I'm a cheap pilot, and what do you know, looking at a furlough next year ...
I went with the Telex 850. Found a nice used one on E-bay for $250-$300. Works great, lasts a long time. Compact and simple to use.
I use speaker in cruise and use the headset otherwise. It really depends on how much you are going to use your headsets on a flight as to what the best for for you will be.
Just sayin ...