Are audiophiles still out of their minds?

thanks whattsperchannel. I have a dedicated high duty circuit for my sterero which works well. I tried star grounding in my system, could not quite make it work however.

Wattsperchannel, thanks for the link. 

I just have to add that now that I’ve removed the source’s PC from the same outlet as the integrated, the sound has clean up measurably. I didn’t think it would be as dramatic an improvement but it goes to show that there’s always the potential to improve.

When new, I put both PCs into the same outlet and thought I heard a "lessening" of sorts but wrote it off to the PCs being new and needing break in. Well, it’s been 300-400 hours since and I couldn’t believe the amount of feedback hash that the integrated was putting into the wall outlet and being picked up by the PC for the SACD player.

Putting it into my Blue Circle Thingee on the other outlet did nothing untoward and everything for the betterment. Highs have extended, sibilance is greatly reduced, there’s more micro dynamics, and greater see-through and expression.

I never realized just how much can be attained by following the basics. The trouble is, there is so much debate on this: outlets, isolation, conditioners, et al that one doesn’t know what to believe until they try.

All the best,
Nonoise

Are audiophiles out of their minds for spending (relatively) large amounts of money on cables? 

Having been in the business and seen the margins on expensive cables, and having heard the frankly BS stories attached to many of them, first reaction is "yes, that's ludicrous."

But:

It's no crazier than what some people do with cars, or boats, or bicycles, or travel, or furniture, etc.  If it makes people happier, then how crazy is it?  Sure, if someone is spending the mortgage payment on an interconnect, that's a poor choice, but let's be real - most of us aren't doing that. 

It's all for fun, so have fun!

@naimfan Hey I say if audiophiles don’t mind getting duped and ripped off by “high end” cable manufacturers, by all means have all the fun until their hearts are content. Revisiting this thread, I’m glad there are some skeptics who realize the absurdity of high end cables.