electrical short 1 channel. Cable spade at fault?

Make sure it's the amp and not the cable. Either switch cables left and right or try another set of cables (even lamp cord) just to be sure.

If it's still the amp, check for any fuses that might have blown if you did short it out.

Always try the free stuff first before you have a repairman try to fix it.

No guess as to what it might cost if it's a worst case scenario. Good luck.

Good advice from Onemug, if it's the amp your best hope is that there is a fuse in the circuit that protected the amp.

I had an Audio Refinement Complete integrated, the predecessor of the YBA 201, I think, and blew out the right channel when a pair of speakers arrived with an internal short. There was no fuse in the circuit and the cost to replace all the blown resistors was just about exactly the value of the amp, ~$500. I paid it rather than throw the amp away but it wasn't fun.

Yes, I tried all the permutations including another amp and it is the YBA R channel.
Sfar,that is exactly what I feared about repair cost vs price paid.

Can I hold the cable seller liable for the tab?

No, you can't.

In the long run, if you want to use these cables, the problem has to be addressed. I have on a few occasions taken cables to my garage and fired up my grinder and filed down ends. Then change to a buffing pad and smoothed out the filing.. Always good results. I can see you not wanting to do this, but I am very handy, built a few things from scratch, modded a few products and built a few cables. This is not an outrageous project. I have also cut off ends and replaced them many times also... Spades to Banana's etc... also, a fairly simple project... Litz is not fun to work with....

Thank you all for your good advice.
I can return the cables.
The real cost is repairing the amp.
I do consider the product defective, and I do hold the seller responsible.

Seller responsible? Rots of ruck!

What makes you think the seller of the cable is responsible?

Hayduke1- sorry, dude, but you are barking up the wrong tree. I know that it sucks to pay big $ for an amp repair. I did a dumb thing w a tube integrated and it cost me close to $1K for the repair, but it was my mistake so I took my lumps. You tell us that the spades were over-sized for your amp's binding posts, that you couldn't snug them down properly, but you powered up the amp anyways? And they "might have touched", and you want the cable seller to pay for your damaged amp? IOW, you made a mistake, shorted the outputs and you want someone else to pay? Couple this w Stefanoo's nonsense in this thread http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?eanlg&1330019170&read and it's easy to see why brick and mortar retailers are a dying breed. Can you imagine having to deal with this face to face? I know this sounds harsh, but a little reality check is in order here.