Being a scientist, but by not means more than a home cook, let me give you my take on this discussion.
There are several main factors that make an excellent knife, and like all things they are inter-related, but there is a priority ranking for them.
Geometry is critical. A thick knife with an acute edge will cut badly no matter what it's made of.
Heat treatment is critical -- no knife can perform well if it's too brittle or not as hard as it should be. Particularly important in very thin blades.
Steel is very important -- it must be able to function with the desired geometry. Less important than the geometry.
Profile is very important -- wrong shape, won't work for the job. This is more of personal thing, though, as one's work habits or style of use (or in my case, mediocre knife skills) go a long way to determining what is "best".
Fit and finish. Much more important if you are using the knife 8 hours a day or more, but only in terms of ease of grip and lack of irritation (and no gaps around scales for food to lodge in). A sign of attention to detail, perhaps, but can easily be a sign of appearance over substance!
Naturally all this just means there are no easy answers about price vs quality, but I don't think that "machine made" knives are necessarily better or worse than "hand crafted" knives. True, a real master might produce better knives once in a while, or even often, but they are inevitably more variable that well made "machine" knifes.
Bottom line you have to try them and see. A spectacular knife with superb performance would likely require more "personal" attention to make sure it's perfect, but if the automated machinery is set up and maintained properly, there is no reason a mass produced knife would not get very very close to the superb one. Obviously that won't be the bottom end of the market, as the steel itself required for a top notch knife cost more than the selling price of cheap department store knives, but it also need not cost $3000 to get an excellent knife.
You might get lucky and get a really good knife for $80, but outside of those like a Tojiro or Fujiwara that are really aimed at the professional market (no bling, durable, suitable for heavy restaurant use), you are likely to have to spend more to get a better knife at a higher price point. Anything related to custom manufacture it going to cost a LOT more, regardless of quality, even a poor smith has to earn a living!
More of a ramble than an answer, I guess, but you really do get what you pay for most of the time. Where you have to watch in knives is when you get into the "artistry" stuff -- weird profiles, high end marketing, and celebrity type marketing. $3000 for a 1095 blade with a weird profile and a handle at an odd angle made of day-glo colored micarta, well, probably not a superb knife, if a superb moneymaker for the smith! A superb knife in terms of cutting doesn't need any bling, just proper geometry and the correct profile for what you are cutting, made of steel that will support the geometry.
Peter