Sandy Paton's Appolonio 12 astounds me. Never played or heard another 12 like it. Feels so light that I kept thinking it would explode....but that was years ago.

The guitar that Grit Laskin built for himself a couple of years ago is in that category as well. Not as loud as the five or six Grafs that I've played but projects as well, and possibly even better.

One of the things I learned a few years ago was that some instruments sound their very best from about twenty feet away and some are at their best in close quarters. I tried a little experiment at the 12th Fret one day. Had one of my students (a fine player) play the same thing on a couple of new Martins and a couple of Collings instruments. My ear thought that the Martins were clear as a bell from at least forty feet away, while the Collings seemed to decay (sound wise!) much faster. Standing right in front of them, the Collings sounded fuller with more punch.

However (prepare for heresy) the FINEST guitar I ever heard was a brand new YAMAHA(!!??) years ago at Matt Umanov's store.

Rick