This is a test file comparing a Lamaq GAL5190 guitar (£99) with a Lowden S35C (£2500)
singer
songwriter
acoustic
folk
british
guitarist
song
celtic
traditional
fingerstyle
scottish
scotland
guitar
kelso
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Story behind the song
My Lowden is a Ziricote/Cedar S35C small body new factory cutaway with wide fingerboard and other custom options. It's an expensive guitar. My Lamaq GAL5190 is a Chinese-made Rosewood/Cedar almost identical in body size and scale, but a full half inch slimmer than the very deep Lowden, and with a conventional narrow neck. Marc Antonio Lamaq, the designer, sold a quantity of such solid wood instruments on eBay around Christmas 2006 to New Year 2007, at fixed very low prices. They have bridges very similar to the Lowden (pinless, split saddle) and while no way directly comparable owe a lot to Lowden and other modern acoustics. My £99 instrument came with a Fishman Classic 4 installed. I will let you make your own conclusions about the respective sound qualities from the file.
Comments: I have short, thin, hard nails and do not use artificial nails or picks. The sharp sound of the trebles is 'me' not the guitars. The Lamaq has cheap plastic saddles and nut, the Lowden has bone. Both are recorded with two Behringer C-1 mics in a stereo rig 2 ft from the playing position, plus an AKG C2000B at head height above them, at half the volume. No EQ, no reverb, no fx. Roland VS-880EX recorded using a compactflash card modification.