I put KYB's on the back of my 360 duster (original springs but heavy duty) and they definitely improved ride quality and lean. I don't know how you can compare a 45.00 shock to a 150.00 shock. depends on the check book
Easy, you compare ride quality. Or the traction, or any other measure of comfort or performance that you choose. The KYB’s are bad in all of them.
If all you want to compare is price, you can compare them to a set of $26 Monroe’s because I’d run a set of Monroe Classics before I bought a set of KYB’s.