[HBR] which receiver is THE BEST receiver

[rob]

Which receiver is THE BEST receiver.
Is one type best for CW and another type better for SSB?
I have done many home brew projects...not just radio stuff...
and the recent visit to the tube regen project was more of a return to 
roots type of project.
I always wondered why receivers commanded high price tags.
If you want to buy a short wave receiver ..a good one...I mean the best 
you can get....
the price tag was in the $500 range.
SO what I wanted to figure out was if a new $500 receiver pulls weak 
signals out of the noise any better or worse than a home brewed 
receiver....and then the game starts there.
What is best to buy or build from scratch?
Regen, superhet, direct conversion, TUBES? , transisters, crystal radio?