I have a date with myself at the bike shop this week to try out the Volpe and the CrossCheck, plus the Poprad. My budget's somewhere in the $1K range, +/- a couple hundred bucks (been working a lot of overtime lately for this particular purchase), so I'd rather get an $850 bike and dude it up than a $1200 bike and live with components I wouldn't have chosen were I building it up myself.
Thanks for your help!