@sarora9: Great that you and your wife are able to hear the difference. How long did it take? 10 minutes? An hour?
So why does Danny not exactly that? Listen to speakers with different cables and describe the differences.
And is it possible to hear that 100 USD cable with < 1000 USD speakers? And does that 500 USD cable let the 3000 USD speaker sound as good as a 10k USD speaker?
Most of us have limited resources. So if we buy a new system or new component then obviously it makes sense to think about if we should spend those extra dollars maybe on cables, connectors, or maybe amps and speakers?
I will soon buy brand new everything and until now Danny's NX-Oticas and the subs are on my wanted list. I haven't made up my mind about cables. Until now I think about something "simple". Maybe 12AWG copper cables with gold plated connectors. But I have an open mind. If I am convinced 500 USD extra for the cable makes a considerable difference then I will spend that money. But I have to be convinced. Antenna and coil tests don't do that.
And that lots of people think their new expensive gadget makes things so much better is also a well known effect. That is until they find another expensive gadget which makes their perfect system even better.
The issue of how to allocate a budget to get the most for the money is a practical application of the question "What makes a difference in sound quality and by how much? Or put another way "How and where does the concept of diminishing returns come into play"
Would you be surprised if I said there is no consensus on how to allocate funds for a system? To begin with, there seem to be two main camps. One says to start with the best speakers you can afford because without good speakers, you can't hear what the upstream components have to offer or be able to tell difference between components. The other camp says put most of your money into the source because without a good source it doesn't matter how good your speakers are.
I'm in the first camp, get the best speakers you can afford first because it doesn't matter how good the upstream components are if you can't hear what they have to offer.
Of those that say start with the speakers first, some say to work backward through the chain from speakers to power amp to preamp to DAC to source. Some say after the speakers the next most important is the source then preamp then poweramp. Some give set percentages of the budget for each component and others modify the percentage of budget allocated depending on the size of the budget. One breakdown for a $1,000 system but a different mix for a $10,000 system. Bottom line, there is no one correct answer.
The one thing I've found that most of the different camps agree on is that cables, while important, get the smallest piece of the pie. An example of a speaker first budget allocation might look something like 45% for speakers, 25% for the source, 20% for amplification, and 10% for cables. Common sense can be a pretty good guide in this process. For example, which use of $1,500 will give you better sound performance: $1,000 speaker cables with $500 speakers or $1,300 speakers with $200 cables? You don't need experimental evidence to make this decision.
You also don't have to spend a fortune to get a resolving system with a high level of sound quality that gives you a lot of musical enjoyment.
I would start with good well designed cables that fit in the budget then upgrade later on when the cables become the limiting factor. By this I mean when the amount of money you are thinking of spending on the cables will not provide larger gains if spent on other equipment such as a DAC, preamp, phono cartridge, etc.
Here's the rub and it pertains to all audio equipment, not just cables. The only way to know if a given piece of equipment will make a difference for you is to listen to it in your system in your room. No amount of studies can answer this for you. Only putting the component in question into your system and listening to it will tell you if you can hear a difference and whether that difference is big enough to justify the cost, for you. That's where in-home trials come into play and why companies offer them. Try it for yourself. If it makes a big enough difference for you, keep it. If not, return it and get your money back.
I hope this makes sense