I'll add my $.02, since it looks like you STILL haven't bought that guitar, Jenks...
I just started playing about 1 month ago myself. I went to Guitar Center. I originally limited myself to $300, just like you. I asked for no advice and just went on instinct (I taught myself to play piano at 6 and have a pretty good ear for music, I think).
I first bought an Ovation Celebrity for $300, but found I didn't like the bowl shaped plastic back (difficult to hold comfortably while playing) and the unamplified sound, while acceptable, wasn't great.
I traded the Ovation in after a few days for a Yamaha (can't remember model number) for the same price. This model has a very nice (for the price) Englemann spruce top and sounded significantly better than the Ovation. Good beginner guitar, but...
I kept going back to Guitar Center (and a few smaller stores, too) and playing other guitars, mostly expensive ones (e.g., Martins; Gibsons; Taylors - well over $1,000 guitars). This exercise helped me develop my sense of feel and ear for tones quickly. It also rapidly made me dissatisfied with the Yamaha.
I finally bit the bullet and traded in the Yamaha on a Tacoma DM9 and I am very happy I did. This is a $500 guitar (new, retail, in GC) but it is all solid mahogany on the back and sides (no laminate) with a solid spruce (Sitka?) top. the cheapest "real" all solid wood guitar I could find. Not fancy but I kind of like them that way. And it sounds way better than the Yamaha, which was considerably better than the Ovation, which is better than a lot of beginner guitars. It was worth the extra money for me to have better tone quality. Now I can't stop playing.
Yes, my fingers are all cut up (just the fingertips). I don't care; I just keep playing. I'm not changing the strings because these strings sound good on this guitar.
Tacoma, for my money, makes the best entry-level guitar going. If my budget was a little higher ($1,000) I would instead buy a Larrivee. I actually love (lust after?) the Larrivee. The neck is just a little bit smaller. The fingerboard is ebony instead of rosewood (major difference if you ask me) and the sound is unbelievably sweet and warm.
So, based on my experience, if you stay with a $300 budget, Yamaha makes an excellent guitar (maybe a Seagull is better; haven't played one). Up the budget to $500 and Tacoma is KING of that hill. Splurge all the way (or almost) up to $1,000 and nobody can touch Larrivee.
But your mileage may vary. I am still just a beginner, after all.
