Jay, there's no actual answer to that question, even if you leave the dollars part out of the question. It depends on the source, and the desired outcome. The best vocal mic ain't the best guitar mic ain't the best sax mic ain't the best violin mic, etc.
Once you correctly identify the the source, and the desired outcome, it becomes a lot simpler. Then you can start breaking it down into what will do the job for the lowest price and some alternatives, till you reach the best mic at any price for that specific the source and desired outcome.
Case in point:
I had a singer come in (along with his daughter who also sang) to try out some different mics. They each sang thru 10 different mics and I made a CD for them with 20 unlabeled tracks. They had to listen to each track and decide which mics worked best for their voices, without knowing which mic was which.
He picked the Earthworks SR-71 and the AEA R84 ribbon mic as best for his voice. His daughter picked the Shure SM7, the Marshall V77, and the Marshall MXL990 as the best mics for her voice.
As with so many other "what's best" questions, the answer is pretty much always the same: It depends.