Proac Studio 125s

I am considering buying these little guys because I love the Proac sound, but cannot afford to move up to the Response series. However, I have not really had a chance to compare them with much of competition. I am concerned that at this price point, I probably have a lot of very good options of which I may not be aware.

The question is: At their price point, do the 125s offer enough of the Proac sound to be good value, or are there other speakers out there that offer more of the strengths of the higher level Proacs at the same or lesser cost?

As a sidenote, the Proacs do have the advantage of high WAF. My wife likes the ebony veneers as much as I like the way they sound. So please avoid suggesting aesthetically challenged alternatives :-)

Thanks for your input.