I put a lot of thought into my current wheels before building them, and thinking only of function/cost rather than fashion, this is about the best custom wheelset I can conceive of without blowing wads of cash. I'd be interested in hearing if anyone can build a better pair of FG wheels (intended for road riding) for less money.
Heres the breakdown:
Niobium 30 rims (these are rebranded as IRD, Speedcific and others)
Sapim CX ray spokes (a strongly butted, ovalized spoke) with brass nips in the rear and alu in front
Formula rear track hub (28h) (Stock bearings are super smooth!)
Speedcific Perception front road hub (24h) (made by Formula), with bolt-on skewer
The rear wheel is laced 2x and front is radial. The total weight is just over 1550 grams, and about 500 grams less than my previous wheelset which was based on Surly Hubs (32h-32h) and Mavix CXP rims with straight gauge spokes. In addition to being lighter, these wheels are more aero and feel stiffer.
The cost of parts was close to $320 (bought from oddsandendos.com), but I built them myself, so factor in a little more for labor if you can't build them yourself.
Niobium 30 rims are as deep as a Deep V, but way lighter and have an excellent reputation among roadies for durability. You can take about 100 more grams off the wheelset by using a shallower rim, such as an aerohead or IRD cadence, but the wheel will be slightly less aero and slightly less stiff.
Sapim CX ray spokes are the best spokes you can buy, but you can shave at least $60 off the cost by going with a good butted round spoke such as a Wheelsmith DB14. These will weigh slightly more but will result in a wheel this is as durable.
Most of my riding is fast road riding, and these wheels have taken plenty of curbs, speedbumps potholes etc. I've never had to retrue them. I have a similar pair of roadbike wheels with the same rims and spokes that have held up as well. If you ride really harshly, adding a few more spokes (say 28 in front and 32 in the rear) isn't a huge weight penalty.
Good Luck!