SOLID PERFECT-SURFACE COPPER (PSC) CONDUCTORS Since the beginning, AudioQuest has pioneered the use of superior metals, yet even we were surprised by the huge leap in performance attained through the astonishingly smooth and pure surface of Perfect-Surface Copper (PSC). PSC clearly outperforms previous AQ metals that cost over ten times as much. Proprietary metal-processing technology protects the wire's surface at every stage of drawing and fabrication. When high-purity low-oxide copper is kept as soft, pure, and smooth as possible, it becomes a wonderfully low-distortion conductor. In a conventional cable, electrical and magnetic interaction between strands is one of the greatest sources of distortion, often causing a somewhat harsh, dirty sound. Solid conductors are fundamental toward achieving Red River’s very clean, natural sound. FOAMED-POLYETHYLENE INSULATION Any solid material adjacent to a conductor is actually part of an imperfect circuit. Wire insulation and circuit board materials all absorb energy. Some of this energy is stored and then released as distortion. Because air absorbs next to no energy and Polyethylene is low-loss and has a benign distortion profile, Foamed-PE, with its high air content, causes much less of the out-of-focus effect common to other materials.
