$10 vs $100 power plug

Well... If you have a budget.. then the costs become some portion of you total cost.. or of the cost of your cables..
So anyone can decide rationally (?) to buy parts as a part of a total budget.
Solve the quandry of what to buy.
So if you are buying the equivalent of Acrolink at $60 a foot.. Then buying a end fitting for it wouldb e reasonable.
Buying $100 ends for Wire from Home Depot might be overkill.

As I have mentioned before, spending 10% of total system cost is a reasonable amount.
I discovered my cost to make power cables was as much as to buy Pangea cables. (back when the first came out. The price was lower...)
Anyway. folks can find a reasonable place within the range of A/C outlets and plugs to match ones needs.
For folks with big money, Sure, $100 outlets are great.
I personally use $3 duplex from Menards.. But that is just me.
I also use $15 Wattgate style Ac plugs in some of my stuff.
And the Pangea powercords where I can.

I sympathize with your angst and frustration over some audiophile product prices; on the other hand, I suspect if you look a little bit harder you can find a lot more to get all worked up about. $100 don't mean much in the scheme of things these days unless you have an iPod.

Some things worth coveting - the Koetsu Coralstone Platinum Mono cartridge, $15,000. SteinMusic Harmonizer $3995. Magic equipment rack, $50,000. Minus K 25BM-8 negative stiffness isolation stand, $2650. Quantum Clip from PWB Electronics, $850.

Obviously, people think it makes a difference. Otherwise, why would so many businesses dedicated to custom power cord development and distribution be so successful? We can't all be wrong on this. I agree with Horchai. Your equipment configuration is critical. If you equate the $10 cord as the "supplied" cord for most equipment, then purchasing a custom power cord does have advantages. Suddenly, it's not the sacrifice component in the equipment production lifeline. I guess if I was making audiophile equipment and had to cut corners, the power cord would be an obvious choice. Just my $0.02.

Helpful hint: Don't mention it to your better half.

NO and NO again ...they say they can but in reality it's a big NO..save your cash and even 10.00 bucks is over priced. You can get a good plugs by Pass & Seymour Residential Plugs for less than $7..don't fall for the hype.Them golden ear Gods can't hear any better than us normal folk....