000-15 Special vs 000-16GT - experience or speculations?

[cypressfog]

I've been looking lately at the Martin 000-15 Special (Sitka over mahogany) and the Martin 000-16GT. The MAP is almost the same ($1459 for the 15 and $1499 for the 16GT), and they look at first glance like the same guitar - same body size/shape, woods, scale, neck shape, and string spacing. I'd be grateful for advice from anyone with some experience, or speculations, that might help me understand how these two guitars might sound different.

I'm guessing that the differences that could affect the sound would be

- The 15 has non-scalloped braces, the 16GT has scalloped braces
- The 15 has "5/16" braces, the 16GT has "5/16 with 1/4 tone bars"
- The 15 has a bone saddle and nut, the 16GT has Tusq/Corian
- The 15 is satin finish, the 16GT is gloss (maybe this matters?)

Then there are some differences in construction:

- The 15 has a rosewood fingerboard and bridge, the 16GT has richlite
- The 15 has a "Modern belly - drop in saddle", the 16GT has a "1 style belly"
- The 15 has a mahogany neck, the 16GT has "Select hardwood"

Then there are some other cosmetic differences, different tuners styles, etc.

If anyone has actually been able to play or hear these side by side, how would you describe any difference in sound? Barring that, would anyone be able to speculate how the sound would differ based on these differences in spec? I'm guessing that the brace shape would be the biggest factor, but I haven't played enough guitars to know really what that might mean, particularly in the context of an 000 size and mahogany B/S.

(In case it wasn't obvious, I can't do this comparison myself because I can't find a 000-15 Special locally. I've played a 000-16GT and liked it, as well as a 000-15M, which I also liked except that I'm not looking for a mahogany top right now.)