What Do You Think Of The Taylor T-5?

[admin]

I am wondering if anyone here has played the Taylor T-5 and if so I would appreciate your critical comments.

[jingle_jangle]

I've played one on a number of occasions. It has a lovely neck and action, a very solid, monolithic "feel", and top notch quality of construction. The 12-string version (which I've heard, but not played) is a knockout. The sonic variations are immense, especially in the 2 + piezo configuration.

My only quibble is with the tiny control knobs, which would be tough to manipulate with sweaty hands.

Graham and I toured the sprawling Taylor plant last summer, and it was the first time I saw one of their custom colors--a Sage Green pearlescent that took this trad shape into new territory. Their standard finishes are amazing, too.

Interestingly, these are "billet" guitars, which gives them a kinship to Rickenbackers--the bodies are machined from a solid wood billet, and the tops glued on. Gibson and Gretsch (among other manufacturers) also make guitars this way in their semi-solid line, but these feature bored holes in the billet, typically 1 1/2" r so in diameter, whose primary purpose is to lighten the instrument, not to give it that wonderful fruity tone that a fully-routed-out body can achieve. The Taylor, like the Rickenbacker, has a lot of air inside.

[admin]

A great review, thanks Paul.

[admin]

A good look at a T-5 at what seems to be a good price here.

[jingle_jangle]

Peter, do you subscribe to the Elderly weekly list? It comes out every Monday AM, to your email box. There's always something interesting, and prices are sometimes on the low side for a retail dealer.

I saw this one last Monday on the list, and thought it was not too bad--about $200 lower than most used T5s. The color could be nicer, but that's personal taste...Tobacco Burst on flame maple is my favorite on these

Bear in mind, as I'm sure you will, that these are going to drop a bit as more come onto the used market. But owners seem too love 'em so far.

[admin]

An excellent point with regard to the eventual drop in price, Paul.

Time to get on the elderly list, although according to my children I am already on it.

I cannot describe how hard they laughed when the saw the Elderly Instruments magazine in the mailbox.

I hope that others will comment on the tone of the T5, particularly with a view to whether this model does justice to both acoustic and electric tones in a single instrument.

[ajish4]

Too funny,

BOTH guitarists in the church band I'm in have one!

BOTH 6 strings. One plays through a Fishman acoustic amp (WHAT A HAUNTING SOUND) and the other goes direct into the PA.

You have to hear what TWO of 'em sound like! What an amazing guitar!

[jingle_jangle]

I notice today that they've reduced the price on that one to $1450.00.

[junglejem]

I bought a T-5 from Southpaw Guitars about a year ago. Gorgeous ice tea sunburst on some really nice flamed maple. I played it exclusively at Church for about 3-4 months, then traded it toward a Gibson J-200.
My impression is that the instrument does quite well at both, electric and acoustic, but excells at neither. The electric will howl with feedback if you are not careful (the acoustic body-sensor pickup through a high-gain electric amp is a match made in Hell). I was playing the acoustic pickup through a Taylor K4 Preamp. The electric pickups, at that time, I was running through a POD XT (maybe that was my problem). Portable way to play both acoustic and electric on the same "gig." The T-5 is very comfortable, seems to be well-built, although mine had some nasty "static electricity" clicking when played on the acoustic pickup. Through the house PA, it could be rather obnoxious. I did not have anything done about it, because of fears of voiding the warranty....but to get warranty work, I would have had to ship the guitar down to Southern California, and quite possibly be without for a few weeks. Bottom line, it was extremely okay, but far from a dream guitar.

I'm sure my problem is that I'm old school. My "family" consists of a Rickenbacker 330/12, a 50th Anniversary '54 Stratocaster, a 1982 Rickenbacker 4003, and my Gibson J-200. For my purposes, and in my mind, the T-5 cannot come close to replacing the J-200 and the Stratocaster, financial considerations aside. For live performance, where switching instruments on the fly is crucial (for those of us without the luxury of a stage crew/guitar tech) the T-5 makes a lot of sense. It is a very acceptable substitute for the real thing.

[johneek]

My brother has one and loves it...won't stop talking about it.

[ozover50]

I've had a bit of a look around at the T-5s and they seem to get pretty good raps. Darned expensive over here, though!!

I reckon if I was going to go for one it would have to be the C series rather than the S......