Not worthy of Albert's system, but I used Neutrik connectors and Canare wire from Markertek to make 40' balanced cable for well under $100 (I forget what it cost exactly). I followed DIY directions that were posted and discussed here. The DIY aspect worked well -- I would have had a hard time running pre-terminated cables through the spaces I had. I was relieved and pleased with the results. It sounds at least as good as the unbalanced interconnects had before.
Albert's advice seems to be pretty much the consensus view here, which is why I went this route. I also found that getting the amps out of the listening area (and into the basement) freed up some space.
In the YMMV department -- I had previously listened to several $100 to $300 short unbalanced interconnects in my system, and not been able to discern a signficant difference in my system vs. "Radio Shack Gold" unbalanced interconnects (I could hear a difference between truly cheapo interconnects -- the kind you get free -- but not between the "Gold" and the more expensive ones). So I am not a cable expert, but again, I was relieved and pleased at how good the DIY cables sound.
I'll find and post the link if you're interested. Only relevant if you have the option of doing balanced connections, of course.
Cordially,
Eric
