There's zero benefit to soldering your connectors unless you are abusive to your cables. In which case, easy to remove and replace would still be better IMHO. Sound-wise, there's no difference soldered or not. In audio, there is no true benefit. Like I mentioned on post #14, in some of my other hobbies I need a more robust connection and those plugs travel with me sometimes so I like the heat shrink to keep out dirt and grime.
