Where to put the better cable.

You will end up with them where they sound the best, but if the question were asked, and the results could never be altered I would agree with Elizabeth.

Always get the most signal off of your source. No great piece of gear will add what wasn't obtained from the CD in the first place.

My mode of upgrading is always to start at the source and move back to the speakers.

Interesting thread and comments. Elizabeth's comment would be my first choice but time after time, I have found the most crucial cable link in the system is between line stage and amp. I have run a mixture of Cardas Golden Cross, SilverAudio, MIT 350 and NBS Statement. At one time I even used a cheapo pair of Belden. With the NBS being 100x the cost of the Belden, the Belden was still quite good between the phono and line stages at the time (ARC PH2->ARC LS5III) but the Belden was absolutely terrible between the LS5 and amp (VT130). All of the harmonic richness and 3D of the system was gone with a mediocre cable here and yet from the phono stage, it was mighty good! It is not always about resolution or "best cable to the top of the chain". I think it has as much to do with the cable interface between the output and input links.

Over time I switched to NBS in all links, each time making an improvement in system performance, but still trying the Belden from the phono stage to line stage, now Aesthetix Io -> BAT 31SE, shows quite a decent link....but even more so a musical disaster from line to amp. The second most critical link from my experience is the tonearm cable and then 3rd, from DAC to line stage. I too tend to start with what common sense would indicate, but my ears often tell me something very different. So the only way is to try for yourself.

That's not a correct way to compare since the belden was not able to match your preamp and amp ( LS5 is balanced and the belden was never intend to be used for balanced application.)

Different component pairs will react and sound different based on the IC between them. Try it both ways and see which sounds best to your ears. Just remember that the 2nd one in the chain can't add anything to the signal, so the most transparent and uncolored IC should probably work best higher in the chain, but like everything else, that may not always hold true.

Just to complicate things a little bit, changing the direction that the cable plugs in may also alter the sound, as will the polarity of the AC plugs on each component. Makes for a nice challenge to identify the "best" setup. Now multiply that by several components and you have a year's worth of trial and error to go through.

Happy holidays,
Bob
Enjoy,
Bob

Cables react differently to each component due to output and load impedances. Just try at each component to get the best results.