I've never spent more than $500. Monster THX Ultra 1000 is the worst choice I made, sounded muffled, the connections inside the black "head" thing where the +&- split broke internally. I found some used Kimber 4pr for a bargain and they were far superior over regular 12g twisted copper cable. But I now use Teflon coated solid 18gauge silver jewellers wire and it's better than the Kimber and cheaper. You just can't go over about 12ft in length. The highs might open up too much detail for some, I could imagine.