I think I see the problem here. I may actually be able to settle this whole debate. (Although I wouldn't bet on that.)
High end audio is a hobby/interest. Like any such activity there are all levels of knowledge an skill. Generally speaking, really expensive audio products, cables or otherwise, are meant for people who know what they want and know what they are doing. This has nothing to do with being a snob or having a lot of money.
Where most people in audio go wrong is that they circumvent learning from experience with learning from magazine reviews and other peoples opinions. There's no substitute for setting up and evaluating an audio system yourself. Read all the magazines you want, take all the math classes you want, and listen to all the people you want, and you still wont know all that much about getting good sound. The reason for that is its a subjective process. Everyone wants something different.
In the beginning of my post I said I may be able to end the discussion. (I'm not actually suggesting that people should stop talking or comments shouldn't be made. I just want to help with all the confusion). The way to get cables right is to learn by listening, in the context of what your experience level is and your system. If you can't tell if a cable is good or not, or even worth the money, you have no business buying it. Its just that simple. You need to do the evaluation and make the decision yourself; every time. Anything less than that and you are just asking for problems. You may argue things like, "theres no local dealer", or "I don't have the time" or "I don't have the experience" or "It'll take too long to build the system that way". I'm sorry but thats just the way it goes.
Think of it like this. I'm a skier. I can read all the ski reviews I want but I take the time to get demo skis and head out to the mountain. I try the skis in every possible situation to make sure they do what I need them to do and I'll be safe in the process. I could just take the easy way out and buy the best rated skis and go to the top of a steep mountain and see what happens. If I lose control and smack right into a tree, who's fault will it be? Mine. Not only that, I deserve it for being so stupid in the first place. Same thing with audio.
