Some of it, for me, is contextual. If it's a solo piece and played by a better fingerpicker than me, it can sound fine with no compression. Or maybe a bit of DIY-Mastering bus compression to goose up the overall average volume.
But if it's in an ensemble/band setting, there's a good chance that there won't be as much evenness from finger to finger and/or string to string as you'd want. Compression can fix that. And the right amount might be surprising. You get it to where it sounds right in the mix, and then solo it, and think "Oh dear me!" and then back off the compression. The point being... don't solo it.
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