I'm often surprised at the good build quality and sound of some of the sub-$1200 guitars from Martin and Taylor. Canadian Seagulls give a lot of bang for the buck also. As noted above, though, even in this age of CNC uniformity it comes down to the individual instrument. I have a 000-17 Martin that I got for around 1200 and it's tone and playability inspire me to play it almost as much as my more expensive guitars.