Just out of curiosity, why are you pretty SURE that the cheaper cables will work just as well? Maybe it's my age, but no, I'm SURE about almost nothing.
I just tried the c1 versus the amphenol afterdark dac cable between my extreme server and taiko switch.
Yeah , much better! I would say easy 10/15% better . More clarity, more dynamic, more bass, bigger soundstage, seperation etc… is it worth it? In my opinion yes specially with system very revealing and subtile.
I made some trials with different technologies for the best connection between my separate audio router and the Taiko extreme switch. I started with a RJ45 LAN cable. Then I made tests with the Melco C1 D20 DAC cable. Finally I connected a 25 € Mikrotik XS+DA0001 SFP/SFP+/SFP28 1/10/25G direct attach cable, 1m length. The DAC cables performed better in soundquality than the RJ45 cable, which may caused by lower energy consumption and lower noise transmission. But the difference between the Melco and Mikrotik DAC cable was not significant.
The dac cable should be placed between switch and server. Emile recommendations.
Maybe there it s effect is the most visible.
My 2 cents. Thks for the feedback!