
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes'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 GT 811e's fingerboard radius is smaller, which means it's more curved than the Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes'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 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes.

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''.

Fret Size

Taylor GT 811e and Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes 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 GT 811e
Bending & Vibrato Ease 90
Chord Playability 75
Solo Playability 80
Playability 82
Martin 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes
Bending & Vibrato Ease 90
Chord Playability 75
Solo Playability 80
Playability 82