I don't have a lot of experience with a lot of guitar varieties. The other night my wife and I went to eat at our local senior center, mainly because there was going to be live entertainment there. A middle-aged lady came down from over 70 miles away to play for our (me too) seniors. She covered maybe 15 older songs, mostly country variety. Her guitar playing consisted mostly of strumming open chords with a few notes selected between, just enough to make the guitar interesting. Of course, she had a wonderful strong alto vocal presentation, which was what most of the audience fixed on. But because I play "at" guitar, I watched her play. She had a Taylor, though I don't know which model, but she told us that she saved for quite a long time, even for the used one that she finally purchased. She had to take it to a luthier in Des Moines to have the first six frets replaced, and then the guitar set up. She told me that she was using Elixer strings, which is what I use on my 12, though I use D'Addario thins on my six. I listened closely and found that my Teton sounds very close to the full sound that she presented with a much more expensive guitar. I haven't taken the trouble to try a variety of string sets on my Teton, simply because I cant afford it and spend my time practicing, performing at retirement communities, and working on music in some manner. I won't put down, so to speak, the Taylor brand at all. I've heard some of the most expensive acoustics on the market, and they sound, if only just slightly, better than her Taylor. I think a lot of it has to do with the sound capture, whether it be the electrics, the pedals, used or not, and the physical surroundings and how they capture true sound. I came home from that show and grabbed my Teton STG105CENT and worked a few licks, actually thinking about this thread. Laptop blues have kept me from talking about this. My Teton is a smaller-bodied cutaway with a mere 20 frets, but careful strumming and picking produces a full sound, whether played acoustically or amplified with its Fishman electrics. I purchased it locally brand new, and upon registration, found that it's built in Montana. Woo-Hoo. Enough said...
would want to take camping.