Do Costly XLR Cables Make A Difference?

my short answer to op’s question is

yes but it depends on how good the system is (as always) -- i also feel rca interconnect sonic differences are more easily heard than balanced... this probably due to the fact the proper balanced design is more self-isolating to the transmitted signal, allows less deleterious impact from external interference

but in either case, one need not spend megabucks to obtain top top notch sonics

Just spent a delightful week listening to 4 x cables from same manufacturer. 1m cable at the low end $2k at retail, top end eye watering…. Dealer who loaned them to me has a fantastic room and system. He came over a couple of evening to get a read on them in another system. He is an awesome guy.

Very easy to hear differences in my system. Some sonic attribute changes were significant, some very subtle or a slight negative most likely due synergy…

Against my old reference cable even the Copper acquitted itself very favorably and in a world of rising prices is a fantastic value. 

Bottom line, listen in your system if at all possible ! Enjoy the music and the journey

Jim

Hope you meant plural or mono it is. The post appears to be blotto.

I didn’t really compare many XLR cables, but I did go from RCA to higher quality/price balanced within Audioquest’s lineup and that was an improvement. I also did the same with Shunyata power cables. I purchased with sixty day trials and just paid return shipping for full refund on what I didn’t want. This included an $11K cartridge that I was unable to send back because it was so very good. That said, they would have taken it back with no questions asked. So, the real question is whether it is worth the time and the return shipping costs. For me, it was worth the extra effort. I should mention that I worked with someone that provided good advice and even talked me out of some purchases that he thought were not worth the extra money. His biggest contribution was convincing me to spend a good bit of money on the power side of things. The improvements that resulted were eye opening. Of course, that brings up the question as to where you could spend money to get the greatest improvement.  For me this was power conditioner and power cords.

@ryder 

Maybe is the only answer. Sadly there are a whole lot of “salesman” out there and prices are not necessarily a measure of value in cables.  See what the Cable Company has that you might want to try.

All the best.