After 40 years in this hobby, I have bought and retired probably 50 pairs of speaker cables. I think most of us have the "used cable" box or drawer. I will say that there is some logic to the phrase "pay once and cry once". As long as the "pay once" cables are indeed a ’final solution’ or the absolute best for your speakers and system, and if you achieve musical satisfaction, where you can say "there may be better out there, but in the here and no - I'm good". There is definite value to no longer wondering or being somehow dissatisfied with the sound of your system. Quality, technologically advanced high end cables ARE ’too expensive’; but they represent not just material cost(s), but time, designer’s experience, and technology implementation. How much is your time and ultimately satisfaction worth? Personally, if they are the perfect fit for my amp and speakers, speaker cables for example are worth one-two weeks salary. A month’s? Probably not so much. But, it’s going to be different for everyone.