Taylor Claria Pickup vs ES2 Pickup | What's The Difference?
Taylor guitars have long been known as the ultimate stage ready instrument. It doesn’t matter what size or style of venue you’re playing in, with a Taylor guitar you can have total confidence that your tone will sound high quality and enjoyable for the audience. A big reason for this confidence comes from the high-quality electronics and pickups that Taylor guitars come equipped with.
The ES2 (Expression System 2) pickup has been Taylor’s pickup of choice for many years. It’s a proprietary behind the saddle pickup which features three uniquely positioned and calibrated sensors, all of which help to capture the sound in an accurate and clear way.
2026 sees the release of Taylor’s “Next Generation” collection, which currently features all-new Grand Auditorium models which have been re-designed from the ground up. One of the most exciting changes made on Next Generation instruments is the inclusion of a new proprietary pickup and electronic system called “Claria”.
The Claria system has been in development for a number of years and received extensive design input from touring artists and live sound engineers. It combines a reimagined under-saddle piezo pickup with a proprietary preamp designed to deliver an accurate stage ready sound. Crafted for reliability and versatility, Claria delivers clear, natural sound and features a wide range of tone-shaping control, making it easy to dial in old-school lo-fi warmth, pristine modern detail, and everything in between. The Claria system features tone shaping controls which can be easily adjusted on stage. You’ll find Volume, Mid Contour, and Tone controls located discreetly in the guitars soundhole, giving the guitar a traditional, non-invasive design.
We know that a lot of people will have questions about both of these pickup options, so we’ve put together a great video showcasing both of these pickups side by side so you can hear the unique characteristics of each pickup. All of the sound clips were recorded direct into our interface with no post processing, so you can really hear the subtle differences.
