The first guitar I ever bought was an Ovation, and in hindsight (as I didn't know any better starting out) I gotta say it wasn't all that. It was about the same price as the range you're lookin at, $350ish if I remember right. It had pretty high action, fairly bad intonation (notes staying in tune) after the 7th fret, and weak sound on it's own unamplified. I sold it years ago, and don't miss it at all. I'm not saying that all Ovations are crap, I'm sure they make some really good ones, but sometimes you get what you pay for. On the other hand, I've been very impressed all around with my latest purchase, an Ibanez nylon string a/e. It was $325 with tax and all...awesome deal for the tone (both stand-alone and amped) and playability. You prolly don't want a nylon string, but I'm sure the quality of the steel strings are just as good. Just look to the right side of that link and it will show those.