How much money do you want to waste?

While I agree to most of the above statements, I have to call Birdieman's statement a ridiculous one. Is HE an audiophile? Did HE the blindfold tests?
I use to listen to music with eyes closed anyway, so I don't care about these "tests" at all.
Of course cables DO affect the system's sound. Simply because they are part of the chain. Since when is a chain's quality NOT dependent on the weakest part of the whole? Hence the quality of a cable is as important as anything else in the whole system. This discovery is relatively new plus the fact that some "experts" think that wire is wire and electricity is electricity and digital is digital makes it difficult for cable to prove their importance. As someone said above: take your time (!) and listen carefully to different brands and different concepts. If your ears are still in good working condition you WILL hear the difference. Now take step #2: What "sound" suits you more in regards on the music you love to listen to. If you listen to some crap the Radio Shack cable sure will do. The more sophisticated your material is the more EVERY part of your reproduction system will be important - so are cable! Then, finally step #3: check your purse and ask your minister of financial affairs (if there is one in the family) if a cable which found your heart and soul is worth the price. Of course there are over expensive cables, but is a Porsche NOT overexpensive? It sure is, but it kicks any other sports car's ass with ease. Now, if after all, listening to reproduction of music in your home is vital for you, you never would get the idea (again) to rate one part of the chain less important than another! Give it a try! It will be Christmas to your ears, heart and soul!
Ho ho ho - and good luck!

For the record, scientists solved the bumblebee mystery years ago. And a Yugo is not functionally identical to a Mercedes. But a Belden cable dressed up to look like Brand X is going to sound the same as a Belden cable dressed up to look like Brand Y. And that's what you're buying, folks.

I have been using the high end Monster cables , & kimbers and they do make a suttle improvement. More noticable with higher end gear. My friend bought a $ 40,000 used Krell system The Seller was a real knowledgable guy and he was using the $ 800.00 Monster 2.4 s with his $ 20,000 speakers and they sounded great ! Good cables do sound better with quieter backgrounds and a cleaner better detailed presentation , and they look cool too.

Sugarbrie, you have actually given comfort to the enemy here. Consumer marketing is all about convincing people that they will feel better about themselves of they buy the right products. The more desirable the car, the more desirable the man. Fashionable clothes, good looking popular guy. Craig K and the wire is wire crowd are saying the same about cables, that people are wasting money on cable in order to feel good about themselves, to feel they are among the cognoscenti, to feel that they are one step ahead of the next guy in getting good sound.

Of course, some of the wire is wire crowd believe that cheap cable is just the same as the expensive stuff because it supports their self image of being smarter than the average audiophile.

I am an agnostic. I hear differences in cables but (1) will never spend a lot knowing that my room and the furniture in it make more of a difference than any cable could, and (2) I may be delusional - the differences I hear may not be real at all.

"Natalie," here are 2 quotes from your post above:

"$ spent have nothing to do with sound Quality, Period"

vs.

"My system retails for 25K so it does have the resolution to distingish"

Think about it

My most expensive cable in my main system is the preamp to power amp link (Nordost Quattro Fil). In that position it affects and greatly improves the sound of every component running through my system. Now divide the cost of that cable among all my components in front of it: CD, Phono, Tape, Tuner, Preamp. I did buy it used for $800. So that is $160 per component. I could not have spent $160 more (each) for a better CD, Tuner, etc, etc and gotten such a large improvement. From this perspective it was an incredible bargain. The same would be true if I had paid the $1600 list price ($320 per component).