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Taylor T5z Custom Koa Hollowbody Electric Guitar - Shaded Edge Burst

6-string Hollowbody Electric Guitar with Koa Top, Urban Ash Body, Mahogany Neck, and Ebony Fingerboard - Shaded Edge Burst
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Taylor T5z Custom Koa Hollowbody Electric Guitar - Shaded Edge Burst
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Treat Your Ears to the T5z Custom’s Koa-tinged Tone!

Fresh from Taylor, this T5z Custom Koa Hollowbody Electric Guitar offers a classic premium spread of T5z features — namely, humbucking and acoustic pickups, a thin ergonomic body carve, and a silky string feel that’s out of this world. But this custom edition takes things up a notch with a stunning koa top and back and sides made from urban ash. These tonewoods are a natural fit for the T5z Custom’s hybrid tonal range. Ash’s wide-open focus is a natural canvas for koa’s acclaimed midrange and dynamic responsive. Beyond powering compelling sonics in acoustic or electric modes, these premium tonewoods also show off lots of wood grain for a look that’s pure luxury. Moreover, the T5z Custom plays like a dream with supremely soft action fueled by a 24.875-inch scale ebony fingerboard and comfortable modern carved mahogany neck. Acoustic or electric? For discerning players who crave both, this is the ultimate guitar. Strike while the iron is hot with a T5z Custom Koa Hollowbody from Sweetwater today!

Elegant tonewood power: koa and ash

This T5z earns its coveted “custom” designation with a build of premium tonewoods packed with sonic presence. The T5z Custom’s urban ash body adds substantive mellow girth to acoustic playing and deftly becomes thick and rich in electric modes. Urban ash readily adapts to different players and styles, is often compared to mahogany, and it's even environmentally friendly — Taylor harvests it from urban old-growth slated for removal! Urban ash’s versatility is matched perfectly with a koa top. This treasured tropical tonewood offers a warm, focused tone akin to mahogany but with noticeably higher headroom that resists organic compression and rewards dynamic playing with vibrant fidelity. Together these tonewoods make the T5z Custom a perfect pick for hybrid tones that are beyond sophisticated.

Acoustic or electric? This hybrid does both!

The Taylor T5z allows you to summon fully acoustic sounds and fully electric sounds from the same guitar. This creation is built for use with both acoustic and electric amps and delivers feedback-free performance in either mode. With hybrid features such as these, the T5z is a powerful choice for performing artists looking to haul less gear to and from gigs. If you’re primarily an electric guitar player, you’ll particularly appreciate the T5z’s fast mahogany neck and classic ebony fingerboard. The fingerboard features a slightly shortened scale length of 24.875 inches, making expressive bends and silky riffs a walk in the park. Plus, the T5z can be further customized and accommodate electric or acoustic strings, according to your preference.

Innovative electronics

The Taylor T5z Custom features a whole new generation of electronics. Two pickups — a concealed neck humbucker and a visible bridge humbucker — produce a truly impressive range of electric guitar tones, while an acoustic body sensor system delivers breathtaking acoustic sounds. Inspired by Taylor’s acclaimed Expression acoustic guitar amplification systems, the T5z body sensors are overwound to produce sparkling highs and shimmer for the most acoustic-like tone possible. A 5-way selector offers a wide spread of possible combinations for full electric, full acoustic, or hybrid tones with additional onboard tone-tweaking controls for volume, bass, and treble.

The ergonomic T5z body carve

The T5z Custom’s comfortable hollowbody draws inspiration from Taylor’s supremely comfortable Grand Auditorium acoustic guitar shape, with similar dimensions but significantly reduced depth. These carefully crafted proportions yield a resonant hollowbody guitar that feels more like a conventional solidbody electric. Stylish but functional F-holes enhance the resonance of the body chamber, allowing the top to breathe and capture the dynamics of your performances, whether you’re rocking in electric mode or crooning over amplified acoustics.

Taylor T5z Custom Koa Hollowbody Electric Guitar Features:

  • Modern hollowbody guitar shape delivers rich acoustic and electric guitar tones with signature Taylor style
  • Compact body inspired by Grand Auditorium ergonomics but with the thin finesse of a solidbody electric
  • Gorgeous koa top ensures rich, responsive tone with lots of wood grain on display
  • Urban ash back and sides fuel modern clarity and rich focus akin to mahogany
  • Neo-tropical mahogany neck with Taylor’s comfortable T5z neck carve
  • 21-fret, 24.875-inch scale ebony fingerboard with luxurious action and outstanding playability
  • 3 onboard pickup options: 1 neck humbucker, 1 bridge humbucker, and a body sensor pickup
  • 5-way pickup selector offers a wide range of tones, including full electric, acoustic, and hybrid options
  • Volume, bass, and treble controls for tweaking tone to perfection
  • Premium hardware, including bone nut and Taylor tuners, deliver enhanced tone and rock-solid tuning stability

Why Buy Your Guitar from Sweetwater?

See how Sweetwater goes to great lengths to give you the very best online guitar buying experience. From our online Guitar Gallery that allows you to see and select the exact instrument you want to our 55-point Inspection process and our in-house guitar techs, we take the guesswork out of buying your next guitar online.

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Tech Specs

  • General
  • Number of Strings 6
  • Left-/Right-handed Right-handed
  • Body
  • Body Type Hollowbody
  • Body Shape T5z
  • Body Material Ash
  • Top Material Koa
  • Body Finish Gloss
  • Color Shaded Edge Burst
  • Neck
  • Neck Material Neo-Tropical Mahogany
  • Neck Shape T5z Carve
  • Neck Joint Set Neck
  • Radius 12"
  • Fingerboard Material Ebony
  • Number of Frets 21
  • Scale Length 24.875"
  • Nut Width 1.6875"
  • Nut Material Bone
  • Hardware
  • Bridge/Tailpiece Ebony Bridge, Bone Saddle
  • Tuners Taylor
  • Miscellaneous
  • Strings D'Addario XS Nickel-plated Steel, .011-.049
  • Case/Gig Bag Hardshell Case
  • Manufacturer Part Number: DT5A024101007433352

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Customer Reviews

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Rated 5/5

T5z custom koa...Wow!

Totally blown away! Ive always been a fan of high end Taylor guitars. For a production guitar, the Taylor T5z custom koa is a beautiful, extremely well built hybrid instrument. It is without a doubt the most awesome instrument I've owned. I started play in the early 60's and have owned and built numerous custom high end guitars over the years. To me, that says a lot.
I love the instrument's feel and tone options, not to mention it's well constructed visual, presentation. The neck plays like silk and is very consistent. Even after all these years as a musician, I can see how it's versatility is taking my playing to a whole new level..
Thanks to Taylor for knocking it out of the park once again. Thank you Sweetwater for making sure that I am a very happy Sweetwater customer..! (Pictured is the actual instrument that I purchased.
Music background: Life long player/ builder.
Rated 5/5

Great instrument!

Plays well and sounds amazing! I love the subtle ergonomic changes over the previous generation. It was a great shopping experience being able to pick the style of wood grain and the weight. Great photos too! The guitar was packaged well and arrived quickly. It has a slightly warmer acoustic tone than the previous generation T5z which has a bit more of a bright "twang" to it. Both generations of T5z sound great and unique in their own ways. I would love to see Taylor change the material of the back panel to something that uses a bit less plastic. Overall I'm very happy with the new changes and the enduring quality of Taylor. Thank you Zach and everyone at Sweetwater for the great customer service and the attention to detail each step of the way.
Rated 5/5

T5z is a winner for sure - and Sweetwater was uber-helpful

Take this review from the perspective of an old guy who's been playing a Taylor jumbo (915CE) acoustic (retro-fit with Taylor's electric system) for 20 years into his AER (acoustic) amp. I mostly fingerpick (acrylic nails) what we used to call "soft rock" (James Taylor, Carole King and other singer-songwriters of that era).

SIZE: The T5z is small compared to the jumbo. The neck is shorter, which makes fingering just a bit different. There's a getting-to-know-you period which didn't last very long. Included in that period is learning not to bump the volume knob. The more I play it the more I appreciate the not-so-huge size compared to my jumbo. I'm 6 ft. 180lbs (not a tiny guy) so the jumbo was fine, but if you're small of stature, this is a great choice for you.

PLAYABILITY: Significantly easier (less finger pressure needed) than my jumbo. I'm no longer pondering purchase of nylon.

SOUND - NO AMP: Nice thing is that it's playable without an amp connected. Not for a group, of course, but just for me sitting on the couch watching March Madness. I can practice just fine. It is, after all, a hollow-body guitar.

SOUND - WITH AMP: Into my AER (via Line 6 Relay G30) it's beautiful. The multi-position switch gives me a nice range of bright to mellow (probably not what it was designed to do, but I don't have an electric guitar amp). There is no discernable hum or hiss at any setting.

CAPO: I had some struggles getting my old capos to work as I wanted, so I bought a "Dunlop 71S Elastic Heavy/Single Capo" and it's great, even at the 7th fret.

SUMMARY: Clearly this guitar has capabilities far beyond my noodling around at home, but if you want one guitar to "do it all" you should check it out. An oh, did I say that it's utterly beautiful. Koa is a beautiful wood, and with the high-gloss finish it really shines.
Music background: Pretty OK fingerpicking amateur
Rated 5/5

Awesome guitar

This guitar plays like butter, sounds amazing, and just gorgeous! I was a little hesitant buying a guitar sight unseen, but my Sweetwater rep Jay was great, assuring me the guitar was inspected, and Sweetwater would have my back if I wasn't happy with the purchase.

Note, the picture has replacement volume & tone knobs that I purchased online. The stock knobs are very high, very sensitive to the touch, and close to the strings. I found myself accidentally altering volume during gigs. I got these low profile ebony knobs on Etsy.

As one of the nation's top Taylor Guitars dealers, Sweetwater receives regular on-site training from Bob, Andy, and the rest of the Taylor crew. We're also, many of us, Taylor players ourselves, and we're happy to steer you in the right direction once you're ready to make the leap. New to Taylor? Our Find Your Fit guide simplifies Taylor body shapes, woods, and series. Longtime player? Our Taylor Custom Shop, annual limited editions, and in-house mods offer a level of exclusivity you won't find in stores. Whatever your pleasure, Sweetwater's climate-controlled warehouse and 55-point Inspection ensure your Taylor guitar arrives ready to play just as the manufacturer intended.

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