I would appreciate any input on a water softner system I am considering. I got some generous help here earlier with some preliminary questions and now have narrowed my choice to two or three systems.

I met with the Kinetico rep and he explained their system (KINETICO 4040s) and quoted me $3500 plus extra $300 for copper pipes needed to connect the system from our main water source to where it will sit. He also said that we would need to add salt probably once every six months to the system. He gave me several referrals to people in my area who have the system who I can talk to. I am sure Kinetico is an excellent system but what I came away with not knowing is if the other much less expensive systems are as good and basically do the same thing.

I got another email quote from another company that sells Pentair (Fleck) & Clack Corporation Commercial & Industrial Water Softener Systems.

system #1 - No Salt - The TurboTac Whole House Water Conditioner System - With ScaleStop Media.
Template Assisted Crystals (TAC) - The New & Improved Way To Treat Hard Water - No Salt Required!
Along With Next Filtration's ScaleStop We Add A Full Bed Of Coconut Shell Carbon Filtration Media.
Significantly Reduces Chlorine - Bad Tastes & Odors & Harmful Organic Compounds.

High Quality Drinking Water @ Every Tap In Your Home + Scale Prevention Throughout Your Entire Plumbing System!

Regular Size Tank - Suitable for Households of 1 to 3 Persons.
Whole House Scale Prevention - ScaleStop Media.
Whole House Coconut Shell Carbon Filtration - Significantly Improves Drinking Water Quality @ Every Tap.
Virtually Maintenance Free.
Self-Cleaning - Periodically Backwashes Dirt, Sediment & Solids Out of Tank and Reclassifies Granular Carbon. No Sediment Prefilter Required - Less Maintenance.
Less Than 1 Square Ft. of Floor Space Required.

PRICE $1,595.00

and the other system which is the Traditional water Softener System (requires salt - approx 1 - 40 lb bag per month)

Our Entry Level Whole House Water Softening Package
Features

Softens water throughout the entire home.
Chlorine resistant softening resin.
Clack digital control valve.
Structural polyglass mineral tank.
18" dia x 30 ht. plastic brine tank - 300 lb storage capacity.
Regenerates with either Sodium Chloride or Potassium Chloride.

Softener Tank Size (tank only): 9" dia x 48" ht.
Overall Softener Tank Height (w/control valve): 61" ht.
Cubic ft. of Softening Resin: 1 cubic ft.
Brine Tank Size: 18" dia x 30" ht.
Brine Tank Holding Capacity: 300 lbs.
Regeneration Material: Sodium Chloride or Potassium Chloride.
Control Valve Type: Clack CK10 Fully Digital - 24 Volt - Built-In Bypass Valve.
Pipe Size Connections: 1" or 1 1/4" MPT.
Service Flow Rate Capacity: 10 gallons per minute (without hardness breakthrough).
Grains Capacity Removal Before Regeneration: 30,000 grains (approx 2,000 gallons of average tap water quality).

Softener Tank (Tank Only) - 10 year Limited Warranty.
Brine Tank & Brine Float Assembly - 10 year Limited Warranty.
Softening Resin - 1 Year Limited Warranty.

PRICE $1,295.00

Please advise whether I should just stick with the soft water system or should I consider the water conditioning system at all. Thanks.