Is the B&W 600 series a good value?

Koven...If you demo'd them at home and really liked them,by all means get them.You are truely fortunate to have had this luxury.In regards to the "asethetics" comment in your original post,I see nothing wrong with wanting your gear to be visually pleasing.In my opinion,the eyes do play a part in the sound equasion.If you don't like the look of the speakers,you may find yourself not wanting to listen to them.For example...many people adore Gallo 3.1's and while the sound may be stellar,I could not live with the look.Don't ever worry about being "shallow" or "not audiophile-like",when you start worring about things like that,you will forget what matters the most...pleasing yourself.Just my thoughts.Enjoy.

Really didn't like any of them. For the same price, much "better" options are available. I picked the Triangle speaker. Paradigms even sounded better. Neither by the way are made in China and both have better build.

Totems might be an interesting option. You can get a lot more speaker by not paying for the B&W name.

The new B&W series does look great and fit your criteria of being an aesthetically-pleasing speaker. I have heard the 684 briefly driven by an NAD and there is nothing bad about the sound. My impression is it is slightly more refined sounding than the older 600 series although I may be comparing it with the 603s1. The drive units have been improved and sonically the high frequencies do sound smoother with better integration between the bass/midrange and tweeter. The 685 and other models in the same series are however made in China, and I believe B&W took this route to cut manufacturing costs. Quality-wise I have no comment but B&W has certainly come a long way coming up with a classy speaker in the budget range that does not sound too budget.

It doesn't hurt to explore other options either. Aesthetics are very personal so just go with your heart(and eyes).

I had B&W 602 S2 speakers. They are relatively efficient speakers for a bookshelf but subsequently lack bass and body. They're also bright. I found Totems to be better in every area, including looks. If you have a dealer near you I'd suggest you arrange a demo.