Your logic makes sense but you'll surely never know until you experiment. Stereophile has recommended & described the Synergistic Research Resolution Reference MKII & Designers Reference interconnects as very neutral. You may or may not value their opinions (many 'philes are on both sides of that fence) but I have them & like them. Long break-in though, if you purchase new. It took mine about 2-300 hours to settle down (I finally ran them on a dummy load for a month - then they were fine). Even the dlr's broken-in demo's fluctuated for quite awhile. I would try to install new IC's first, then spkr. cables, then the AC cords. There are just so many variables; this is more art than science.
Interconnects be as neutral as possible?
I'm thinking about replacing my generic cables (both ICs and speaker cables). I assume realistcally the components of a system (without cables) have its aggregate sonic signature (bright, warm etc.). Should I get neutral ICs first so the system's sonic signature is not affected. Then I can buy speaker cables last to tailor the sound of the system to my personal preference. Does this approach (thinking) make sense? Thanks for any opinions. Mike C