I would also suggest looking into the Well Tempered Amadeus or the Townshend Rock 7. Robert Greene's reviews of these in The Absolute Sound sum up their sound nicely (WTA=top down; Rock=bottom up).
I have had and loved both (went with Rock due to build quality and suspension, slightly better bass and upgradeability of the arm), but only had a chance to compare to a VPI HW-19, not a particularly fair fight.
I have had and loved both (went with Rock due to build quality and suspension, slightly better bass and upgradeability of the arm), but only had a chance to compare to a VPI HW-19, not a particularly fair fight.