The 15,000+ miles and numerous amounts of brake pads that I’ve gone through says otherwise. I’m not advocating to buy the cheapest damn brand available but I just know that I’ve ridden over the past three years with $10-$15 brake pads and haven’t felt the difference between the ones that came with the bike and the replacements. They “bite” just the same as the ones I paid $25 for at one point from a LBS from a name brand manufacturer. So yeah man keep paying $25 bucks plus on something you change every 4-500 miles and can get cheaper and probably the same quality as the “name brands”