There is only so much good sound you can get out of a box with a woofer and tweeter in it. Throwing more money at it will not change that.
As mentioned, companies charge multiple times the cost of the speaker to stay in business. Most of the money you pay is not being spent on the parts. We are being robbed
All this hogwash about how speaker design requires expertise is false. Every 2way speaker designed by the so called experts comes out sounding different. If they were all experts youd expect a convergence of the end result.
I've heard horrible things being said about speakers made by highly reputable companies like B&W. The fact that its designed by a professional doesnt guarantee anything.
The only way to be truly happy is have a speaker custom built to the highest specifications and involve the customer in the design process.