Well, Spaw, I've played a few when I worked in the guitar shop. I've never owned a Fender accoustic, but I've got a couple of electrics under the bed somewhere. This is because when I couldn't afford a good US-made accoustic the Japanese helped out, and when I could afford one there were other things to be had. I've had several Guilds, and while they offer good value for money they have let some bad ones slip through from time to time. The worst I've ever seen I still have, a D35. The front started bowing on it. I opened it up to change the plate, and found that the strutting had slipped down an inch while it was being glued to the top, which is probably why it sounds better than the average Martin. Unfortunately the top had been slammed on with the strut ends on top of the linings instead of in the prelocated notches. When I'd got the top problems stabilised, I realised that I had to re-line the back before I could refit it, because it had been routed right through the linings in places to fit the original bindings, and I wanted to fit oversize bindings to assure a neat fit. There were some ladder-strutted Guilds that sounded great when new, but all needed top/bridge work after a few years. I've had hours of innocent amusement repairing Guilds. I should say that Guilds are sold in the UK at higher prices than in the US, in competition with Gibson and Martin, while Fender accoustics haven't tried to get into that league. While I was in the business twenty years ago the mark-up from wholesale to recommended retail price on a UK Guild was never less than 100% , even on the cheaper models, while the mark-up on a Gibson could be as low as 45% - there's got to be a reason!