I’m in agreement with much of the preceding...
Preference for one brand/model of wire over another will depend on gear it’s used with and your ears/tastes. Generalizations about sonic characteristics are, I think, of limited value - though the Cardas wire I’ve had does seem to be weightier in the midrange and slightly rolled off in the high end (300B micro twin SE ICs; Golden Reference XLRs; Parsec speaker cable). The AQ wire I’ve tried or owned, by contrast has seemed a little thin (Rocket 33 speaker cable; Columbia XLR). Borrow from The Cable Co. and try any of those Big 4 at home. Decide for yourself.
I also second JayC’s Clear Day suggestion. I own his Double Shotgun Speaker Cables. Great presence and "meat on the bones" yet neutral with great clarity and nice high end extension. Maybe not quite as much low end extension as the Cardas Parsec speaker cable I have. Depending on speakers and amp used, one or the other (or both in bi-wire) sounds best to my ears. I have a pair of Morrow Audio SP-4 but prefer the Clear Day or Cardas to them. My experience might have exactly no predictive value towards what you or anyone else experiences.
