The stepper in your original post is a pretty good value, there are also pretty good values at automationdirect.com:
http://web1.automationdirect.com/adc...ors_-z-_Cables
The 3977, picstep, l297/l298 will run the 2.8A motor. Also the Xylotex (3977 based). The picstep will give the best performance when utilizing the full power supply voltage of the LMD drivers, but they (LMD) are a touch pricey at $20/axis (2/board $10ea).