The progression:
1) $40-60 knife
2) Wusthof Icon Classic
3) Yoshikane + kurosaki
4)Various Y Tanaka blues (migoto, kyuzo, first gen hado damascus)
5) Hyde, Merion, & a few other westerns
6) Kamon + JB + prior mentioned Westerns, no more Japanese knives
7) Xerxes, Kamon, Milan, Bidinger...