Bought the Audioquest Emerald 1 m interconnects used, saving about $200 in the process. I was looking to improve the sound of my set-up, which consists of the Marantz CC-65 SE CD changer, a Yamaha RX-595 stereo receiver, and Monitor Audio MAG 903 speakers. This was all connected by Monster cable 250 links and XP speaker cable. The sound lacked excitement, which I suspected was largely due to the speakers, which only have 4" woofers, and are thus somewhat bass deficient. But lacking the funds to buy a quality subwoofer, I decided to play around with the cables. To make a long story short, the Emeralds have caused a transformation in the sound of my system. At times, I almost believe I hear life music. The bass is much more extended and firmer. The music sounds more musical, yet contains much greater detail than before. Dynamics are outstanding, and seem only limited by the receiver and smallish speakers. Overall, it is the most cost-effective upgrade I can imagine. New speaker cables are next!

needed a pair of shielded cables between a tubed Anthem preamp and a Threshold solid state power amp speakers are Maggie MG IIIs. Looking to reduce some RFI noise in unshielded Alpha Sterling cables, actually the preamp manual suggested shielded cables. What I got was a big improvement in all sound qualities, tighter base sweeter highs and a lot more sound stage. I already thought I had a pretty good sounding system so this was a real surprise. Can't wait until they're broken in, I only have 5 hours on them.
Highly recommend you take a listen to Emeralds if you have tube electronics and need some RFI noise reduction.