$10k Speaker Cables??????????????

OP asks "when will the madness end." It will end when everyone is as smart, savvy and knowledgeable as most of the "naysayers" on this forum. It will end when audiophiles "get" that when they spend exorbitant amounts on audio accessories, they are primarily concerned, not with the quality of their music, but with what their equipment says about them... to other naive beholders.

E.g.: no one buys a Rolex because it tells time better...because it doesn’t.

It is a fallacy to believe that buying ultra expensive speakers warrants ultra-expensive cables.  Besides the difference between $10,000 and $200,000 speakers is likely only on the order of 5% in sound quality (law of diminishing returns).  That would suggest that the very subtle "improvements" that ultra-expensive cables could (maybe) provide ultra-expensive speakers would be barely audible.

However, if you freeze those new cables, put wood blocks under them , attach batteries, put voo-doo goop on the terminals and ensure the the direction is correct...well then the differences could be mind-blowingly jaw-dropping!

Think he is referring to truth in advertising.  Extreme claims for a product that contain no real, substantive performance justification...do just one thing: prey on the uninformed.

Just like this kind of Audiogon poster to become emotional and transition to political references and derogatory comments about someone else's financial status. I thought we were talking about the questionable efficacy of very expensive cables.

Seems the only "whining" is emanating from that source.

Anyway, its not really a matter of "having more than you" but whether spending a year's salary on speakers (plus cables) is smart.  I'd bet the average Audiogon forum participant has less than $10K in their main speakers.  And I bet they sound great.