When I was a teenager and first started going to folk clubs, I played a violin. I decided I should start learning the guitar...

It occurred to me, (and to be fair, I was told as well) that those who can play guitar at a decent level have guitars that are comfortable to play. Those who strum a couple of chords and wonder how the better players manage to "do that thing" tended to play cheaper guitars with old strings, high action, warped necks... etc.

So, (and this was an argument thrown at my poor old Mum when I wanted my own rather than a school violin a few years earlier,) a decent set up guitar will encourage more practising and get beginners over that "shall I carry on or not?" hurdle, whereas a badly set up guitar has people struggling to continue.

Two things about that though;

1. Yes, the old American blues players did amazing things with cheap Sears & Roebuck catalogue guitars. The clue is in the word "amazing." They, not the guitars were amazing.

2. Luckily, it is my experience that with modern seasoning techniques, computer design, CNC cutting and profiling, modern glues and factory quality control, I doubt there is a bad guitar out there once you spend over £100.00. Seriously. I spent a couple of grand last year on a guitar but whilst choosing, kept going back to the cheapest ones in the shop to compare, and it hits you the small difference in playability. The tone however ....