Taylor Guitars T5S1 Standard Maple Acoustic Electric Guitar, Honey Burst Reviews
Visit Store Now !!
Detail Products
Detail Reviews
May 14, 2011 06:32:03
Taylor Guitars T5C2 Custom Koa Acoustic Electric Guitar Reviews
Soon after the T5 hit the market in 2005, the music industry press nominated it for Electric Guitar of the Year. And Acoustic Guitar of the Year. Which pretty much sums it all up: the T5 is an electric/acoustic that defines the hybrid category. Today, the versatile T5 is the top-selling semi-hollow body guitar and the only one that uses all-magnetic pickups for both its electric and acoustic tones. That means real acoustic tones, real electric tones, and everything in between. The exotic Koa wood top says it all on the T5-C2.
|
 The T5 body has f-holes and the slight arch in the top with an acoustic tone more akin to a flattop style of sound. |
Taylor's T5 Body
Three-plus decades of acoustic expertise informed the way Taylor shaped the hollow body hybrid T5. You can hear the tonal character before you even plug it in. The T5 features a fully hollow body and an active soundboard with a compound radius. The top is a flat piece of wood braced into an arch to capture the acoustic resonance. The f-holes in the top were specially designed and voiced to further enhance the resonance of the body chamber, and to allow the top to breathe in relation to the player¹s dynamic attack.
Despite the f-holes and the slight arch in the top, the T5 is not an archtop guitar. Its acoustic tone is more akin to a flattop style of sound, as opposed to a carved top instrument like a violin, viola, archtop guitar, or mandolin.
Electronics
Thanks to its humbucking pickups and proprietary body sensor, the T5-C2 produces a versatile range of pure analog tones from strumming acoustic to crunchy electric and everything in between. A hidden neck humbucker, a visible bridge humbucker, and a body sensor mounted to the inside surface of the top take advantage of the latest technology, utilizing Samarium Cobalt magnets and humbucking coils. The body sensor reads the movement of the top, adding even more warmth to your acoustic tone.
 Features two active preamp/EQ tone controls and a volume control. |
 5-way switch gives a range from acoustic tones to thick lead tones. |
With 5-way switching, the T5-C2 gives a wide range from acoustic-like tones all the way to thick lead tones. Position 1 is where you'll find the most acoustic-like tones, and is a great position for solos and a good place to experiment with the tone controls. Position 3 will go from "spanky" and clean, all the way to "full-tilt crunch." In position 4 you might find it reminiscent of a '50s hollowbody with a slight scoop. While position 5 creates a full and bright sound that's great for thick lead tones.
In addition to the 5-way switch, two active preamp/EQ tone controls and a volume control — incorporating the same soft-touch rollers as those used on the ES--allow for a wide range of additional tone-shaping within each switch position. Located on the soundboard near the upper left shoulder of the guitar are the Volume (set apart from the other two controls), Bass (the middle control), and Treble (closest to the fretboard).
The More You Play, The Better It Sounds
Koa blends the midrange tone of mahogany with the top-end tone of maple. Due to its density, a new koa guitar tends to start out sounding a little bright and tight, somewhat like maple. But the more a koa guitar is played, the more the sound opens up--expanding the midrange and rewarding the player with a richer, sweeter, more resonant tone. A common mistake is when a bright player buys a koa guitar in part for its visual beauty, finds it to be too bright, and doesn't play it enough to allow the wood to warm up.
The back and sides are made from the mahogany-like sapele wood, which has gained a legion of fans ever since Taylor introduced it in 1998. As a tonewood, it's denser and harder than mahogany, so it has a crisper, clearer, brighter, "pop"-ier sound than its more familiar counterpart. Loud and robust, with a lovely ribboned grain, sapele has been used by Spanish guitar makers for many years.
 Humbucking pickups and proprietary body sensor produce a versatile range of pure analog tones from strumming acoustic to crunchy electric and everything in between. |
 The T-Lock employs a neck joint and a precisely milled pocket spacer to dial-in the perfect neck angle. |
Straight Necks Matter
Taylor's innovative T-Lock neck joint brings their trademark consistency and comfort into the electric player's hands. The Taylor NT neck in 1999 added another major breakthrough in neck design that remains a benchmark for setting an accurate neck angle. It would go on to inspire the single-bolt T-Lock neck design used on the T5-C2, and now being applied to the solid body. Like the NT neck, The T-Lock employs a neck joint and a precisely milled pocket spacer to dial-in the perfect neck angle. As the neck bolt is tightened in place, it pulls the neck both down and back toward the bridge for perfect alignment and stability. It's simple to put on or take off to switch out spacers for angle adjustment. And once in place, the fit is perfect, allowing no side movement.
Construction
Taylor takes pride in using the finest quality woods for their guitars, like ebony for every fretboard they make. The tone woods were quartersawn and carefully book-matched before being sorted, dried, and prepared by Bob Taylor and his experienced team of luthiers. The T5-C2 inlay and binding work was also done by hand, providing care and "touch" that no machine can give. Taylor believes that precision matters, which is why they rely on laser cutters and computer-aided milling machines to consistently hit minute tolerances that were impossible a decade ago.
Balance and Bracing
A balanced tone is critical to a quality recorded sound. Guitars that are too heavily weighted towards a particular end of the tonal spectrum (too "bassy," for example) tend to be tougher to record. While the Dreadnought shape has more volume or bass than other shapes, the overall balance on the T5-C2 is not compromised.
Tuners
Precise, gleaming tuners add appealing form to an important function, while the type of strings used can alter the feel and the tone of your guitar. Taylor pays careful attention to both, using tuners and strings that are optimized for the T5-C2 guitar. Together, they are among the keys to an easy-playing, incredible-sounding Taylor.
Visit Store Now !!
Detail Products
Detail Reviews
Mar 18, 2011 20:43:04
Taylor 210G w/Gloss Finish Reviews
Visit Store Now !!
Detail Products
Detail Reviews
Mar 16, 2011 17:47:03
Taylor Guitars T5C-12 Custom 12-String Acoustic Electric Guitar Reviews
Visit Store Now !!
Detail Products
Detail Reviews
Mar 10, 2011 05:00:03
Taylor Guitars 614ce Grand Auditorium Acoustic Electric Guitar, Cherry Burst Reviews
Visit Store Now !!
Detail Products
Detail Reviews
Mar 06, 2011 15:13:03
Taylor Guitars K22-CE Grand Concert Acoustic Electric Guitar Reviews
Visit Store Now !!
Detail Products
Detail Reviews
Feb 24, 2011 22:50:04
Taylor Guitars 455-CE-LFT Jumbo 12 String Acoustic Electric Guitar Left Handed Reviews
Go To Store Now
Quality Products
Detail & Reviews
Feb 20, 2011 12:00:04
Taylor Guitars GS8-LFT Grand Symphony Acoustic Electric Guitar, Left Handed Reviews
Introduced in 2006, the Grand Symphony body is an original design from top to bottom--and the first new Taylor shape in over a decade. It was a hit right out of the gate. Expect acoustic power in every note, with deep piano-like bass, rich mids, clear and balanced highs, and plenty of volume. With a Sitka spruce top, the GS8 has an added touch of crispness to big, bold tone of its rosewood sides and back.
|
Taylor's Grand Symphony Shape
The Grand Symphony (GS) is the first original shape from Bob Taylor since he unveiled the Grand Auditorium (GA) in 1995. Though you might see similarities to a GA, the GS is unique in both sound and design. Significant changes in its geometry yield a deeper, more piano-like bass. The waist is moved a bit higher, and is 3/8 of an inch wider. The result is a reduction in the "pinching" of the waist, which releases more tonal output from the guitar. Finally, the lower bout is expanded, making it feel slightly rounder. They're subtle changes that yield a far-from-subtle change in tone. Complementing the robust bass from the GS body, volume and low-end sustain are full, rich mids and clear, balanced highs. The GS is a unique sound and a new dimension in Taylor tone.
 Features Taylor's original Grand Symphony body shape. |
 A sitka spruce top adds a touch of crispness to the big, bold tones of the Indian rosewood back and sides. |
Crisp and Bold Tone
The top is made from sitka spruce, a dense, straight-grained wood that has the highest strength and elasticity-to-weight ratio among available tonewoods. It's these attributes that make sitka spruce an ideal material not only for soundboards, but also for internal bracing. The sitka top will produce a tone slightly brighter tone than engelmann spruce.
The back and sides are made from Indian rosewood, which is coveted by players and guitar builders alike for its dark, luxurious coloration that ranges from brown to purple to rose to black, and for tonal characteristics that include a strong bass response and long sustain. It remains the most popular tonewood used in the making of high-quality acoustic guitars.
Construction
Taylor takes pride in using the finest quality woods for their guitars, like ebony for every fretboard they make. The tone woods for the GS7 were quartersawn and carefully book-matched before being sorted, dried, and prepared by Bob Taylor and his experienced team of luthiers. The abalone inlay and binding work was also done by hand, providing care and "touch" that no machine can give. Taylor believes that precision matters, which is why they rely on laser cutters and computer-aided milling machines to consistently hit minute tolerances that were impossible a decade ago.
Balance and Bracing
A balanced tone is critical to a quality recorded sound. Guitars that are too heavily weighted towards a particular end of the tonal spectrum (too "bassy," for example) tend to be tougher to record. While the Dreadnought shape has more volume or bass than other shapes, the overall balance on the GS7 is not compromised.
 Features abalone dot inlays on the fretboard. |
Straight Necks Matter
Don't all guitars have straight necks? The answer is usually yes, but the real question is will they stay that way? Since its inception, the acoustic guitar had a major design flaw. The fretboard lacked sufficient support to remain truly straight because of top movement caused by changes in humidity. All guitars experience this phenomenon--often resulting in a slight bump at the 14th fret--but not all guitars respond to it in the same way.
Introduced in 1999 and a standard feature since 2001, the patented New Technology (NT) neck was designed by Bob Taylor and his team to accomplish the primary goal of building a straighter, more stable guitar neck. While some necks may bend in the face of humidity and other factors, the NT Neck stays stable and straight.
Adjustability is another major NT advantage. Since the NT Neck angle is created by spacers and requires no glue, adjustment simply requires a repair person with a new set of spacers and about five spare minutes. Altering the neck angle of a traditional neck assembly could require invasive surgery to remove wood and relocate the bridge.
The bottom line: The NT Neck on the GS7 means a stable, easy-to-adjust neck that stands up to the pressures all acoustic guitars face.
Tuners
Precise, gleaming tuners add appealing form to an important function, while the type of strings used can alter the feel and the tone of your guitar. Taylor pays careful attention to both, using tuners and strings that are optimized for the GS7 guitar. Together, they are among the keys to an easy-playing, incredible-sounding Taylor.
Go To Store Now
Quality Products
Detail & Reviews
Feb 19, 2011 10:50:04
