I was working p/t for Riverside Marine when the Verados came out. Supposedly we had the first boat rigged with a new Verado on the east coast.
When we put it in the water, it truly was the most quiet motor I've ever (never) heard.
If I recall, we had it on a Trophy 25' walkaround and the noise from the water under and around the boat usually drowned out the motor.
We didn't sell a lot of them; as Skip mentioned the price was pretty steep, even way back during the "glory days" of the economy.
For the money, I'd go with a Yamaha 4 stroke, or even a Honda. I've had two Yamaha 2 strokes that were nearly indestructable. My neighbor is running a 10 year old Yamaha 225 and never had a problem.