In this range of capacitors, there are a number of excellent brands of caps for far less than $300.
Audyn TruCopper, and even some excellent Duelund models like this one.
I strongly recommend you practice however using like $2 poly caps first, just to make sure you have the right values and wiring.
Also, I think Parts Express has some modular XLR adapters. They are like M to F adapters but you can shove little parts inside. Perfect for this type of prototyping.