The Morgan's were gorgeous in real life - but they certainly didn't sound as well as I thought they should for $2500. The Larivee blew it away forty ways from Sunday on sound, sustain, and articulation.

I also played a DR-20 Tacoma. I was really disappointed in it. Had a great neck, but fingered a bit stiff, and certainly wasn't playing on air like its little cousin I played at Shaun's shop.

As for fit and finish none of them impressed me. For the money the Tacoma was the best. For sheer beauty of finish and workmanship the Morgan was gorgeous - although the top was not as nice and smooth as I thought it could be - maybe a little better sanding and another coat of clear? The Larivee had some little blems where the neck joined the body. Like the varnish didn't settle in right in a couple of small places on the underside. Either that or the neck had been reset after assembly.

Price wise the Larivee beat them all. The Tacoma DR-20 was $900 with case, the Larivee was $1200 with case and the Morgan was $2400 with case. They didn't have a mirror to look inside so have no idea what the top bracing looked like. What I could see looked very nice on all of them. No glue sticking out or lack of finish issues of concern that Spaw had mentioned to look for.

Jan went with me and I spent about two hours playing the three. Jan thought that Old Mose sounded as good as any of them - the only exception may have been the Larivee with a better bottom end boom. And I haven't played Mose yet with the Buzz Feiten work done. I'll get him back tomorrow afternoon so will have an opportunity to compare them.

Steve