Lotusdriver,
Yes, the TelWire is somewhat utilitarian looking compared to the huge anaconda-sized ones out there. From what I understand, the cord uses only the necessary amount of shielding around the conductors in order to maximize the purity of the AC signal passing through it, and still prevent EMI/RFI from affecting its performance. The maker probably could have fed the conductors through a large tube to give it the fat snake-like appearance of other cords, but for his own reasons chose not to do that. I do know that there are some proprietary things which have been done to the cord that you can't see externally.