BEST INTERCONNECT FOR $25 EACH?

Thing is, Craig, cables are just another electrical machine, and not a very complex one at that. Doesn't mean anyone can design them - but it ain't Nobel Prize territory neither.

Thankfully, Eichmann (ETI) and WBT and Canare and Mogami have done all the work. It's ours to enjoy.

You'd be amazed what I've found at garage/estate sales for a buck or two. Audiophiles kick the bucket and the heirs just dump the cables and such.
Saturday is coming right up...

@terry9 Canare Star Quad (L-4E6S) has never used Teflon. It's always been polyethylene dielectric AFAIK, certainly for the last 15+ years.

Also I'm not sure why you need a fume hood for soldering teflon - if anything, teflon can withstand far higher temperatures than most other insulation types. If it didn't, it would never be used as a coating for non-stick frying pans. PE is much more likely to melt/off-gas, though XLPE seems to withstand higher temps.

Nothing against star quad Canare or Mogami, they are solid cables. However for single-ended (RCA) interconnects they're not the most transparent. They perform much better in balanced XLR applications for which they were designed. 

I think given the quality of your components, it's worth investing a little more than $25. My first suggestion would be anything DH Labs. Very nice, consistently musical and neutral cables that don't break the bank. The BL-1 starts around 90 bucks for a pair, however you can also buy the raw wire for $6/ft (so $36 for a 3ft pair) and terminate it yourself with e.g. Switchcraft RCAs to save a few bucks. Or find them used. They also make a budget cable called White Lightning for around 50 bucks or $2/ft, but it's a different design (coax) and I haven't heard it. 

Here is all their bulk wire, lots of affordable stuff:
https://silversonic.com/products/bulk-wire-and-cable/

What about speaker wire? If you want something a little ungainly (stiff and heavy) but terrific sounding for cheap, I have a recipe, and you can get it at your local Lowes hardware.

@grannyring 

I am using the Duelund DCA16GA wire as speaker (Double Impact) wire and the Duelund DCA20GA wire for interconnects. I prefer the 20GA for interconnects. The sound is a little more open and it works well with my 6SN7 tube preamp and KT88/6SN7 tube amp. 

Thanks guys. I will check them out Taww. Also, the President of Parts Connexion answered me and said that I don’t even need Shielded cables for a short interconnect application for signals. 

Now I am back to thinking about those Duelunds. Sorry, this is a work in progress as you guys steer me. He also recommended 20awg over the 16awg for the interconnects.