The U.S. would have been better off adopting the German MG-3; basically the MG-42 in .308 NATO.
The MG 34 had more machined parts and was more expensive and time consuming to build compared to the MG 42 which used a lot of stamped parts.
Like the Luger P-08 compared to the Walther P-38.
I recall reading the MG-42 compared to the M-60 “Pig”.
Or vice versa.
GIs described its rate of fire like “tearing a sheet of linoleum” and had about the same respect for it that Germans had for our Browning fifty caliber.