Johnathan Livingston...
Okay Dr Acoustical... if you are spending
SERIOUS money on an acoustic (and I don't know your musical background, Bill), your own ears are more important than anyones opinion but I'd probably do a "blindfold" test, to remove the "name -placebo" effect from the equation, once you have your shortlist...
A retirement present to yourself...? (something you said elsewhere, Doc...)
Owning only one acoustic guitar, a 12 string Ibanez V302, that I've had since 1980, with a beautifully sweet tone, even when seriously Alvin'd, and a budget mandolin (with a suspect tone, but it was to learn on, and it was the third one, after a batch of structural issues with the previous 2...), I'd love to own a true "quality" acoustic, and a mandolin, and a pedal-steel, and a nice acoustic piano, and a double bass, and...
Oh yeah, and a '57 LP gold top, preferably Duane's, but I'd settle for his slide SG...