In an attempt to bring a bit of balance...
From a sheer science point of view, Musicnoise is quite right; the science (electronic theory) behind audio electronics is well defined and documented; if it wasn't, no audio gear would work, and designers would have no starting point to improve things.
I do believe good shielded IC's can make a difference over the cheap free cords often packaged with components, but remember they have to deliver a fairly fragile, low level signal, and they are the entire chain from one component to another.
That's not the case with power cords, which simply form a very short extension of your house wiring, carrying high voltage AC, hence a higher level of skepticism from many here.
However, to me the biggest problem is that we often get sucked in to thinking that "expensive" must always be better (not just in audio). It's so easy in a passion like this to get carried away trying to squeeze every last drop out of a system, and plenty of people out there are happy to take advantage of that.
The retail price of any consumer electronics is not based on just quality; it's largely to do with brand-name positioning, status, demand and so on. Any small scale or niche product (eg super-duper Power cords) has to be expensive to keep the maker afloat, given his low sales volume.
So does a $200 PC "sound better" (whatever that means) than a $20 PC? Probably not, but if the buyer thinks they hear a change, then I guess it's their money to spend as they please.
Final thought... my $500 Seiko keeps worse time than my $80 Casio, but it's build quality and finish is much better.
From a sheer science point of view, Musicnoise is quite right; the science (electronic theory) behind audio electronics is well defined and documented; if it wasn't, no audio gear would work, and designers would have no starting point to improve things.
I do believe good shielded IC's can make a difference over the cheap free cords often packaged with components, but remember they have to deliver a fairly fragile, low level signal, and they are the entire chain from one component to another.
That's not the case with power cords, which simply form a very short extension of your house wiring, carrying high voltage AC, hence a higher level of skepticism from many here.
However, to me the biggest problem is that we often get sucked in to thinking that "expensive" must always be better (not just in audio). It's so easy in a passion like this to get carried away trying to squeeze every last drop out of a system, and plenty of people out there are happy to take advantage of that.
The retail price of any consumer electronics is not based on just quality; it's largely to do with brand-name positioning, status, demand and so on. Any small scale or niche product (eg super-duper Power cords) has to be expensive to keep the maker afloat, given his low sales volume.
So does a $200 PC "sound better" (whatever that means) than a $20 PC? Probably not, but if the buyer thinks they hear a change, then I guess it's their money to spend as they please.
Final thought... my $500 Seiko keeps worse time than my $80 Casio, but it's build quality and finish is much better.