I've always preferred the Arai RX7 series over anything else. I just love the way they look and feel, and as far as top-of-the-line helmets go, they are by far the easiest to paint. I can have an RX7 stripped of all removable parts in five minutes, and I also love the extra space the shield plate allows for in a paintjob. But that's from a custom painter's point of view...if anybody is at Barber this weekend for FUSA or any of the last few AMA races, you should stop and check out Scott Greenwood's new Corsair, it looks pretty kick-ass.
As far as Shoei goes, I have nothing bad to say about them performance-wise. They are great lids. They're just a pain in the ass to paint, but then HJCs are actually the worst. Both have difficult to remove vents and moulding that does not tape well. Oh well...
Nobody mentioned Suomy...the Spec 1R is a tasty helmet too...