BTW, your paint analogy is way off. Try this one; you have two men. One is a pro athlete and the other is an average guy. Give them both steroids and the pro athlete will still out perform the average guy. Guess which nutrient brand is 'the average guy' in this example

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I believe my analogy of the paint is more accurate than the one you gave, as mine reflects an all-in-one vs a partial. The one you gave is more an analogy of the strain that is being grown. If comparing a pro athlete vs average Joe and dosing them up with the same chemicals to see which one produces better, then I'd have to say the pro athlete is the same as AK47 and average Joe is bag seed. The AK47 will outperform the bag seed, no matter which chemical (nute/steroid) is given.
Which is a nice segway... I always believe the strain is a more important part of the equation, and nutes are pretty much nutes. I've used AN and had great results. I currently use GH and have great results (for a fraction of the $$$). I used Technaflora once with good results. I grew outside in dirt for a few years with just water with no nutes and had great results, which I attribute to the good soil (the garden was a cattle feed lot for decades). To me, it all comes down to cost and convenience, as I figure I'll have great grow no matter what nutes I use; experience tells me that. One area we are in complete agreement is that AN products cost too much compared to what is available from other manufacturers. I, however, don't believe it takes away from the end results.
In a way, I have to applaud AN. If they can get people to buy their product with slick marketing, then more power to them. It's called Capitalism. Tide detergent, Budweiser beer, Chevy cars, Ford trucks, Jif peanut butter... they all spend big bucks on marketing, all saying theirs is the best to get people to buy. I'll buy CVS cold medicine and Kroger Toasty-Os, and have the same results as the name brands for pennies on the dollar. If a bunch of people want to spend that kind of money, then let them. It only helps me in the long run, as I can produce for less than them.
Anyway, good luck with your grow and please keep the updates coming. It's always interesting reading, even if our opinions differ on some things. You've said enough to convince me to give DG a try on a new grow that's getting ready to start to see how it works for me. Thanks for that my friend, and I'll let you know how it turns out a few months down the road when complete.