I went to the local Best Buy Magnolia center. As a side note, the Magnolia section did have a nice entry level Marantz integrated ($499) and B&W speakers. Good selection of Denon and Elite A/V receivers. Anyway, back in the regular section, I saw the pioneer towers. They are quite short (only 34 inches) and look a little on the cheap side. The grill covers remind me of the old "JEEP" branded boom boxes from a few years ago. Next to the Pioneers were the entry level Polk towers and Klipsch Towers. The Pioneers were the cheapest of the bunch. I must say, however, the Pioneers sounded no worse (or no better) than the Polks (remember the listening environment). The Klipsch sounded bright and tight (too bright for my taste). The Polks which were $299/pr were built much more solid than the Pioneers. For $199, the sound was on par with the more expensive Polks and fuller than the Klipsch.