Speakers are more complex than headphones, as they rely heavily on the room unless you're listening only nearfield.
To your point, Dinny, the Alpha T1s are very good, and tailored for the client who is in the market for them. Reasonably linear response, sloping slightly down on top and slightly up on bottom, with a wide dispersion pattern, making room placement easy. You can back them right up against a wall and they still sound pretty decent. They're one of the most music oriented towers in their price range, as most everything else in that range is geared towards boomy home theater.
Plus, I think they look good in Maple. The black looks tacky to me, but black almost always does (forgive me, master dust).