First:
No recording play back ressemble the real live event or reproduce it.... It is an ACOUSTIC translation in your room... Not a reproduction which is more an electronical expression than an acoustic expression...
Second:
It does not matter, if we suppose your gear choice is minimally right, what price tag you had paid for you system...it is a secondary factor...
Third:
Matter first and last the way you will embed your gear mechanically, electrically and acoustically.... None of these three different controls methods will be able to replace the other one, nevermind their price...
Four:
If you are not in heaven with your system now it is probably not the system fault, if not wrongly chosen to begin with, but a non adressed problem in vibration control, or a too higher noise floor in the house uncontrolled, or an acoustic problems and lack of psycho-acoustic basic installation or all that at the same time...
High price tag+no embeddings method = probable unsatisfaction
Five:
My own system is 500 bucks vintage, beat all my 8 well modified headphones and make me laugh at any upgrade possible and i am afraid now at the idea of buying any upgrade because of the price/S.Q. ratio... There is a better system than mine read me right.... Half of the systems displayed here are better than mine .... But they are not well embedded...Then most people are frustrated, resigned or throw their money in upgrade...
There exist, accessible to most, basically good piece of gear well embedded in a minimal acoustic TRESHOLD of sound quality, after you reach it, you listen music smiling and forgetting any upgrade, even a good improving upgrade will not appeal so much, without frustration...
That is the truth i lived through and i learned with listenings experiments in the last 10 years, especially the last two years....Money dont deliver high quality sound, well embeddings controls will do...Spare you money, listen and think... If a non crafty man like me was able to do it you will do it, at some extent, near this qualitative minimal threshold...
There is NO audiophile dilemma. there is only people who dont know that we all must learn to listen and we must learn how to hear...Price tag dont replace acoustic basic education and experiments...And it may cost peanuts in a dedicated room and nothing is more fun...But it takes much time...