At the top of the line is it really all that different?

I have been in this hobby for over thirty years and I am happy to report that the best, most involving, musical systems have NOT been the highest priced. Too many audiophiles get caught up in the "if it costs more it has to be better" mentality. It’s all about how your components match with each other (and trusting your ears ). From my experience, there is no reason to spend more than 15-25k on an entire system. The most important things I do are make sure a new component, cable, etc., introduced in my system is truly better sounding than what I am replacing. The second thing I have found is that keeping your contacts clean is a must. Sound in a system degrades over time if you don’t clean them. I have found that not all cleaners are equal either. I have found that Kontak does the best job (no, I don’t work for them or get anything for promoting it). I have found that my system sound starts going south after about two to three months, and that’s when I clean. Lastly, make sure your acoustics are taken care of. You don’t want an echo chamber but you also don’t want to overdo it to the point that your system has no life. If you haven’t gone to one of the audio shows, do yourself a favor. It’s one of the best ways to confirm what I am talking about. I never walk away from an audio show wishing I could own any of the many cost-no-object components/systems. But I ALWAYS walk away wanting to buy a reasonably priced component that produced some of the best sound at the show (regardless of price).

even if I had the resources, spending this much money would be out of the question (also, with so many better objectives to support). There is no limit to improving the quality of materials in the components but you can't improve your ear.
Still, if one can hear the difference at that level, and want to burn 10s of $1000s, enjoy!

I own a few items with unimpeachable sonic credibility. An original version Schiit Freya who's slightly more recent version got a Class A rating in Stereophile and costs about a grand (NOS GE tubes are my favorites in that thing). I bought it because it sounds great and is very flexible like a sonic yoga mat. Also, a well regarded Dennis Had Firebottle SEP (late 2016 version) that is somewhat obscure but, again, sounds astonishingly good. Bought barely used in early '17 for maybe 1100 bucks, and is a tube rolling delight. A Pass XA-25 that is also rated Class A and was around 5 grand. World class. Expensive stuff? HA...go ahead and plunder your bank account for what might make you feel better even if it likely doesn't sound better...I can afford pricey stuff but but, meh, the items described above give me many hours of satisfaction un-dimmed by ego driven gear insecurities. 

Personnaly, I decided to buy good quality products that are not esoteric or over the top expensive to re-build my system for retirement . Part of the hobby for me is to upgrade different parts of the system over time to really enjoy the diffirence at each step. I try to find good conbinations based on the sound I like. Organic and a tad warm, not too analytical.

For example I just got a cardas beyond Power cord that I found on sale at a retailler. Last fall I upgraded the tonearm on my Linn with a used Arko at 50% off.

Since I pick quality products and brand names, I get good selling value if I want to upgrade.

Good luck in your journey.

Stereophile class ratings hold little to no value. They overate(grade) budget gear to drive sales.