The question becomes at what point, price or otherwise, are we assured that what we are getting is a quality built product. I fully agree that Dan is somewhat jumping on the chain of acclaim that Klipsch is enjoying with that model at the moment. Most of this has come from the usual mob of on line reviewers.
The speaker in its stock form is a quality product.
That's why people like it. (Haven't heard it myself)
Klipsch has made compromises, of course, similar to any commercial speaker in this price range. Much in the way that something like a $30,000 car is chock full of compromises compared to a $90K car. But the $30K car but has no
major compromises and is generally a pretty nice ride. (Bump that dollar figure up if we're talking SUVs, of course)
Klipsch and other commercial speaker vendors are pretty smart. They have a certain amount of money they can spend on parts and assembly for each unit and they are pretty good about spending it in the ways that reap the biggest benefits.
Of course, what you're really asking is how much it costs for a speaker like this Klipsch that comes with all of the upgrades that Danny offers. No major compromises in the crossover, cabinet, etc.
Generally it seems to me that "no major compromises" 2-way bookshelf speakers tend to start at around $1,500. KEF LS50, Buchardt S400, etc. Maybe more like $750-1,000 if you're going with internet-direct sellers like Hsu, Ascend, etc.
If you're willing to dip into DIY kits, you can have a pair of bookshelf speakers with no major compromises for a few hundred bucks.