CABLE SUGGESTIONS NEEDED - ARC Ref5se - ARC Ref 250se - Wilson Sasha 1

I should caveat that the recommendations I made will cost ten times as much as your current cables (and that's at prices in the second hand market). I do believe that the quality of equipment you have deserves exploring better cables however (as I have no experience with Clear Day I cannot say how they stack up against the typical top end choices). Personally I have about 30% of the cost of my system in cables but you have to be the final judge. Best thing is to work with a number of local dealers who will loan you cables to try in your system this way you can have several choices on hand for a direct comparison. Alternatively you can buy used and sell on ones you don't care for

AudioQuest is a fairly classic combination with ARC gear. At least Wild, ideally WEL. The power cords are also good and good value used (do not purchase new as there will be a new generation of AQ power cords coming out shortly). AQ also have great after sales service to reterminate cables, change lengths etc etc

Regarding fake cables. Yes they do exist but for those most part are fairly easy to spot. If you're offered a deal that is "too good to be true" (e.g. 10% of list price say) then its almost certainly a fake. Most used cables should sell at 25-40% of list (which is why you should always ask for a substantial discount if buying new). The exception are current spec models where 50-60% might be possible. Any manufacturer that uses serial numbers should be able to authenticate for you - for example I've had Nordost cables authenticated. Audioquest do not use serial numbers but you can identify details on their cables from back copies of their price books. They will authenticate a cable for you but only if they have it in person, and if its fake they'll destroy it ...

The other challenge in buying used is cables that have been cut down and re terminated. Any seller should disclose this and if done by the original manufacturer this should not affect value (beyond lack of packaging of course). If done by someone else who knows

Anyway I've bought and sold loads of expensive cables on the used market and never had any issues. Work with someone with good feedback, ask lots of questions, and ping this forum if you are not sure and you should be fine

Re mixing cables -- sure. Never assume that one manufacturer is best for all the different applications. For example Transparent make great digital cables but I've never really liked their interconnects. Likewise for speaker cable i did a head to head of Odin 1, WEL and Galileo LE and chose the latter. For power cords I tend to Synergistic, particularly as having invested in a transporter I can power and tune them to suit. Once you find a manufacturer that works for you in a particular application you tend to stick with it.

Also if you have a local hand-made manufacturer who will lend you something to play with that can be great as well -- for example Marigo is just across the river for me and I love trying out Ron's cables that can be real giant killers.