glassblower here. you aren't paying for the perc, or the functionality of a piece. yes, a well made chinese matrix perc is going to hit the same as a mobius matrix perc, but that's not what you're paying for. you're paying for the 100% guaruntee of 100% perfection and expert craftsmanship of the glass. they are all handmade, but you pay $400 a piece because the artists they employ are so skilled that they can churn out cans and tubes with the exact same dimensions every time, just like a machine had made it. the blowers are skilled enough to ensure and paid enough to care that all the glass remains an even thickness across the entire piece, increasing durability and aesthetics by quite a bit. you are paying to ensure there is not a single hairine crack, not a single bubble, not a single dust particle in the glass. you are paying for all clean welds that are 100% exact in their placement and not off by even 1 or 2 degrees in angle. you are paying for a perfect base that is the exact thickness all the way around and is flat on both sides - not a little bit uneven or flat/bumpy in certain areas of the base. a perfect circle. you are paying for the peace of mind of knowing that the artists used a **CORRECT AND EFFECTIVE** kiln annealing process, and that it is 100% perfect 100% of the time. if you're not into that stuff, you don't have to buy it, but lots of people are. its art, and just like in art, a little scribble tag on the subway may say the same name but it doesn't catch your attention quite like a giant wildstyle graffiti piece on a billboard, even though they're both the same thing essentially. i love budget pieces and a majority of my collection is brandless glass, but you really can't compare the two and say they're the same. they're not.