??? Where Does "High End" Start ???

The car comparison analogy is both useful and wrong. For hypercars there is a measurable difference between the 911 Turbo and the Lexus ES based on track performance, 0-60 mph, 0-100 kph, top speed, etc.

Many high-end audiophiles are averse to measurements of their gear in terms of SINAD, IMD, identification of actual value of cables, etc. They insist their "car" is performant because it costs a great deal and has a pretty case.

The truth in modern audio equipment is that measurements show that very cost-effective DACs and amps and speakers perform extremely well. This shows the flaws of the high-end car analogy. Until audiophiles start taking measurements seriously they will be victims of marketing in a way that no car aficionado would ever do!

High end system/room started  with the minimal acoustical threshold  satisfaction experience...

 For example i listened non stop since two days the integral of " I Musici " Vivaldi works  because i cannot stop listening because the sound quality is much better in my actual system than anything i ever enjoyed...

It is a system /room well done at peanuts costs...

I cannot stop hearing beautiful sound with no real negative  trade-off ...

Is my 1000 bucks system high end ?  Not at all by all means but it feel like it is...

Acoustics basics with electrical control basic , mechanical control basics with synergy between the pieces and coming back to the right dac (SPS French  Nos dac) did the job...

 Did i want a better and bigger system ?

Not at all because i dont need it  ( our needs vary in time as well as our budget ) and dont want to anyway,  i am too proud of my works with a basic system able to reach his  own optimal level workings...

I pity anyone  with a costlier system who do not know how to reach even minimal acoustical satisfaction threshold ... It is a work asking for months of thinking each time i had done it  (4 times in my case with 4 different systems in two different room with one  TOP  high end headphone system then three relatively  low end  speakers system) 

I agree with the people who stated that high end is not a matter of money. My definition of high end is the playback of recorded music which approaches a live performance.  I believe that my system does so:  Magnepan 3.7i, REL subwoofer, Conrad Johnson amp and pre-amp, Technics S1200 turntable and Marantz SACD player.  

Y'all are all going about this the wrong way.  Cost is no longer an objective measure of entry level or Low-Fi, Mid-Fi, true Hi-Fi or high end due to the ability to buy things at great discounts.  Therefore:

Entry Level -- sounds decent at normal volumes, some loss of highs and lows at loud volume, includes integrated components that are very inexpensive.  Movies and pop music sounds good.

Mid-Fi, investor/researcher-type audio hobbyist -- components and speakers that play loudly and cleanly to a point where you can hear any music, free of distortion, in any room of your home... while vacuuming.

Pinnacle Hi-Fi -- similar to previous, can hear any music clearly, cleanly, free of distortion with the windows up and you're mowing your yard with a Honda push mower 🙂

https://forum.audiogon.com/posts/2832731

Agree with Mahgister.  Chasing hifi "highs" is logarithmic similar to power required for drag racing or top speed, e.g., the Veyron achieved 253mph with 987hp whereas the Super Sport achieved 267 with 1183hp.