What’s the Sweet Spot price point wise in your audio journey?

My sweet spot is much higher than I can afford, so, I buy everything used.  I have an audiophile rack, and I also like all separate components including monoblocks and tubes.  I believe in "same manufacturer" component synergy & long term reliability (a must when buying used), so, I buy McIntosh.  Of course, this can be limiting to many people.  My "used component" sweet spot is approx. $5K and it takes me quite a few years to put the money together to build a system.  My Wilson W/P 8 speakers cost $7K "used", and they were approx. 15 years old.  I also buy my power cables and interconnects "used".  When I calculate the actual original retail price of my system, I am floored.  For me -  audiomart, audiogon, ebay are all my friends.  Of course, with a "used" strategy, you are mostly behind the lastest trends, but, it also allows you purchase components that have built the better reputations.  Research is obviously important. 

Of course, this strategy is not for everyone, but, for me, it works very well.  It also allows me to buy/try all the audiophile tricks like higher end - interconnects, power cords, footers, power conditioners, etc... 

In the hi-fi world, l don’t think anyone claiming to know the sweet spot carries any weight or factual relevance.

l know my sweet spots, white chocolate or buttery sugary shortcake biscuits. I know this is relevant for the fact that l can claim, l do now carry a bit more factual weight than l used to.

Because the sweet spot is, like the diminishing returns "point", not a point, but a surface made of three interacting factors :

Subjective abilities and knowledge and training,Technical evolutive progress of design, cost and price illogical distribution, there is no "point" here between these 3 interrelated set of factors...

Our redemption from marketing is basic knowledge of acoustics or unlimited budget coupled to acoustics ignorance or not ...

@mahgister 

You have a great way, of putting things, another way.

What a great juxtaposition…,.

You nailed it guv.

Reminds me of “My Fair Lady” but with another juxtaposition…..

“I think he’s got it, I think he’s got it!”

There seems to be some confusion regarding the meaning of "sweet spot".  Here are a couple that I like:

 The "sweet spot" is the optimal price-to-performance ratio where investing more money yields significantly diminishing returns.

or

In audiophile terms regarding budget and diminishing returns, the 

"sweet spot" refers to a price range where you get the maximum perceived improvement in sound quality per dollar spent, before the cost of further upgrades begins to far exceed the marginal sonic benefits.

In other words, "sweet spot" does not mean the best possible sound that can be attained.  It seems that most, but not all of us understand the term.