A butt-load spent in cables - how much improvemt?

"most components in current production are relatively "colorless", that is they don't have any serious audible flaws."

I have to disagree with this statement. I've heard too many components that are colored and some do have some serious audible flaws, regardless of what cables are being used to "fine-tune" the system. IMHO

This is an eternal question there is no answer to. One side says you can't possibly hear a difference, you are imagining it, the other that the difference is manifest and obvious. Who is right, who cares. I am not being flippant in saying who cares. Second hand cable is pretty cheap and resellable. Try some good cable, even better, borrow from the cable company. If you don't hear a difference, what have you lost.
By the way, what are these DBT that knowone could hear a difference in. I have seen published trials where there was good uniformity of views, HiFi+ for example.
Me, I bought an Acoustic Zen cable set on this site, with advice from this site and I really can hear a difference. That was 4 years ago and I'm still using it. If you don't hear a difference, thats ok, I am not going to impune your audiophile credentials.

Well said, David12, this thread is just another of the "there can be no difference" versus "I hear a difference" threads. They are a waste of energy.

"There can be no difference" versus "I hear a difference" -
How about a third point of view? Mine is: While I agree that some expensive cables sound better than cheap ones, I REFUSE to spend big bucks on cables.

Joeylawn, that is another meaningful dimension. Ultimately, I suspect all of us have a pricepoint beyond which we will not go.