I'm not super into buying products that I know there's a good chance I might return. Seems unfair to the manufacturer and retailer. I know a lot of people test speakers like this and I won't fault them for it but I'm not going to do it myself.
I understand and appreciate what you are saying. However, it make sense to do your research and select a speaker. The return is offered as an incentive for buyers:
1) It offers you some assurance that the manufacturer is confident of their product.
2) It results in more purchases because buyers like knowing they have a recourse if the speakers suck.
IMHO, as long as you are serious about buying a pair of speakers you are not abusing them. Trust me, they weighed the costs before they decided to offer a money-back guarantee!
Zieglj01 (and myself) are telling you that the Sony is a better speaker (subjectively, to our ears), but you may be looking for a different sound than what we liked about the Sony (and I don't know that we even liked the same things).
However, I will tell you that my experience is the Sony is a better speaker than the WaveCrest.
Perhaps the most telling observation I had about the WaveCrest was while listening to Time by Pink Floyd (Dark Side of the Moon). At 5:25 into the song there are both male and female vocals. Listening to the HVL-1, the female vocals overshadowed the male vocals as compared to other speakers which provide a good balance between their voices. From this, I would presume that the frequency response is either somewhat muted in the frequency range of the male vocals or (more likely) somewhat tipped up in the range of the female vocals.
Overall, I believe the WaveCrest is somewhat lacking in midrange detail, but do believe the high end is pretty clean. I think the Sonys will perform nicely for your objectives - primarily offering better mid-range detail. If that sounds like what you want, and you can relate to my description of the HVL's, then the Sony should be a keeper (and you have the ability to return them should your experience be otherwise).
I am assuming that you are planning to use these as computer speakers usually are used - as nearfield desktop monitors. The Philharmonic AA's are really too big to use as desktop speakers. I also worry that the bass might get too heavy with the reinforcement of sitting on a desktop.
On the other hand if you are using your computer as a music server for a larger space, forget the Sony and get the AA! I have yet to hear any speaker near their price-point that offers the quality and quantity of bass that the AA's have.
