Rich,
Sounds like you had a very worthwhile and reasonably economical short course in what makes you happy. We should all be so lucky. Hate that I missed hearing the Quads - they would fit my tastes much moreso than yours. If you ever get a chance to hear the bigger Hornings, I bet you will like them very much.
I have heard the big Soundlabs, and even though that was at a show several years ago and with the typical room constraints, they are still on my mind. When I think I want planars, that is the image I immediately bring to mind. Hadn't heard about their reliability issues though, so these comments might save me a lot of grief and $