@2psyop I had the same feelings as to the upper limit of my spending - in this case with respect to amp pricing. I decided that $30k ish was my upper limit for any amp. Then I heard the D'Agostino M400 and decided that it would increase my personal enjoyment of my system to such a degree, that although I still deemed the price ridiculous, it would be money well spent. Here I am a couple of months later and I now feel that it was a "bargain" for what it has done to my system and my personal emotional satisfaction when I listen to my system now. Sometimes you have to be flexible to get to where you want to be.
why do people feel the need to buy expensive cable
I have tried expensive cables and one's moderately priced. I would say there were some differences but I can't actually say the expensive cables were better. IMHO I believe a lot of people buy expensive cables because they don't actual trust their ears and are afraid of making a mistake. They figure the expensive cables are better for the fact they cost more. If you have a difference of opinion or share the same thoughts, I would like to hear about it.