@KaranGovil I have a few thoughts to add to the other replies.
I find audiobacon.net to be a really good resource because he’s one of the few reviewers to spend the time comparing multiple cables to each other. I’ve enjoyed a couple of different cables that he recommended.
If you’re handy with a soldering iron, making your own cables out of really high quality components will save you a lot of money. And you don’t even need a soldering iron if you make your own power cables.
If you’re not handy (like me), some companies will charge you a fee for building the cable, and you can still save a lot. My interconnects were made by Douglas Connection using OCC copper Furutech wire and connectors. I haven’t used them but Partsconnexion charge $75 to terminate cables.
I tend to avoid buying cables through dealers because there’s a huge markup. I almost always buy direct from boutique companies, who can offer similar quality at a lower price IMO. I like the power cables from Cullen (used by most of my gear), Anticables (currently plugged into my DAC) and Iconoclast (I use their 10awg power cables for my power conditioners). I haven’t used these companies, but Audio Envy and Zavfino get gushing reviews on Audiogon for using OCC copper and OCC silver in their cables whilst still charging budget prices. I’m also considering buying interconnects and/or speaker cable from Anticables because LTA told me they use that brand at conventions like Axpona.
For USB, I use a Black Cat Digit cable. Unfortunately the owner of Black Cat recently passed away so they aren’t available right now, but he put a lot of thought into the design, using twin 45-ohm micro-coaxial cables and separating the power wire from the signal. Whatever USB cable you use, I’d advise using a company that’s transparent about the engineering that went into the cable, who try to explain their designs without mumbo jumbo. I think Curious is a good example of being transparent about their designs.
Because I’m somewhat crazy, even though I loved the Black Cat cable, I was curious about how I could make it better, by removing noise generated by my PC, so I added a JCAT USB card to my PC, then connected the USB cable to a Mutec DDC, which is then connected to my DAC using a Snake River Boomslang spdif cable. The background is inky black and there’s no PC-related crap in the music. I know it would have been cheaper to not use a PC as my source, but unfortunately there’s a lot of music stored on it right now, so there was some logic somewhere in my plan.
I do use a PI2AES streamer too, and connect it to my DAC using a DH Labs Silversonic AES cable.
I think the Snake River spdif is really good, with the DH Labs a step behind in detail/clarity but also a much lower price. I’ve compared them to some other brands and am happy with what I have.
And since I have crappy electricity in my house, I can vouch for the benefits of good power conditioning. I own both a PS Audio PowerPlant 3 and a Core Power Deep Core 1800 and a couple of Equi Core 1000’s. They both work very well, using different technology.
The PSAudio has been relegated to a secondary system because it can only handle 300 watts, whereas then the Core Power can handle 1800 watts. The more powerful Power Plants are really pricey, whereas the Core Power stuff is sold direct by Underwood Hifi, who always seems to have a sale on. But I will say that if you do choose PSAudio, use their excellent trade in policy, because they’ll value whatever you’re trading in at original MSRP, however old it is. I got $750 for an old receiver that I wasn’t using any more.
