Turntables.....A point of diminishing returns?

very good question and point.

 I heard a 1 million usd system
VS 100k system. same brand speakers and amps. diff level 

yes alot better the 1 million dollar one. it's like surround sound. and detail is out of the world  the sound cover the whole big room and very pleasant and transparent. 

but it doesn't mean buying the same turntable on 100k system  you become the 1 million dollar system level .. mileage varies and sometimes due to better integration they can get close. you need better components to show the quality. 

expensive doesn't really mean always better in system wise . in fact it gets tougher to setup and integrate. and I heard many  expensive setup sounds sound very bad.. 

buying a Ferrari doesn't make you a better driver if you know what I mean but the quality is there for you to exploit. 

I do have aquantaince who have caliburn..

hardly knew that guy but was told that was not his main tt

he prefer goofing around with his super tweaked  lenco l75. 

my observation is.. rarely people  have the willpower and finance to really pull off the ultimate system. sad to say it can be hugely disappointing buying a totl item and realize there is more to it, having the right condition to get it sound like 500k. or it just sound like normal tt. 

also my buddy used to own kronos. it's fantastic? but very difficult to set. it's too advanced at that time for all of us and just a ear bleeder. funny story is he downgraded to the bottom direct drive. learn from ground up and now start to improve Alot setting up the TT. and now slowly conquering more expensive stuff step by step. his sistem is about 80k. you really think you hop In a super car and you become a great driver. if u really tried one you probably wind in the drain for trying.. need more skill driving one.. that's the analogy we used in high end equipment. 

@petg60i

It's a hobby for some
it's a sense of ownership for some 
its a competition or technical improvement as hobby for some.
it's experimental journey for some 

what is the aim for owning and upgrading  the system is quite important. do you have friends and mentors who knows how to play it know hat they doing . or just depend on reviews and suppliers. that will somewhat determine the way your approach the system.

going all out can be very frustration. say Wilson. magico. focal utopia. that's a difficult difficult speaker to match and get it right in a room. do you have a good room? Will you build a good electrical system? do you have good peers that have excellent knowledge to advise on investments.. this 3 speakers for example are natoriously difficult. money room mind and friends have to be ready in order to work. easily in the 500k region. 

But the most value for money for a high end could be kharma s7s with zesto prepower phono or goldmund. relatively very easy and can do all things. less than 100k. very difficult to beat price performance in high end. relatively much much easier to hit peak performance. going higher not necessarily better or easier. to hit the 500k mark performance the model is veyron kharma. I like this system best. can do every thing very well. easy to drive. easy to get the performance. 

at that level room is very important.. first the room. 

or must must know what speakers works with the room. that's the best approach. and mix it well. all system have magic combo.... find that out. eg zesto kharma. Wilson McIntosh. then the front end is whatever.. 

electrical system. room. setup. matching components all must at a adequate level to hit the optimum performance . and 99 percent of people do not know how to setup speakers. go to a show.. I count maybe less than 5 that's good rest is mediocre. that's the one of important skill and you can't learn it alone and Alot of misunderstanding. no system is bad only bad choices 

can always go for cheap combo style.. then it doesn't hurt if it's not that optimal but still satisfying level. many roads leads to rome most important things to me is toe tapping music and happy.