I've seen some chef's knives as high as $250, and I'm sure you could spend even more. I've also seen some inexpensive ones for $20, pretty substantial, forged knives with full tang and triple rivet construction. What's the advantage in the extremely expensive ones?
I had researched good knives a decade or so ago, and had it boiled down to Wusthoff-Trident or Henckels, both German-made. I went w/ Henckels b/c they had a better set deal that included knives I would acutally use. (Don't need a fish fillet knife.) Entire "middle of the road" set of about 20 knives, 8 of them steak knives, was around $300 and included a knife block. Excellent investment and have never regretted it.
Whether you go Japanese or German, be sure your sharpener is also Jap or Germ. The angles of steel and stuff vary in each, and you don't want to mix the two.
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