I'm glad to be hearing good things about the Trek FX series. I rode the 7.3 yesterday, and I liked it quite a bit; a surprising number of people at the shop I was at have one and love it, so that sounds like good sign.

As to the future of my research, I have a LBS building a Jamis Coda for me that I'll be able to try next week, and I'm going out this weekend to look for a Specialized Sirrus or a Vita.

I mentioned in my first post the Giant Escape City W; it seems like it's a little bit out of the league of some of the bikes I'm trying out now, but does anyone have any experience with it?

I consider fenders/rack indispensable accessories as well (and not related to my price range). Everything else I already have.

Thanks everyone for the helpful advice! It's nice to find a community of people so willing to be nice/constructively helpful.