So, yesterday I went into a music store. The dealer had a Levinson Blade Durango T Hybrid on the wall with a pricetag at approximately $1150 but he told me he was willing to let it go for $600. After some talk he went down another $100. That put us just below the going price for a Mexico...
http://www.midiman.com/products/gtmics/microphones.php
I haven't read it very carefully yet and I'm just another homereccer not a microphone guru. But it seems more than ok as a starter guide.
I hope this isn't old news...