I appreciate the input and good points on that steady stream of new quality strings........although changing strings to me ranks right below flossing and taking out the garbage on a frozen miserable evening..........a necessary evil!! I can appreciate your point about my hearing........which incidentally hasn't been checked since grade school and please don't ask when that was........however, the flip side is this: I have what i believe is the finest sounding acoustic guitar on the planet. I mean it..........47 year old Martin D-35 with finish cracks galore and in need of a great cleaning and other things like probably a neck set......but I'd gladly match its tone against anyone.......not just bragging......it really does sound phenomenal and would in anyone's hands. Also.....the tone I hear from many artists including on G.T. like Tom Finch or Dave or Mike......I hear this tone and think to myself how wonderful it would be to match that........isn't that a song??? I really believe it's something else............and I'd hate to shell out 4 plus figures for one of those tube boutique amps or that Kemper Profiler unit but........I need something to get grounded and actually can't wait to plug in and utilize a gret sounding system with classic rich tones.........I feel if I can hear the difference .....and I can........then I need to make a change. By the way........this is not some ad for Bugera amps but......believe it or not the closest I've come (sans reverb which is another subject as I need to get my hands on an authentic and versatile unit) to this is my.........get this.........$99 tubed Bugera practice amp!! Pure unadulterated tone and great performance for under a Franklin!! Jim C.