Can hi-end cables benefit less expensive electronics?

I really hesitate to inject general statements into discussions. But, here goes:

I have never heard a system at any price that didn’t benefit from better cables.

Can you use the wrong cable in a given system? Also true.

I was a dealer for 35+ years. This doesn’t make me smarter. But, it did allow me to a have a bigger "toy box" than most. At any one time, I may have had a dozen, or so, various price points of a given cable type from 3, or more, manufacturers in my grasp. I was a dealer who also lived and breathed high performance audio, so experimenting was one of those activities I enjoyed the most. And I did!! (Also was awarded a speaker patent).

Swapping components, cables, and messing around with anything (yes ANYTHING) that could potentially make a difference in SQ was on the table. Of course, each "new" idea introduced a level of complexity that grew exponentially. Cables matter. Any type. Any system. Any price point. And, "other" things. You just have to have access to a number of them, and the time to experiment.

I’’ll go back to my first visit by Bill Low, founder of Audioquest. He would break out a variety of speaker cables along with (surprise!) a jam box with removable speakers. And, the speaker price point progression demos began. It was very effective on a box that retailed for a couple hundred bucks -- at best. Recently, we were working on a little project for a friend which included a $99 Class D plate amp. This amp had a nasty upper midrange, sounded like mono coming out of 2 speakers, and no bottom end. First thoughts: "Sorry, but we can’t recommend this." I looked over at a premium power cord, and thought: "Nah." The tug-of-war went on for few more seconds, then I thought: "What the heck?" and plugged in the better PC. What was a completely unlistenable amp now had bass, imaging, and the "nastiness" went from "R" to "PG" rating.

I use a metric I refer to as "percentage of increase" in SQ for evaluating potential upgrades. A 10% improvement in SQ for a 10% increase in cost is a good value. A 10% increase in SQ at, say, 3% of the cost is a bargain. This could happen with cable upgrades, or component upgrades. Or, something else. But, it’s not surprising, in my world, that cables often offer better bang for the buck than component upgrades. Sometimes not. That’s why listening to a range of possibilities (with an open mind) is the key.

@ghdprentice comment about a particular manufacturer’s products at various price points interacting with the system in a similar manner is interesting. I can accept this premise in that a manufacturer’s design philosophy is usually consistent throughout. Mainly, more/better materials as price increases.

Price is absolutely not indicative of quality, especially with wires of any kind. Also, they don't make any objective difference regardless of what people think they "hear."

if the furutech Cable is OCC single crystal then the transfer Excel won't be better because they use cheap OFC wire.

@waytoomuchstuff, thank you for a very interesting response. I looked at your nickname here and it instantly resonated with my present state of mind ;-) Too much stuff on my mind now! Cable upgrades, or perhaps component upgrades etc. I personally benefited from using Furutech Nanoflux cables in my modest system, and that originally gave me an idea that cable upgrades might sometimes be worth it if you have some spare cash to burn, even if they sometimes seem illogical. My focus currently is on the digital link, which, I suspect, is much less known as to being a worthwhile investment. The knowledge of cables evolves, wth much opposition from some people. In the past, there was a discovery that IC cables matter a lot, then speaker cables. Then there was an uproar when somebody suggested power cables also matter, with later many people saying this is actually the most important cable in the system. There are still few audiophiles who acknowledge that digital cables are as important (bits are bits, right?). I've heard also an opinion from somebody who said this actually can be the most important cable in highly resolving digital setups. 

I think different cable types also interact with different levels of equipment. As @soix  said, a good digital cable can help any system or digital front end.  Similarly, I have never heard a nicer power cable cause detriment, but always improve or smooth things out.  Of course better equipment will reveal more goodness. 

But interconnects and speaker wires can be detrimental.  Silver cables (to me) tend to exploit glare and harshness.  Nice copper cables are what I like, and they provide smooth resolution throughout the entire spectrum (Kubala Sosna Realization and elation for me)