Help with XLR ICs.

This is a serious question, not intended as a flame:  can someone please explain to me, given the topology and function of balanced circuits, how any particular XLR cable composition can make a significant difference in sound, since whatever influence is cancelled back out by the recombination of the signals at the receiver end?

I do agree that well constructed cables that don't lose signal are beneficial.  I'm a Mogami fan.  But those are street cables compared to what is being recommended here, and I am not understanding how the composition of an XLR cable would be as with single-ended. 

Mogami is the best you can get for most gear, the prices company charge for simple copper is insanity, if you want gold wires you need gold all the way from the generator. Making your own using neutik or switchcraft gold ended connectors is nearly the best you can get 

I have an ARC REF 6, and I use Shunyata Anaconda XLR's, which can be had used at very reasonable prices.  In fact, I have a Shunyata loom because I think that their cables sounded so good in my system.  I have them between my MSB DAC and the ARC REF 6 and to the Pass Labs 250.8.  Surprisingly, when I replaced the ARC stock power cable with a Shunyata Alpha v2, the improvement was clearly audible -- enough to make me very happy with the purchase!.

I didn't read the whole thread, but I'll be putting my AQ Thunderbird 0.75M XLRs up for sale in a few weeks. Watch for those, strong bass, excellent sound, same family, just didn't work out in my system.

@nagel  please check your messages in here. Mike.