12-string acoustic guitar with solid Sitka-spruce top and solid Urban Ironbark body
500 Series
Solid Sitka spruce top and solid Urban Ironbark body
Venetian cutaway
V-Class bracing
Mahogany neck with ebony fingerboard with 18 frets and aerial inlays
47.6 mm nut width and 631 mm scale length
Ebony bridge with micarta inlay and ebony bridge pins
Nickel-plated Taylor machine heads
Tortoise pickguard
Taylor Expression System 2
Shaded-Edgeburst finish with high gloss varnish
Case included
Made in USA
The models of the 500 series come including Taylor case.
Taylor 552ce Urban Ironbark at a glance
The Taylor 552ce Urban Ironbark expands the 500 Series into a high-quality electro-acoustic 12-string Western guitar that offers acoustic enthusiasts the ultimate in playing enjoyment. The fully solid Grand Concert model with Sitka spruce top and Urban Ironbark body delivers a punchy yet balanced sound that delivers the best results on stage as well as in the recording studio for a great performance. To ensure that the sound is perfectly amplified, the instrument is equipped with the in-house Expression System 2, an innovative pickup system for acoustic guitar, which transmits every sound without distortion. Meanwhile, an attractive design with visual details and the shockproof Taylor Deluxe Hardshell Brown Case round off the guitar skillfully.
The combination of the finest tonewoods provides an extensive and pleasant 12-string sound.
Excellent clay wood combination: Sitka spruce and Urban Ironbark in full solid finish.
Sitka Spruce and Urban Iron Bark
The solid body of Urban Ironbark and the solid top of Sitka spruce result in a tonewood combination of absolute premium quality. The bright tones of the classic spruce top are complemented by the exclusive sound characteristics of Urban Ironbark in the form of tonal balance combined with impressive assertiveness. This creates a complex as well as dynamic sound image that gives the guitar an attractive unique selling point.
Taylor V-Class bracing improves vibration characteristics and produces high sound volume with improved sustain.
Patented V-Class Bracing
In addition to construction and tonewood selection, the high sound volume of the Taylor 552ce Urban Ironbark is supported not least by the innovative Taylor V-Class bracing. The v-shaped top bracing represents the optimal compromise between stability and improved vibration behaviour, as the design offers greater flexibility. In addition to the volume, this also has a positive effect on the Sustain and intonation, which fully meets the requirements of even the most demanding guitarists and guitarists.
The in-house Grand Concert design combines compactness with great sound characteristics.
Grand Concert body with comfortable curves.
With the Grand Concert body Taylor develops the ideal mixture of great sound characteristics, feedback insensitivity and playing comfort. Thus, the grippy body is particularly suitable for guitarists of smaller stature and furthermore also brings out the overtone spectrum perfectly. In addition, singer-songwriters will be especially pleased with the generous 47.6-mm nut width for easier mastery of complex fingering patterns, while the shortened 631-mm scale length pleasantly reduces the effort required for fingering.
A cutaway simplifies playing in the higher registers, while the fretting hand glides over the mahogany neck as if by itself.
Accurate playability and robust hardware.
The decidedly player-friendly dimensions are rounded out by a smooth mahogany neck at Satin-Finish and a velvety ebony fingerboard. The select materials allow the fretting hand to glide effortlessly from fret to fret, with a Venetian cutaway granting unobstructed access even to the higher registers. Meanwhile, an ebony bridge with micarta inlay and nickel-plated Taylor tuners ensure consistently clean intonation and high tuning stability.
The Expression System 2 is an in-house development and takes acoustic guitar amplification to the next level.
Original Expression System 2
For perfect sound transmission, the Taylor 552ce Urban Ironbark is equipped with the highly professional Expression System 2. The innovative pickup design features three piezo elements that pick up the acoustic signals of each pair of strings directly and transmit them unaltered to the amplifier so that the natural sound character of the guitar is fully preserved. Volume, bass and treble can be individually adjusted to the ambient conditions and personal preferences via three controls discreetly positioned on the upper frame.
Classy look with classic elements.
Masterful design
The model also scores visually across the board. The Shaded-Edgeburst high-gloss finish skillfully sets off the fine grain of the woods, while an attractive tortoise binding harmonizes perfectly with the both functional and beautiful tortoise pickguard, which furthermore protects the material from scratches when playing with plectrums. The iridescent abalone rosette and the filigree aerial inlays, which give the instrument a classic touch, appear premium.
Taylor - The epitome of fine quality
As one of the largest guitar manufacturers, Taylor is truly an authority in the production of first-class instruments. Thus, professional manufacturing by skilled craftsmen results in the very finest products for life, whose value is always maintained - or even increased! This is due in equal part to exquisite tonewoods, which do not warp due to long storage and selected quality and as a result, can hardly be surpassed in terms of high quality. Only spruce, mahogany, cedar or Koa of proven quality are used for the tops. By the way, careful production in combination with the best materials does not only apply to guitars. Guitar bags and all accessories are also of first-class quality. Finally, a conscientious final inspection does not let even the smallest defects pass and ensures absolutely flawless guitars even before shipment.
And that's not all: Taylor also attaches great importance to environmentally conscious actions.
Ebony & Koa: Sustainability at Taylor Guitars
Uncontrolled clearing of forests and overexploitation lead to massively endangered wood species, which can no longer regenerate due to the high pace of mining. These include ebony and koa in particular, whose dwindling stocks and the resulting ecological problems have prompted a rethink at Taylor Guitars.
Sustainable ebony cultivation in Cameroon
Because ebony's hard, supple texture makes it particularly finger-friendly, it has long been the preferred choice for making fingerboards. Its attractive appearance is also extremely popular for bridges, headstock rests, bridge Pins and Bindings. However, high demand and a thriving black market outstripped stocks, landing Ebony on the Red List of Endangered Species in 1994. Moreover, only the jet-black heartwood, which makes up only a fraction of the tree, was used, resulting in a disproportionately large amount of waste in production. In order to protect the forests, Taylor has thus been working since 2011 with the Crelicam Wood Mill in Yaoundé in Cameroon to promote controlled consumption by processing waste products.
"We need to use the ebony that the forest gives us" - Bob Taylor
In video: Taylor Guitars - "The State of ebony"
Siglo Tonewoods Project
Koa acacia populations have also suffered severe losses over the last 20 years. Unsustainable forestry as well as overexploitation led to a decline that can only be stopped by proactive action and reforestation. Therefore, Taylor Guitars together with Pacific Rim Tonewoods founded the Siglo Tonewoods project, which aims to rebuild the Hawaiian virgin forest. This is a large cultivation area for koa acacia and other species, which allows the use of koa wood on a controlled scale.
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