Taylor T5z Classic Hollowbody Electric Guitar - Tropical Mahogany Sweetwater Exclusive Reviews

The T5Z is not a replacement for your traditional acoustic guitar or your electric shredder. This is a unique sounding animal with its own attitude. Outstanding fit and finish right out of the box. If you play electric guitar, you'll feel right at home. The stacked humbuckers provide quiet air with a nice little growl with some OD. The acoustic position pairs well with Chorus and Delay . Very comfortable to play and should do well in live transition work.

Love this guitar! Hard to put down easy to play sounds great on the fishman amp and does it all on the orange super crush amp

I'm in a 60s/70s cover band and for the most part, I only need play my electric Gibson Les Paul. So when we play an acoustic tune now and then, I had never really become comfortable draping my arm over a cumbersome (to me) acoustic guitar. The T5z is as thin as my Les Paul and bring a Taylor guitar, it sounds incredible too. I no longer dread playing acoustic guitar. Thank you!

Won’t replace my acoustic guitars but love the versatility of this guitar for different tones. Very fun to play and Taylor quality too. The padded gig bag is really nice as well.

Everything I wanted and expected from my 1st "Taylor". Beyond satisfied!

Soft touch, finish is great, setup spot on. A delight to play. GearFest was a blast!
Get there next year if you can!
Thanks Bart Good for your years of help in my gear decisions!

I picked this guitar up for a few reasons, but primarily because I"m an aging former professional acoustic player that doesn"t have time to stay in shape to be happy playing full-tension, full-scale acoustic guitars. Also, I enjoy having all the electric guitar sounds this can produce. Lastly, I always wanted an archtop but couldn"t swallow the cost, and this seemed like it could give me a lot of that. I was right in my choice: this thing requires essentially no effort to play well, has wonderful sounds, and can fit the role (without trying to be a copy) of lots of different guitars. I was a sponsored artist for Godin way back in the day, so I know what hybrids are like, and what I love about this guitar is that all of its sounds are exceptional, vs being a bad facsimile for a specific other guitar. I"m having so much fun playing it clean, with FX, and in full overdrive. Fun, fun, fun.

Best all-around guitar i've ever had..Fun to play a lot it can do...

This guitar is an amazing hybrid guitar. You can go from acoustic cowboy chords to jazzy comping to rock solos. It really does cross genres with ease. Things to expect: a super comfortable neck, an incredibly high level of build quality and a pretty guitar to boot. Things not to expect: this is not going to rival a full body acoustic. It can't. With that said, it sounds great and is a really innovative way to cross so many musical boundaries.

The jumbo frets allow for easy bending. It is hard to appreciate how nice this guitar really is from photos. You will not be disappointed...unless a full acoustic sound is what you truly need. The benefits for a guitar player covering lots of different musical ground far exceeds any short comings of a full bodied acoustic sound.

As an aside, I use this guitar in an acoustic duo with my lovely wife and it performs flawlessly.

i received my order to day the amp has an issue but sweet water is replacing it with a new one they sent it out today right after i called they are very nice and fast to replace an item . this guitar is so awesome it has such a great sound easy to play, lite, you can play unplugged but it is better plugged in. . I couldn't put it down. thank you Joshua Dillon for helping me pick out the right guitar and capo. i truly love this guitar it is the best i would recommend it for anyone.I will be a customer for life GREAT COMPANY.Thank you Sweetwater.

Bought this for my son and so far the band HYRYDER has played the Vogue Theater in Indy and they played Summer Camp in Illinois. He loves the Taylor!!!

I play electric and acoustic guitars both equally 50/50 pretty much. The first thing I noticed about the T5z was it's simplistic beauty. The second was the smooth and effortless playability up and down the neck. Both acoustic and electric sounds work nicely through either an electric guitar amp (I use Orange amps) and/or acoustic guitar amps (I use Fishman). The acoustic records nicely plugged in directly but only if you like the sound. You can't turn it into something that it's not. There's no piezo quack. The acoustic sound from the body is true. The electric humbucker sounds are quite usable but again it's the sound of a hollow(not semi hollow) body which I prefer anyway.
If you're a purest looking for vintage tones this isn't ideal. It's perfect for me. I like to be different. I use my looper and track my fingerpicking style with the acoustic setting then kick in some overdrive and the humbuckers on this mahogany body are quite ballsy.
It's a beautiful thinline hollow body and the tones are true to what it is. I've heard it doesn't handle "high gain" well...no hollow body guitar does. If you try to make it be something that it isn't then you shouldn't have gotten it. It's true and perfect and I love it.

I own and play 5 other guitars. The T5z is a joy to play. I love the jumbo frets. I am 70 years old and have a few joint problems. With the T5z I can easily make certain chords that were previously a little difficult to perform on some of my other guitars. Also the tones that can be produced from the T5z are wonderful. I have a Peavey Classic with two twelves and a Fender TV 12 bass amp that an acoustic guitar sounds great thru. My guitar room stays a little on the humid side, around 50% most of the time. Once the T5z acclimated to the room it stays in tune nicely.
I bought the Boss AC-3 acoustic simulator just to see how my solid body guitars would sound thru it. I am pleasantly surprised. By changing the body & top settings many different sounds can be produced. Also the reverb adds a lot of color when I play thru my Fender TV 12 that does not have reverb.
In closing I would like to say the service I have received from Sweetwater is great.

I have owned this guitar for 8 months now, and am continually amazed with it's playability and tonal quality. I have been playing over 50 years, acoustic and electric, but am having difficulty with strength in my left thumb. This is making it difficult to play my acoustics. The T5z is the perfect solution. It is very credible in electric sounds, but is just awesome through an acoustic amp in the #1 setting. I can go both ways with this amazing guitar, thought I still play my PRS Custom 22 for some rock. I am coming to the conclusion that I might not actually need it. Warnings: as a true hollow body it will feed back mightily if you aren't careful, particularly with heave distortion and louder volume. Also, super light strings rattle really bad. It really likes the Elixir's that come with it. Some things I love: it is wonderful on blues, finger style and up-the-neck leads. A little stiffer than the PRS, little more work to bend, but not bad. Incredible on acoustic finger picking. I have the mahogany - a real bargain compared to the other models. I play everything from folk to blues to rock to praise & worship. If you can only have one guitar, this it it.

I started out in garage bands in the 70s and have working as a folk/acoustic performer for decades and played all kinds of guitars from Martin dreadnoughts to a Larrivee 12 string to a Voyage Air folding guitar. When I came across a guitar that felt a little like my old Les Paul and had an plugged in acoustic sound better than many full bodied acoustics I fell in love. Currently, I either run the T5z though a Zoom A3 and/or into a Fishman Loudbox Mini. Take an XLR out of the Mini or simply mic it and you have a great small venue set up or an on stage monitor that shows exactly what you're putting into the mix at larger venues. Have been toying with adding a Fishman internal mic... Definitely use Zebra Strings (hybrid acoustic/electric) that will allow you to get the most of the transducer and the magnetic pickups. The guitar sounds like a small bodied Gibson even without being plugged in.

Purchased the T5z for an unplugged project me and some band mates were working on. This guitar is so versatile, great sounding and a pleasure to play. I brought the T5z to our unplugged gig and for the first 3 sets played mostly with acoustic pickup setting thru my electric amp (H&K TubeMeister). As the night went on and the crowd got a little looser, I switched to the bridge humbucker position, added in some overdrive and was able to play some great sounding solo's that would not have been possible with just any acoustic/electric guitar.

High quality build, sounds and plays fantastic. I highly highly recommend this guitar.

This is the first guitar I ever bought sight unseen and I was blown away when I plugged it into my Boss ME-25 and gave it a test run. Then that night I played a gig with it. Wow! It plays like an electric but with some fine tuning I'm getting great acoustic sounds as well. When you step on the gas it has massive sustain with the right pedal settings. The 55 point check persuaded me to go for it before playing it so thanks Sweetwater.

As a lot of reviews here have mentioned, Taylor hit it out of the park with this guitar.
The quality of this guitar is without compromise, no popped frets, string height or neck issues.
The neck is a little wide but in a good way and the electronics are to die for, very responsive and tailored perfectly for this guitar.
My only gripe is no truss rod wrench, I have to assume Taylor could not sell this guitar at the price with the added fluff. Sarc off.
I have to thank my sales rep Forrest Powell for his complete customer service and dedication to keeping Sweetwater the place to trust and purchase from.

I purchased the perfect combination of Taylor T5z guitar and Fishman Loudbox Artist amplifier. These give you a universe of fabulous acoustic and electric sounds. The guitar has a sleek, comfortable and resonant body that is a joy to hear and play. The amplifier completes the rapture with accolades of technology and fabulous sound quality. This T5z and Amp purchase ends my search for the perfect sound. You will be amazed !

I bought this guitar mainly for the acoustic sound plugged direct into my church's PA. Also, I'm finding as I get older (I'm 54), some barre chords are more difficult then they used to be. This guitar is definitely easier to play than my 2006 Taylor 410E LTD (walnut back and sides, sitka top). The sound is great. I must say that this T5z has a little more mellow sound than my 410. I would say it's more mellow because this T5z classic has a mahogany top. You can get a LOT of different electric guitar sounds.That, I must admit, at this time, I haven't even come close to discovering all the sounds you can get from this baby. I'm very happy that I bought the T5z Classic.

I come form a lot of years paying Taylor and Martin acoustic electric guitars. The T5z is truly a great blend of both worlds. It will never screech like a Strat or wail like a Les Paul but it can keep up with them in the mix. It's a pleasure to play and having both electric and acoustic sounds at your finger tips is great. It needed a action adjustment but the local Taylor people set me up. I great guitar for a great price.

This guitar melted right in my hands the moment I fist picked it up it is absolutely great. The guitar is amazing you can do so much with it from sounding like a straight acoustic to a high powered electric guitar. I can't begin to tell you how much I like this guitar I can't put it down.

Buy it, you will be blown away with its sounds, fit and finish. This is a beautiful guitar with no flash or trash. You can't hear abalone but you can hear a very fine musical instrument and it's understated beauty is testament to the Taylor line.

This is my first foray into hybrid guitars, and I am incredibly impressed!! This is also the first Taylor I have owned, and certainly not the last! I am now eyeing up a 614ce! Like others have said, the playability of this guitar is staggering! I can play for hours and not get the slightest bit tired. Fit and finish are top notch. I prefer the mahogany top as it makes the overall look more understated. The unplugged sound is sweet! I am looking forward to years of sweet sounds from this guitar!!!

Well I can say is wow couldn't be happier this guitar sound is outstanding and in the beauty and light weight

As they say, it's not a Strat or Les Paul, right! It's a T5z and they don't sound like a Taylor either. This is a very musician guitar, you just need to set it up to your style and the different tones you can get with it are endless. The neck feels like a Gibson but slightly faster believe it or not. The T5z really should be strung with a set of 11's and will play like a Strat with 9's of a Les Paul with 10's. Very capo and effects friendly, really likes compression and a BB pre amp. I have a Strat that has been my go to guitar and a Les Paul that I love and maybe 13 other guitars, love them all. The T5z Classic, Tropical Mahogany gets that sweet singing sustain when driven to that sultry jazz tone to that in your face country pickin' that would make Brad Paisley smile. Great for Blues, Rock, Country or any style you throw at it. A must own guitar folks.

Great sound,great feel,action,looks,beautiful.Reslly gives you a great accoustic sound tnrough tne amp.Also provides great crunchy electric sound.Fit and finish is perfect.

Can't say enough about this guitar!! Now my favorite axe.
The sound versatility is so broad and at every setting sounds so clean and clear. Well made and beautiful looking, a must for any collector. On stage, this is the only guitar you'll need. You can go from nice, deep, beautiful acoustic tones at one setting to face melting screaming solos at another. No need to change your gear anymore.
The jumbo frets make playing this a pure joy.

For me this is the best gigging (solo duo, etc...) guitar out there. My review won't do it justice so please check out pro video reviews. The playability is flawless, set up adjustments are easy, neck is a work of art- I sometimes play 2-3 times daily adding up to 8-10 hours playing with no hand fatigue...& this is where to buy it, if you can't get one in person, Sweetwater is so easy to work with & their check system so thorough your instrument will show up ready to gig

Well made, plays like an electric, nice acoustic tone for private practice, lightweight, and comfortable. Plugged-in: a convincing amplified acoustic guitar and very good electric guitar. Compared to the Acoustasonic Telecaster and the A6 Ultra, the bridge magnetic electric pickup gives it much more versatility. It does not quite sound like any existing electric guitar, but it covers all the necessary bases and no doubt would have been a classic had it been first produced in the 1950s...

I've been playing guitar for almost 50 years (started age 7), and now I'm beginning to have arthritis in my left hand so I was hoping to extend my years of playing acoustic, by having an acoustic guitar that plays like an electric. This guitar needed a little setup but does the job quite well. Played through my Roland JC series amp, it is just stellar, sounds so good you almost want to shed a tear of happiness. I couldn't put it down even though my hand was aching. Through an amp I think it sounds better than my 414ce Limited, acoustically or via the Expression System. I really, really like it. It is beautiful to look at, the fit and finish are great, the wood selection is outstanding (I'm a big fan of Mahogany wood grain and color). I caught the Christmas special and bundled a GS mini for only $ more. Nice. The 5 way switch plus tone controls offers a lot of tone options. The bridge pickup doesn't cut it for shredding, but come on that wasn't the plan anyhow. It's perfectly fine for rock/southern rock tones. I recently put it in my trunk for a trip from Nashville to KC, and it was perfect paired with my little Yamaha THR10 Amplifier, for some family music time.

Now that bad. Being very light in both weight and build, it's pretty easy to knock out of tune by pulling back a little bit on the neck, even just routine handling. Also Taylor ships these $+ guitars with gig bags, instead of protecting it from the factory with a hard shell case. I mean the gig bag is very nice, so nice I have to believe it cost almost as much as hard shell case to manufacture, so come on Taylor ship it with a quality case instead of nickel and diming for a better case. I'll send you back the gig bag for $ credit towards a $ hard shell case. Oh the gig bag also knocks it out of tune way more often that a hard case too. If it wasn't for the minor problem holding tune, and the gig bag instead of a quality case, I'd have given 5 stars, but those two things bring it down for me.

This guitar is a dream to play. It's a beautifully made. And so versatile. This will be replacing my acoustic and electric when I play out. I just need this one guitar, my Fishman Aura, my distortion pedal and a/b/y switch. All connected to my Bose L1 pro16. Chef's kiss.

Enjoying guitar very much. Great versatility, great sound, great action. Others have tried it and some doubters were impressed.

There isn"t much I can say that hasn"t already been written about in the reviews. It is ultra light with good sound, although the #3 toggle switch position that is supposed to simulate a fender sound is lacking the Fender guitar sound. Still, I prefer to use it instead of my many limited edition Gibson"s, Fenders or Washburns. I must admit, that I get a little nervous about the potential thieft of such an expensive guitar, and watch it like a hawk when I"m at public performances.
What I can say is that it is EFFORTLESS to play, and I play better because of it, when compared to Gibson, Fender, or Washburns Guitars!

A fun guitar to play and try new things with. The pick up selection is interesting and will give an experienced player plenty of options. The mahogany and sapele body (top, back & sides, respectively) are well constructed with a good blending of the grains. This model uses a bolt on neck, thus it is a true hollow body instrument. This also makes it surprisingly light and easy to carry. I'm still working on the sound quality with the different selections of pickups, but the hollow body element is very much there if that is what you are going for.

This may be my smartest purchase ever. As always, Taylor knocks it out of the park with build quality, feel, and playability. It definitely feels more like an electric than the T5. The T5 always feels like an acoustic that you can coax electric sounds out of. This feels a little more like a semi hollow electric. In fact that is the one area that is odd. When you pick it up for the first time you will probably be confused. I do not know if it's the look or feel,that throws off your brain. You will not be sure how it feels. But playing is where it grabs you. Once you start strumming and playing unplugged you realize the first big plus. You can sit in front of the TV late at night and play this and not wake anyone. And you can still hear it fine. Even an true acoustic will wake people at night. This won't. That has been huge for me. But the fun starts when it is plugged in. You probably need to watch a few videos. There are tons of great electric tones to be coaxed out of this but it needs tweaking. There are different ways to set your volume, bass, and treble that will totally change each position and help you. It sounds fantastic but there is a learning curve. The acoustic side sounds very good in a live setting and is great for Worship leaders who normally switch between acoustic and electric. No need. This will cover you. I knocked it down half a point for ease of use. Do not get me wrong, there is nothing difficult, but there is a learning curve here. It is tryout a great guitar but you need to spend time on the settings to get the most out of it. For me, this was perhaps my best purchase in ages. It gives me a late night practice tool that is quality, and it allows me to use one guitar instead of switching back and forth . And did mention that once you get past that initial odd feeling it is a total joy to play? Thanks again to Sweetwater for meeting my needs and to my sales rep Andy Rice

I was very hesitant to drop a grand and a half on this instrument, but after playing the Custom Koa version in GC, I was very impressed by the fit and finish, the playability and the versatility of the guitar. The Koa version was out of my budget, so I went with the mahogany and it is a beautifully understated guitar. I have owned a half dozen guitars and this is the first one that I actually play for hours at a time - literally hours. It's so lightweight, so comfortable, the neck and the action are perfect, the acoustic tone is warm, and the options with it plugged in are endless. I have been able to replicate tones for everything from Sublime to Nirvana to Counting Crows...grungy rock, to smooth jazzy tones to acoustic ballad strumming. Just a supremely well-made, enjoyable guitar to play. If I only had one guitar it would be this one. It really delivers the versatility and comfort of an electric with the simplicity and warmth of an acoustic and it does it all so well. Expensive, but I look at it as an investment in enjoyment. I've started taking lessons to extract as much out of this guitar as possible. Play as many guitars as you can and buy the one that speaks to you.

I did.

Great Guitar Acoustic to Strat to 335 sounds. The pickups range from clean to a little growl with max volume I forgot they are humbuckers and if you need feedback it's available. A true hybrid nothing else like itm

Great Guitar Acoustic to Strat to 335 sounds. The pickups range from clean to a little growl with max volume I forgot they are humbuckers and if you need feedback it's available. A true hybrid nothing else like itm

Now that I have experminted with it for almost a year, I still enjoy the overall tone, playability, comfort,and of course looks. The only thing I haven't liked about it, is if you forget to pull the guitar chord out it will drain the battery. It takes a while to drain,so just make sure you have a good battery in prior to starting if you leave it on standby, OR remember to unplug it from the guitar before starting again.

The Taylor T5z is physically beautiful to look at, in a simple way without being garrish. It is light-weight but well-balanced with a strap over the shoulder. It handles easily -- the action is smooth and with just the right amount of resistance to play with either a light touch or dig in as you please. It has substantial frets, very good intonation, and lends itself well to linear playing up and down the neck, nice chord work, as well as open-position finger or flat-picking. The guitar sounds very nice unplugged -- nice for practicing, although you will want to play it out amplified. It comes strung with 11-49s by Elixir -- a good gauge for this ax, but a brand of string I didn't think I'd like. But I do kind of like them on this guitar. I'll try my usual D'Addarios next time just to compare. The five-position switch selects combinations of the bridge pickup and the neck pickup (both humbucking -- very nice electric guitar tones, smooth and bluesy to crunchy and bright) and the third pickup, a "body sensor" (which, coupled with one of the humbuckings, gives you the acoustic sound that is not my Taylor 812ce, but is still very nice). Note, the acoustic sound is a very "live body" sound, one that will pick up your cuff buttons tacking away -- but for which it's easy to make personal adjustments. The other four settings are all humbucking combinations, and make no noise except for the music you are playing. The switch set-up is intuitive and simple to use while you play, as are the two tone controls and volume. The only other criticism I am thinking of is the tuners could be a little better grade. But they work fine, and that modest compromise is not a deal breaker -- especially for the cost of the guitar, and I can always replace them. I broke the guitar in with two back-to-back New Years Eve gigs, first a mellow duo gig with my wife on piano at a small restaurant, and the second gig, rocking out through midnight in a town hall with a couple other guys sitting in -- neither occasion making me miss my usual tradeoff between my acoustic and my Tele. If you are trying to keep your gigging equipment to a minimum, the T5z cuts it as both an acoustic and electric guitar -- either straight through the PA, or through an amp -- and I guess you could do both with an A/B. I also got the Taylor case made for the T5z. Good quality and fits like a glove. Over the past few years, sales Rep Zach Bailey has responded to all of my instrument and equipment needs in a timely and friendly manner.

Previous to purchasing, I picked one up at a guitar shop,but didn't have enough time to really use it, so when it arrived, I immediately played it for a few hours. Since then I have played it a few hours every day. First it looks nice, second it's light weight, and third it's easy on the fingers.
I am still tweaking it for different sounds, but since I got it, I haven't picked up my acoustic. It has a sound of it own a little acoustic a little electric.
Sounds good with chorus and a little reverb on my amp. It sounded like a full blown electric through the I-Rig. Anyone want to buy a nice acoustic? Would have been 5 stars with a hardshell case :)

It met every expectation I had and more. After researching reviews and seeing all of the product demos I am still impressed. Has that great Taylor fretboard and dependable quality they always deliver.

On-line service was easy and fast. Follow up calls were courteous and brief, yet helpful. Guitar was everything it was advertised to be.

Purchased this guitar vs the other hybrid types after many hours of research. I own a Taylor 912 And several electrics but wanted to do the electric and acoustic thing live without changing guitars. Playability is very good. Build quality as you expect from Bob's gang, top notch and the thing is very light.
Scale is great for my stubby fingers too. Spent a few hours fiddling with acoustic and electric amps and got the acoustic sound I'm happy with. Need to spend more time Working on the electric side of things. Had a felling this was going to be the problem because I love my 91 EC Strat. Clean or Dirty those pups just sing to me. Never been I big fan of humbuckers so the mission is to get a sound I'm happy with. Sure it'll be a compromise but it was expected and she's not goin back! Happy playing.

This guitar is everything I'd hoped it would be. It's in tune all up and down and across the neck, and it stays in tune. It has very nice, consistent tones -- no louder or quieter strings or spots.

I may experiment with lowering the action a little, but that's not a deal breaker. Even with the action a little higher in the upper frets, it's still amazingly comfortable, and a pleasure to play.

On the advice of my guitar tech, I may ask him to lower the bridge humbucker a tiny bit. He says this will increase sustain. Plus, I use it mostly as an acoustic so I'm not as concerned with the electric sounds.

The acoustic sound isn't totally authentic, but this guitar does sound like an amplified acoustic, which is what most people would hear at gigs anyway. I haven't really tried it much as an electric, but it seems to perform pretty well in that capacity, too.

In any case, this guitar sounds beautiful and is a pleasure to play.

just acquired a T5z classic and it took me just a few plays to bond with it, the neck and f/board are great the sounds very good and clear , nicely separated notes, tuning very stable, I think an all round winner, one small head scratcher though, there is no alternative to the active electronics, if the battery fails or a fault with the pre-amp, no passive electronics are available as back-up .So you are left with a dead instrument.not so clever in a pro-situation. Still love the thing though.

After having played a Taylor 614 CE acoustic for a few years I decided to expand into playing electric. The hope was that going to a T5z would maintain some of the same general playing feel while making the big switch. To a some extent, a Taylor neck is a Taylor neck, so there seems to be a built in familiarity. The electronics are similar to those in the acoustic, and I really like the additional pickup settings. To top it off, the guitar is simply beautiful!

I guess the main thing that surprised me was how light the guitar is compared to other electrics, and that this lightness seems to contribute to a thinner overall sound than is the case with some solid body electrics I tried. Still, I like the feel and playability/versatility of the ax, so I'm determined to use EQ/modeling to make up for the perceived thinness to the degree possible. Depending on how that goes, I may need to eventually add another electric for some types of playing.

I love the guitar, and the people at Sweetwater. I highly recommend them.

I have had my T5z for about a month now and thought I would write a review. I really like the way it plays and it is light as a feather. Looks good also. The sounds are okay. Does not sound as good as my 414ce or my tele and strat. But the sounds are passable. What I don't like on the acoustic setting is the fact you can hear your shirt sleeve or whatever picked up by the mics. Another thing is the feedback. Took me awhile to figure out how to tame that, but you have to be careful. I play mine at church through a fishman amp so the feedback system on that amp helps with that. Another niggle to me was no pickguard. I did find one on internet and put it on. I was having trouble with mine staying in tune and intonation and as I live in Arizona, figured out I need to humidify the guitar and this helped with that problem. I initially thought it would not need to be humidified, but I was wrong. I highly recommend you get the hard case for this as mine came with gig bag and I got a hard case--makes it easier to humidify the guitar. So my take on this guitar is it won't replace your favorite acoustic or electric guitar, but it is usable and the sounds are good for what they are. It is well made and fun to play.

Although most people get this because they hope it will do a good job of doing both acoustic and electric guitar sounds, it does them both, but neither very well.
What you do get, is a guitar that's very well made, beautifully crafted, great feel, fast neck, and comfortable light weight.
The electric sounds are mediocre, with neither the growl or bite that you want for punchy rhythms, nor the sustain or singing you need for leads.
The acoustic sounds are also mediocre, with realism, but not enough clarity.
The major flaw with this guitar is the Feedback issue. It's really uncontrollable. If you use compression on the signal to the amp, you get feedback instantly. It's intrusive and makes it impossible to use it live. And in my case, Ireturned it because of this.
It's definitely closer to achieving the goal than something like the Godin A6. But at half the price of the T5, the Epiphone Ultra III does much better electric sounds, and almost as good acoustic; it just weighs a ton.

Have now had this guitar for about 6 weeks and will share the good and the not so good.
The Good:
craftsmanship spot on and what you would expect for a guitar at this price point. Service from Sweetwater also spot on again what you always receive from Sweetwater.

The Not so good:
this guitar just is ok. sound for this price point not great. and the hybrid concept i just do not get for the following reasons:
1) the concept of using one guitar for many different types of music. I play Rock and Hard Rock music for the most part and this is not the guitar i would want in my hands for that. so you would want to switch. and comfort and playability for that is a miss.
2) the controls and adjusting, who is really going to do that while playing and doing on the fly. the guitar really is a gimmick to me.
3) the video reviews out there really mislead you to what you are getting.
I would tell people you can buy a nice acoustic and really nice rock and roll guitar and get two that you will be super happy with versus this.
disappointed to say the least and will probably now go sit in the bag it came with. a shame and waste of money for me.

As soon as I pick up this guitar it was a little top heavy and felt like it was cheaply made. I tried to tune it but could not do so, especially the "G" string. I change the strings and that helped but still not perfect. The acoustic guitar sound was great but when I switched to the electric sound I could only get one good sound. The tone knobs didn't help much. You have to go to your pedals or amp for tone. When you come back to acoustic you must set tones again. If anyone is interested, I'll give you a nice deal on mine...