The $500 regular price is not competitive. The $400 sale price makes it a good buy though. Not by the standards of 2020 of course but by the reality of today.
The era of the $300 regulated, wood-stocked, shrouded, magazine-fed sidelever is behind us. The prices of everything are up. The Avenger is $430. The upcoming Airacuda Max is the same. Even the plastic-stocked contenders are coming in at $350 and higher. I’m not happy about it either but this is the new normal.
From someone who has both the Avenger and DAR, I like them both but if I had to choose one over the other, it would be the DAR. All metal and wood, rock-solid regulator, quality aluminum magazine, much quieter than the Avenger at the same power level, and a better barrel in several ways.