Best brake combination

Last year, I asked on this sub whether upgrading to Hope RX4+ brakes was a worthwhile upgrade from Shimano GRX 800-series. Opinions differed, with some saying that it would make no difference, some saying that only SRAM would be worth replacing and others saying that it's the best decision ever.

It's a bit more nuanced than that.

I bought the RX4+ caliper last year and installed it per the instructions. It was difficult to bleed the first time, as I seemingly couldn't get the entire caliper body filled with mineral oil despite numerous attempts. They are indeed a bit more tricky to setup the first time than Shimanos are, but everything is provided and the video guides are immensely helpful.

My reason for purchasing these was because I wasn't getting enough stopping power with the GRX's and I was experiencing shuddering. I'm relatively heavy at 93 kg and I like my brakes to bite and stop hard.
Changing to the Hope RX4+'s with blue pads didn't give me a ton of extra stopping power (if any), but they were consistent, reliable and had a long wear life. Most importantly, they fixed the shuddering.
It wasn't until I purchased the Sinter Green 2032 pads, that I finally achieved the kind of stopping power I was expecting from 4-pot calipers. The brakes don't rub, they work well in all weather conditions and are consistent.

Frankly, I think the brake pads had a larger impact on braking performance than the calipers themselves did. The four-pot calipers are more fussy in terms of maintenance (ie. resetting the pistons), but apart from cleaning and a dab of silicone grease on the pistons, I haven't done anything in terms of service/maintenance.
On the other hand, they look fantastic and the combination with the Sinter Green pads provide the exact feeling and stopping power I was hoping for.