@OP, I've been there! There are so many good suggestions above.
One thing that works for me is actually hearing the gear I think about buying. That's harder to do with brick and mortar industry on life support and the pandemic.
I made my first trip to AXPONA in 2019. It was revelatory. I was able to hear so much gear. It was helpful to hear things like you refer to--five figure speakers, amps, etc. It was great to find out that (estimated) 90% of the stuff I was hearing sounded no better than my system at home. And, the 10% that sounded as good or better was way beyond my budget; I would need a home equity line to purchase it.
Even if you've never soldered a thing, you may want to dip your toes into this pool. It's like knitting for audiophiles! So rewarding, relaxing, fun and virtuous. If you're looking for a foolproof kit, try Elekit's offerings. Bar none, the best directions out there. You can do a 15 minute YouTube soldering course and you're good to go.
One thing that works for me is actually hearing the gear I think about buying. That's harder to do with brick and mortar industry on life support and the pandemic.
I made my first trip to AXPONA in 2019. It was revelatory. I was able to hear so much gear. It was helpful to hear things like you refer to--five figure speakers, amps, etc. It was great to find out that (estimated) 90% of the stuff I was hearing sounded no better than my system at home. And, the 10% that sounded as good or better was way beyond my budget; I would need a home equity line to purchase it.
Even if you've never soldered a thing, you may want to dip your toes into this pool. It's like knitting for audiophiles! So rewarding, relaxing, fun and virtuous. If you're looking for a foolproof kit, try Elekit's offerings. Bar none, the best directions out there. You can do a 15 minute YouTube soldering course and you're good to go.