Listen to the cables. They do sound different. The problem is there are so many and you can’t test them side by side. So you read reviews and take a stab in the dark. You might do that 3 or 12 times. And you still wonder if there’s a better alternative.
DIY "HiFi" cables - and why I don't trust BJC and the likes
After watching these two youtube vid below, I suspect a lot of online so audio cables companies are like these. They basically use off-the-shelf spool of wire that you can easily purchase from HomeDepot or PartsExpress and dress them up nicely with fancy jackets. I think BJC falls into one of these categories although for their credit, they don't charge a lot of money.
I don't mean all audio cable companies are like that. I do think some well established companies such as AudioQuest, QED ... actually have some real engineering going into their products. For example, QED has a very unique geometry in their cables that you can't get from off-the-shelf. It's just that there are too many online companies that give the cable industry a bad name.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuxK-HQGvkI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyEexBJoR-E
I don't mean all audio cable companies are like that. I do think some well established companies such as AudioQuest, QED ... actually have some real engineering going into their products. For example, QED has a very unique geometry in their cables that you can't get from off-the-shelf. It's just that there are too many online companies that give the cable industry a bad name.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuxK-HQGvkI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyEexBJoR-E