The movements are much different in this new $5-10k channel. I think most people are looking at $10k as the next big milestone. This also impacts the emotions of people in the market.
At $50, a 10% increase is to $55. At $5000, it's $500. Both will net you the same gains/losses, but a lot of people still think of BTC in terms of USD - so we need to consider the fact that the same percent is a lot more "real" money for the majority of investors.