Anyone who takes pride in owning the best hasn't processed the fact that time will make mincemeat out of "best." Get something that sounds good and remain open to trading it in later. Change is inevitable and the idea of "the best" is a form of denial about change.
PS audio new 25K dac and the psychological effect of owning a company's best.
I was purchasing some hi-res files from NativeDSD today and found mention of PS Audio’s Obsidian Ted Smith Signature Dac ($25K) in their compatibility excel table scheduled to be released in 2021. I am the owner of their Direct stream DAC and DSD memory player and I immediately thought that I would never spend 25K on a DAC. I also thought that now I can have their best so why to stay with the brand. This might be my personal bias but I was wondering if this has an effect on anyone else. Is owning the top-of-line of any brand important to you and would you leave a brand if you were priced out of the market?