I've had an F-512 from New Hartford for a few months now. It's a great guitar. It's got a big, fat, balanced tone, is as easy to play as any 12-string I can think of, and the fit and finish are exemplary. I find the jumbo shape very comfortable. And although it wasn't a deciding factor for me, it's also a well-appointed guitar with plenty of classic Guild bling.
I've had guitars and mandolins that cost considerably more than this one, so my standards for comparison are fairly high. Honestly, this guitar is first rate. Guilds may not be as ridiculously under-priced as they were historically but even in the $2000-2500 price range, I think this guitar was a bargain. I often play it back-to-back with a hand-built guitar that had a substantially higher original price than the Guild. They're very different guitars (6-string versus 12-string, for example) serving different purposes but, for what they are, I enjoy both equally and the Guild is by no means put to shame by the comparison.
I've also played several earlier Guilds from Westerly over the past year, both 6- and 12-string. Although I didn't have a chance to A-B them against this guitar and I recognize that our memories for what a guitar sounded like are suspect, I don't consider the new Guild to be the inferior of those other instruments in any respect. Some used Guilds, of course, are great values and very, very nice guitars in their own right. But if you're looking for a new instrument with the freedom from worries that can be hard to get with a used purchase, a new New Hartford Guild should serve you very well. Guild is making very nice guitars in Connecticut.
