It always amuses me when people say higher bars are "worse" for rear wheel use. Trials bikes are NOT hard to back hop, especially if it has such a short back end and high bb as the Echo 24".
I am a big fan of high front ends, they are more comfy when actually riding, they usually make the rider more stylish (as they can just lift the front up rather than have to use pedal strokes and they are not riding around with their back flat to the floor) and they generally feel a lot nicer.