If you've been in this field, I'll gladly listen to your experience.
FWIW you've helped me understand some of why we keep seeing these efficiency publications that never make it to production. What is impressive is the degree to which cost has reduced as a result of economies of scale and I wonder what the bottom is there. Compared to the price of solar panels even 16 years ago (when I did my previous large installation) it is amazing to be able to get panels at todays' prices for what I perceive to be much better quality panels.
But inverter quality seems to have gone down compared to what I was buying back then, though they too are cheaper.