XLR cables, worth buying higher end?

I have tried a number of balanced cables and every one sounds a bit different, particularly for longer runs. I have 25ft cables between my preamp and monoblock power amps, and the difference between cables is more noticeable. I have found that with balanced cables, the differences between cables is a bit more sublet than with RCA cables, but it's still there. 

I'm not saying you need to spend $$$, but IMO it's worth trying out a few different cables to see which ones you prefer in your system. 

If your equipment supports AES48 protocol, then different XLR cables should not make big difference.
I switched from cables Ralph Karsten (Atmasphere) sold me (Mogami) to some AQ (I forgot the model).  And, I didn't notice a significant difference in sound quality.
YMMV
Bob

AES48 dictates which pins are used for what, how shields are used, and how grounding is connected, and assumes a fully balanced source signal and differential or transformer-coupled input. All good things for sure, and critical for achieving the common mode rejection and prevention of ground loops that balanced cables are known for. But there is more to cable behavior/performance than this. 

Just like with a single ended cable, the sound quality is still influenced by dielectric material, conductor material, impedance vs frequency, propagation delay vs frequency, connector material, termination method, etc. 

You can argue how important these factors are (just as with single ended cables), but they don't become irrelevant just because you are using a balanced connection. 

Mogami gold aes xlr seems to be the clear winner. A very credible player, widely used by pros.  

$65 per cable.  Will try.

abit nutty to spend $500 or more.  

XLR cables with my Atmasphere Amp and preamp won't make too much difference.

Mogami is great, there are 2 types 2549 which I believe is shielded and 2534 unshielded which some say is better than the shielded version.
This guy makes great cables

https://www.ghentaudio.com/part/a18.html
I got a few from him