Agreed, BUT...
I think that behind that "price consciousness" is the fear that the instrument will not pan out to be that magical beast we all hope for. Or that we will not stay bonded to it and flip it in a couple years no matter how much we like it out of the box. If bigger price = more pleasure, we'd all buy one really expensive guitar and be done.
Allow me to elaborate on my earlier answer...and forgive me, please, if I go a little off track.
The most valuable thing we have while we are on earth is time. Time is irreplaceable, it can't be bought, and it can't be sold (granted, you can sell what you do for work by the hour or the week, but I mean, you can't buy more time for yourself to be alive). There is no price that can be put on one's existence. But it's also finite. We are not immortal beings. So let's call that the most valuable thing we have, for the sake of discussion. I'll call that our "existence bank."
My own personal philosophy is that I want to get as much joy out of my existence bank as I can.
How do you prioritize the time in your "existence bank?" We're
emptying that time bank with whatever we do, whether it's music or something else. In fact, we're pretty much in the dark regarding how much existence we have left. Could be a lot, could be a little. I'll call that "existence expectation." The proverbial three-score and ten.
Out of that limited chunk of existence that each one of us has, those who are driven to make music reserve a certain amount. For me, it's a highly prioritized part of my day, because music is what I do for a livelihood; for others, it's a smaller and less important part of their day. This I understand, and is as it should be. So I tend to want to spend that chunk of existence doing something really awesome.
If I decide later that something different is more awesome, I'll happily pursue that, because the value of my existence and creative inspiration is far greater to me than what I might lose financially if something doesn't turn out to float my boat. In fact, I don't even have to think about this - for me, it's axiomatic.
However, that does not mean more expensive = better. On the contrary, it only means that something I like to play more is a better value -- for me. The financial cost is a relatively small part of my consideration, compared to what I want to experience while playing, and compared to the pricelessness of the time I spend playing it.
To make a long story short, I'm here once, and for a limited time. I'm going to do the best I can with it, and get the most enjoyment and inspiration from my gear. I'm not rich, but I go for the brass ring and try not to settle.
YMMV.