I think some cables are just a little too expensive.


A while back a shop I did business with carried Transparent Audio Cables. They were so expensive it was obscene. They did sound good, but you had to move up from the bottom to the more idiotically pricey models to start to feel the magic. It had been several years ago and I wanted to check in on my old friends at Transparent Audio. This is their top of the line speaker cable. Now if you don't have a problem with this whole cable thing, this might push you over the edge. I can't imagine a speaker that would need such a cable. Wilson? Rockport? What amp? You can buy a nice luxury vehicle for the same price as a pair of speaker cables? Nelson Pass would be embarrassed to see these monstrosities on one of his amplifiers.

https://www.transparentcable.com/collections/magnum-opus/products/magnum-opus-speaker-cable
128x128chrismini
@mikelavigne 

Thanks for throwing some perspective.  I fantasize about owning certain gear I will never own, usually pre-amps and DACs.  I will reserve some dream-time for cables.
oldhvymec

"Allow"? It wasn’t allowed in the 1950s. We had a 90% tax rate, ... and we had David Hafler. The Dyna Stereo-70 amplifier was launched in 1959, and more than 350,000 sold before production ceased, making the ST-70 the most popular tube power amplifier in history. Today, the Dynaco ST-70 is still considered to be one of the most outstanding tube amplifiers ever made.
In order for technology to "trickle down", there has to be some quantifiable proof that 1.) there is in fact some technology that is being applied in a product that is not found in cheaper models, and 2.) that the technology actually fixes an issue in some repeatable way.  It should also be true that there is a level of technology/use of materials that will be the best for the job, and there would be no better in the transmission of signals.  You might not have the level of equipment that would take full advantage of the "best" cables, but the idea that you should spend a certain percentage of your money on cables no matter how much you spend makes no sense. Similar to walking into a car dealership and asking a car's price, and the the salesman asking how much money you have, because he bases the price of the car off of that.  What that magic level is, there is no agreement nor evidence to prove it one way or the other (the cable companies certainly don't provide it). As always, if spending $20,000 on cables will make you happy somehow, have at it.  At least try expensive cables with the option of taking them back if you must, and keep the ones that fill your heart with joy.
Maybe these are more in your price range. ;)

I have a lot of heritage low end of this brand and it works quite well for my ears. Blew away everything I ever replaced with them for both interconnects and speaker interfaces.

https://mitcables.com/product/acc-268-articulation-control-console/
Prices for audio equipment are unbelievable. I inherited what was probably, at new prices in 1980, a system that cost about $12,000 back then. I inherited it from an audio dealer friend who passed away. I've listened to this system since 1998. It blows me away. The best part of this system is the preamp - a Spatial Coherence TVA1. There were only 400 ever made, and I am privileged to have one. Its sound has been compared to preamps costing $20K or more. This system does far more than keep me happy.