LS? psh...
my ZC is faster than an LS, unless you put a vtec head on it... but that will eventually blow up
and yea, b16's ARE getting cheaper, but i'd like for you to show me a COMPLETE b16 swap for less than $1000. a COMPLETE ZC swap is defiantly less than $1000. Only bad thing is that after i/h/e, there's no room for improvement other than turbo.