High-end is when you start leaving the beaten path and really start pushing the limits of what hi-fi can do instead of recycling the same basic circuits & parts over & over again. The Moon Audio Luna would be high-end, as is the Espressivo, as would my friend's all DHT 2A3 amp. Stuff like a Woo Audio 5, a Raptor, a Bada PH12 that some idiot stuffed full of V-caps, Blackgates, and bling resistors, that shit ain't high-end. That's like a $1000 Cmoy buiilt with unobtanium military parts and Kondo wires with jacks that are worth $200 each. It may cost $1000 but it sure as hell ain't gonna sound like it.