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Location: SE Michigan | Well, here is what I bought from the proceeds of selling two of my Ovations, a Taylor T5 Thinline standard - spruce:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y169/BKOK_T/DSC00799.jpg
For awhile now I've been trying to find a way to bring out the lead solo's in the duo Brad and I are in. This ought to do the job. I also really like the fact that you can plug it straight into a PA (like at at open mic) and get a pretty decent acoustic sound out of it. Plug it into an electric amp or use some effects and the humbuckings make it almost as good as a Les Paul. Plus it's beautiful and extremely well made, I cant find one flaw on it. |
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Location: south east Michigan | I have spent some time with this.
It is very nice.
The controls are very well placed.
I would like to A/B it with a Hamer Monaco.
And fear not and don't morn for our OFC brother BrianT.
He has currently gone astray but he will be offically back in fold soon enough.
I give it 6 months. |
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Location: NJ | I used to LIKE you . . . |
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Location: Earth·SolarSystem·LocalInterstellarCloud·Local Bub | Nice Brian.
....now, go to your room. No Dinner. |
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Location: closely held secret | "He seemed like such a quiet, pleasant, reasonable fellow. I can't imagine him doing anything like this." |
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Location: SoCal | The Taylor T5 is a very cool guitar. Give us a full review after you've had it a few months. I'd be interested in your thoughts. Hope it works out for you.
My biggest problem with hybrid guitars is that they'll do several things well, but nothing great. But we'll see...... |
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Location: south east Michigan | Also, in the next week or so, I have to hook up my buddy BrianT with a program to size his photos. |
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Location: closely held secret | There's a very popular one, that's free and easy to use. In fact, if he's using windows he already has it. It's called "Paint". |
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Location: Phoenix AZ | That's a great guitar. Congratulations. Dave |
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Location: south east Michigan | I have always used the "export" feature in Adobe Photo-Deluxe. It may be harder but I at least feel like I've accomplished something.
BTW...BrianT and I will be having our first "plugged in" practice with the T5 saturday afternoon at my house. Any here are welcome. |
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Location: NJ | one word
VIPER |
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Location: Ballston Lake, N.Y. | Does it have a round back? |
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Location: SE Michigan | I considered a Viper but I really want to get away from Piezo pickups, they just dont work well into effects. The T5 has a body sensor pickup for acoustic sound and two stacked humbuckings. The 5-way switch then allows you to select various pickup combinations.
I agree that hybrid guitars tend to do neither function well (acoustic or electric). But I think Taylor is breaking down that barrier. With two humbuckings it sounds great as an electric guitar (into an electric amp), plus my effects pedals sound great due to the magnetic pickups. It also sounds surprisingly good as a plugged in acoustic, better than many full-sized acoustic electrics I've heard. I think the steel strings sacrifice a bit of tone, but in my opinion plugging in any acoustic is a compromise in some form and tone will be compromised.
In the end it's really the only guitar I could find (maybe with the exception of the Godins or Variax) that closely matches my needs in a plugged in stage guitar. |
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Location: Fayetteville, NC | Brian,
Gee that Taylor sure looks great,...but isn't it supposed to be Blue??? :rolleyes: :D |
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Location: Cicero, NY | It can be...you just have to kick it in the Pings. :eek: |
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Location: Earth·SolarSystem·LocalInterstellarCloud·Local Bub | Rimshot. |
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Location: NJ | a second word for you
Hamer duotone |
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Location: SoCal | What's the street price on the Duotone? My guess would be that it's a better guitar than the T5, but probably more expensive.
Of course, there's also the Al Pepiak Signature Viper...... |
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Location: Earth·SolarSystem·LocalInterstellarCloud·Local Bub | Originally posted by moody, p.i.:
Of course, there's also the Al Pepiak Signature Viper...... ...and other medical oddities |
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| I have picked up and played the T5 at another of our local stores here(used to be our local Ovation Dealer but dropped the line for some reason) so I won't mention their name.
they have 3 on the rack, a blue fade, a black and a burst, all are very nice... too pricey for my blood when I compare to O's and A's I could get for the same money.
kinda felt like I was cheating on my wife tho or ditching a best friend.
nice guitars.. just not for me.
God Bless,
Glenn |
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Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | Isn't there an offshore duotone and a US one?
The T5 is not my cup of tea. Never liked guitars that tried to do more than one thing. I used to think that the more bells and whisles, the better, but that's no more. The fewer knobs and pickups the better. I'm getting simplier as I get older. Probably, in terms of marketing, Taylor has a winner. Allow me to digress ...
In the old days, when I bought a pair of pants for school, I had a selection of about 3 choices. Now I go into a store and I have a million options, different flys, cuts, fabrics etc. What used to take a moment decide is like trying to buy a car. Look at your cell phones and what they do. Pictures, annoying email, text messages ... I told verizon to turn off those things, just give me a phone!
Similarly, Taylor's doing it with this guitar, frankly it's nuts, but it'll probably be popular.
Ovation should conduct an experiment, and build something similar. Probably would sell great. It wouldn't be for me though.
Oh yeah, on my electric I have only one pickup and use only the volume control. |
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Location: south east Michigan | I have spent some time with a Variaxe. The phrase "does a lot of things, not many of them well" fits. I do not get the same opinion with the T5. The T5 does not try to be a banjo or a 12 string. Like I said....I'd love to A/B it with a Hamer.
So...whos coming over on Saturday??? |
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Location: SE Michigan | As far as cost goes, I payed $1850 plus tax, far less than a lot of Adamas and other guitars go for (I did buy the lowest price model). And it really is not that complicated. It has three pickups, a body sensor similar to the Taylor expression system and two humbuckings. It also has volume, bass, treble, and a pickup select switch, same basic controls as a stratocaster.
I am not an expert regarding this guitar, but what makes it different to me is that it has a flat spruce top like an acoustic (unplugged it is fairly loud, much louder than say an archtop or a traditional hollowbody). That and the body sensing pickup give it realistic acoustic tone into a PA, flip the pickup select and bring the humbuckings in and your ready for some electric tone or effects.
For my use, which is in a duo playing mostly open-mic type venues, it seems an ideal fit. My problem with traditional acoustic-electrics is that I could never get a convincing lead tone, lead solos on an acoustic tend to sound plinky to me. Now I am armed for bear.
I personally could not see paying $600-$800 more for a Koa or Maple top and some abalony. I'll tell you more when I've had more time to play it. |
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Location: Phoenix AZ | Originally posted by BrianT:
I payed $1850 plus tax, far less than a lot of Adamas and other guitars go for. And not too much more than a nice ukulele ... |
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Location: 6 String Ranch | warm 1% milk.
BUT, If you like it these other opinions don't matter. Enjoy it! New toys are always great. |
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Location: Cherry Hill, NJ | I checked them out, and wondered about what type of niche they would fill. With the features you mentioned, now I know. Let us know how it works out for you. |
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Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | I guess I'm projecting too much of myself onto the T5. In thinking about it, some people probably would think I've drifted too far over to the other side.
Please report on how it works live, I'm sure it'll be great. |
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Location: Lake Hiawatha, New Jersey | Congratulations Brian!
I seem to like guitars that aren't the "norm", Ovations being one of them. I bought a Parker Deluxe Fly years ago when I 'needed' to quickly switch from rhythm "acoustic" to electric lead on the fly (the parker is an electric with peizo pickups giving it a psuedo acoustic sound)in live situations. That is one of the most versitile and best playing guitars I have ever owned, and I still love it to this day. I would never use it solely for it's 'acoustic' properties outside of a full band situation, but combining the piezo with the electric pickups gives an amazing electric clean sound. The guitar can sound thick like a Les Paul, or Strat-like very quickly. As far as 'hybrids' go (doing some things well nothing great), I don't really think of it as a hybrid, just an amazingly flexible sounding electric. I also have a Godin Multiac, which is more of a chambered solid body guitar (like a viper)that's more acoustic sounding (has mixed piezo pickup & internal mic) than electric, but since it uses extra light strings, it plays more like an electric and is ideal for live lead "acoustic" guitar. Though this is technically not a hybrid guitar, it can be used as one (it gets a decent enough distorted electric tone through effects and no feedback since it is an enclosed body) but does neither outstanding by any means, but is a very good guitar.
I haven't tried this new Taylor, as I'm no longer in the market for a hybrid, but the specs make it very appealing. I will check it out the next time I see one thanks to your recommendation... you have me curious.
Enjoy it, man! |
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Posts: 1922
Location: Canton (Detroit), MI | Congrats, Brian. Pretty guitar. I'm waiting to see the bear you get with it.....(since you're now "loaded for")
If Ovation built one of these (actually, I thought they DID), it wouldn't sell....it would say "Ovation" on the headstock, unfortunately.....
Roger |
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Location: south east Michigan | ???? :confused: :confused: |
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Location: SoCal | What the heck, El Cajon needs the tax revenue (about 6 miles) and, since the staff at Taylor sometimes come to my Repeat Offender Traffic Program (16hours), it gives me more money to buy Ovations and Adamas. :D :p :D |
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Location: Minden, Nebraska | One more word: JUDAS! :-)
Seriously, that is a lot of money for a guitar like that, imho. Without a/b'ing the guitar against a Duotone or a Parker Fly or a Godin LGX using effects, it is hard to make a judgement.
What is most important is that you have a guitar YOU really like. May your Taylor serve you well, and we'll pray for your prodigal musical soul. |
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Location: Edmond, Oklahoma | I've been wondering... seriously... Will Ovation release a similarly-featured guitar in the future? To compete head-on with the T5. |
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Location: Phoenix AZ | NO. Just a guess. Dave |
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Location: Minden, Nebraska | I'm with Dave, as usual. I don't believe Ovation has ever let Taylor drive its own designs. If anything, Taylor's development of unique electronics seems more to have been driven by Ovation, imho. |
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Location: maryland | i have to say i get a great sound out of my o plugged in.
what is surprising is i play through an electric guitar set up.
i have an old mesa boogie 50 cal.+ and i made my own cabinet that houses four celestion G12T-75's 8ohm.
that guitar sounds great through the clean channel with no effects. |
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January 2004
Posts: 338
Location: SE Michigan | Well I've had the T5 for a couple weeks now. Last weekend I played it plugged into a Fender Twin reverb and also into my Roland cube 30, along with drums and bass. It rocked, it could growl and drive almost as good as my buddie's Les Paul Custom. No feedback problems at all. It looses some acoustic tone quality through the electric amps, but it was still acoustic enough for me to play some finger-style stuff to accompany my wife's vocals (stuff I normally play on acoustic).
Plugged into a PA or acoustic amp it is as good as most piezo acoustic-electrics that I have heard. Also it is very light and comfortable to play. Stays in tune well and seems like a really first rate guitar. All and all I am very pleased with it. |
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I've crossed over to the dark side (WARNING - Taylor Content)