Is High End Cable Really Worth It and What Brand

There is no doubt in my mind that cables and interconnects can make a big difference in how your system sounds. A simple demonstration would be to demo some cables that exhibit very different tendencies (in any system) and hear the difference for yourself. If you can't hear a difference, or the difference is not worth the money to you, well you've saved yourself a bit of cash. An example of two such contrasting speaker cables or interconnects might be a very revealing pure silver cable like Homegrown Audio produces (as well as other manufacturers), and any number of warmer, usually slower, braided copper cable solutions. Each of those two should impart a very different sound, no matter what your system. Which is 'best' to your ears, with the music you listen to, on your system, in your listening room, is only for you to say. No dealer, and no audiophile here can give you a universal 'ideal cable' (or ideal component for that matter). System synergy and personal preferences are as different as fingerprints. I would highly recommend, if you do choose to make cable purchases, consider some of the many smaller manufacturers and DIY cable makers, that are making outstanding products without the overhead of the boutique cable advertising that "justifies"/necessitates their 400-800% markup. There are many DIY dealers selling their cables on this site. Do a search on AudioAsylum for some comments, and take all of that with a shaker full of salt. Again, your mileage may vary!

This Warrenh guy has really impressed me. I'm going to make a point to read his threads when I see his name. Listen to this man. I don't think you can get a better answer to your question.

I agree with AVGUYGEORGE. You have a lot new already going on. Get yourself up and running. I would offer a point of reference. The discovery 123 speaker cable is a very neutral entry level cable. You might visit fatwyre.com, find your existing cable in their cable lineup and compare it to something like the discovery.

Cable is subject to tremendous markup. I would not buy cable from a dealer who is selling it at retail; it is too easy to buy great cable at discount prices.

I suggest you read the following site written by Roger Russell of McIntosh on speaker wire. McIntosh did extensive testing on speaker wire some time back and answered quite a few questions. Here is the link:
http://www.sundial.net/~rogerr/wire.htm
It is very comprehensive so be prepared to spend some time.

I use old Esoteric 8 ga wire; a friend gave me a spool of it in the mid 90's so the price was right!

High-end wires do measure better and they sound better particularly for longer lengths. If you want to see some measurements and analysis, see the Audio FAQ page at this website:
http://www.empiricalaudio.com