Dynamic players love the clarity and responsiveness of the 522ce 12-fret Grand Concert V-class guitar. The tropical mahogany grand concert guitar produces a strong midrange focus with a natural warm compression. Taylor’s 12-fret necks feature the slightly shorter 24-7/8-inch scale length of the Grand Concert and a repositioned bridge that sits closer to the center of the lower bout. The result is a slinkier handfeel that makes it easier to form chords and bend strings, and tonally, surprising power and warmth for the smaller body. The venetian cutaway allows access to the higher frets. Taylor’s revolutionary V class bracing adds more power and sustain while giving the notes more harmonic unity for improved intonation.
Other distinctive features include a vintage shaded edgeburst finish, grained ivoroid century fretboard inlays, and Taylor’s Expression System 2 pickup. The guitar ships in a Taylor deluxe hardshell case.
What Is V-Class Bracing?
Bracing is the internal framework that helps shape the sound of an acoustic guitar. V-Class bracing is a groundbreaking new Taylor design - a new sonic engine - that transforms the way an acoustic guitar top vibrates to dramatically improve the sound. Developed by master guitar designer Andy Powers, it marks a bold departure from traditional X-bracing, producting notes that are louder, longer sustaining and more in tune with each other. Discover the history and inspiration that brought us to this turning point in guitar design.
How V-Class Works
A new platform to solve an age-old problem. While traditional X-bracing has stood the test of time for over 100 years, it creates an inherent trade-off between two key elements of an acoustic guitar's sound: volume and sustain. A guitar's top (the soundboard) contributes to both. Volume comes from the flexibility of the top whil sustain comes from stiffness. The trade-off is that when you make something stiffer, you reduce its flexibility and vice versa. With an X-braced guitar top, increasing one comes at the expense of the other. V-Class bracing changes that. Now an acoustic guitar top can be both stiff and flexible in ways that produce more volume and sustain. And as it turns out, this innovative bracing design also improves the intonation of the guitar. Discover how Taylor broke away from tradition and reinvented what the acoustic guitar can do.
More Volume
V-Class guitar bracing controls the top's flexibility, creating a more orderly rocking motion across both sides of the top. The controlled flexing movement produces greater volume.
Longer Sustain
V-Class bracing maintains stiffness along the middle of the guitar, in the direction of the strings. That rigidity keeps the strings in motion, porducing notes that resonate longer before fading out.
Better Intonation
V-Class bracing makes the top more in tune with the vibrating strings. This eliminates much of the interference that causes some notes to waer and sound slightly out of tune. As a result, notes and chords played anywhere on the neck are more consistent and in tune with each other.
Expression System 2 (ES2)
The Taylor ES2 is a revolutionary pickup design that delivers the latest in Taylor’s ongoing innovation in acoustic guitar amplification. The heart of the Expression System 2 is Taylor’s proprietary behind-the-saddle pickup, which features three uniquely positioned and individually calibrated pickup sensors. The location of the sensors enables a more dynamic range of acoustic sound to be captured than ever before.
Together with Taylor’s custom-designed ‘professional audio’-grade preamp, this system produces exceptional amplified tone and responsiveness. On stage through a PA, plugged into your favorite acoustic amplifier, or direct into recording software, the Expression System 2 faithfully conveys the voice of your Taylor guitar.
CALIFORNIA PROPOSITION 65 WARNING
WARNING: Cancer and Reproductive Harm -
www.P65Warnings.ca.gov.