BWL,
The CEO-5 is a very fine guitar. I've played four of them -- one at Wildwood in OH, one at Elderly's, one at the Podium in MN and a good friend has one that (#67) that I played for a few hours one evening.

As to how it stacks up to the SCGC -- this is a tough one for me because the SCGC "Norman Blake" -- their 12 fret mahogany, is just about my favorite sounding contemporary guitar. Of course, with a 1 7/8 "neck by Louisville Slugger" it's a handful for some, but as I have large hands, I don't even mind that.

The SCGC was really made as a copy of one of Blake's guitars and it really has the same "feel" as an old guitar. The CEO-5 is definitely (to my sensibilities) a "modern" guitar. It's sound is a little more trebly, a touch more brittle. It's also a different kind of feast for the eyes. Whereas teh SCGC has the more typical reddened mahogany b&s (or the rosewood in a few rarer cases) the CEO carries off a look of shades of amber -- both top and b&s.

As I am probably going to be buying one of these beasts in the next two years (I just got an OM28V and am saving for a new mando first) -- so far my list of probables (based on availibility used) is -- SCGC Norman Blake, D18VS, and of course, if a Collings with the Adirondack top came along used......well...

Back to the "new" J45 -- I am in contact with a guy who has a very nice, tobacco burst SCGC VJ that he is reluctantly selling for about 1800.