Where does the money go in a Blu Ray player?

How much better can a $10,000 amp be than a $4000 amp, or even a $1000 amp, if they are all rated at 200wpc? On a system like you have Mitch, why would you even consider a cheap player?

Many of the 'Uberexpensive' brands are rebadged models from Mfgr's like Pioneer, Oppo, Denon, Sony. There was a thread on here a few years ago where a $3500 Gamut player was really a $300 Pioneer Player. Everything was exactly the same except for the exterior, even the venting holes were made to match up with the existing pioneer model. Look it up.

I would not "over-pay" whatever that may be, based upon your ability to distinguish a quality picture from good enough. Look at construction, weight, reputation and warranty. This segment of the video world changes every six months. Don't get stuck with an outdated paper weight.

.
Zydo, ouch! Zydo, I would never buy a cheap player. Inexpensive maybe, but never cheap. Anything I own would have to perform.

I bought my current player four years ago for $2k. It was worth every dime. It is on its last leg. However, in the digital age, four years is an eternity. Prices have plummeted for Blu Ray since then. I was just wondering if the cost of the technology has come down for a superior screen image. My player has the Realta processor from Silicon Optix. I would think after four years I could get a comparable image for a lot less. Marantz no longer makes a player with the Realta chip. Denon, its sister company makes a player with a Realta processor. That player is $4500. I don't think I should have to spend $4500 to get four year old digital technology. I don't mind spending good money for a quality product...I just don't want to spend gratuitously. I own a SqueezeBox and a Roku player. At $300 and $100 respectively, both of them would be considered 'cheap' compared to some of the items in my system. Price be damned, they hold their own performancewise.
.

There must be a few review sites that give good in-depth comparisons of video performance between the likes of Sony, Oppo and more pricer ones.

Thinking about 'cheap', I would consider the Sony 595 cd/sacd player. This unit it the refurb market of $60 delivered. I had the opportunity to compare it to a $5K Esotric unit. The 595 blew it away. Who knows