OMG ... all this obsessing and ranting, and you've yet to actually try any bikes out first hand? Buying ANYTHING based on specs and reviews will likely end badly, because the actual user experience is more than just the sum of the parts. It goes back to the old adage about knowing the price of everything and the value of nothing.

And you can collect the best spec'd parts, and still end with a piece of crap if the bike is not assembled and tuned up correctly. You've set a hard budget cap. But, if you go the mail order route, did you account for how much a bike shop will charge for adjustments and tuning up after you tried building it yourself? A bike from a local shop will come fully assembled (and assembled correctly), and most shops will adjust and tune the bike for free after you buy it and ride it around for a while. And without setting foot inside a bike shop, how do you know what they can sell you for $450?

I bought a bike a couple of weeks ago, and chose it based solely on how well it fit me, how well it actually rode, and how it coincided with how I intend to ride. I tried out several different models, and seeing first hand how different features changed the riding experience helped narrow down the choices down far more than any individual parts off a checklist. Like the poster above, the bike I actually bought turned out to be different than what I expected.