Is it all in my head??

@roberjerman:  Exactly!!  I think I agree but i think there might be more variables at play... for example, I think the act of moving the equipment and ensuring everything is "connected" might in itself clean off enough oxidation that sounds seem "fresh"?  Actually that is a good way to describe it too...it sounds like someone changed the sheets. :P

my speaker cables vary wildly with geometry... i use the same 12-awg cable for all of them.. i've built about 4 pair so far for critical listening.  

5@ivan_nosnibor   I have no quantitative reason for what I hear and I only bought this cable because it looks cool and it would have cost me >50% of the price in parts to build it myself and i cant fabricate my own connectors.  Also, I build most of my own cables from the same wire and it seems like the way I twist, braid or wind it impacts the sound (not always for the better, which contradicts my oxidation theory)...

I have this theory on "cooking" cables too... I think what is happening might be a combination of oxidation and 'listening experience'.  I have a pair of speaker cables I made that are braided/twisted and when terminated are 9AWG equivalent.  I did an internal bi-wire pair so 6AWG essentially.  When I hooked them up, I was shocked at how bad they sounded compared to the non bi-wire cables i replaced (both made from the same 12-awg stock)... but after listening to them for a week, they started to sound better and more detailed (because 8 wires to each speaker are way better than 4 right?!).  Did they sound better? probably not and i kinda' think they still sound worse now that i think about it.  maybe that too is all in my head...

@kumakahn: If you can record ~5000 samples of 10sec audio clips approx 50/50 split between cable A and cable B, then we can attempt to train a deep LSTM neural network to distinguish the two.   If the computer can learn a difference, then we can work on reverse engineering what it picked up on.

lol... i did not intend to ignite flames :P  (when ever did a cable comment not)

So, I was in NYC last week and stopped by innovative audio off 58th or so and Lex-i got to listen to an amazing system:  a pair of dan d'agostino relentless driving wilson alexx fed by an MSB reference DAC thru a  d'agostino momentum preamp.  let's just say this was a life changing experience.. for as large as those amps and speakers were, the sound was pinpoint perfect immersive and engaging (holographic even) and I never knew such an experience could be had in high end audio.  

It's one thing to read about it.. its another to spend an hour or so listening to over $1M in high end gear set up with perfection in an acoustically treated room.  After experiencing that, it is now my view that everything matters and that there is no end to this obsession.  

In the end, it all comes down to taste and what it is you are chasing.  For me, I am in love (currently) with dynamic range and power+clarity at low volumes--to this end, I feel the Kimber power kord added a net + to the value prop.

@prof : I came to this conclusion after hearing the entire system perform as a whole.  When I say everything matters, I mean everything in the room, including the room itself, diffusers, the exact speaker placement, chair placement, isolation racks, (and yes, even the cables).  It seems to have taken everything involved to create the detailed images I "saw" with my ears.  In fact, I couldn't even hear sound from the speakers when sitting in the listening position!  It was as if those speakers weren't making the sound and it was coming from a different dimension right above the amplifiers.  I cant even describe it, but i would guess if you went switching things all around, the portal to where the music was coming from would be closed and the sound would just come from the speakers (if that makes any sense).

Sitting here, looking over at the rig--that PK-10 just *looks* cool .. maybe I'll leave it at that :)