Red River XLR: Many sophisticated design techniques, superior materials and an exceptional finishing system combine to make Diamondback possible. The result will put more than a scare on most zero cost cables.

DESIGN BASICS: Diamondback is triple balanced. This means that there are three identical insulated conductors, plus a separate conductor under the 100% cover foil shield. When used with XLR connectors and balanced electronics, both positive (inverting and non-inverting) and negative signals all get the same low-distortion conduction path. The shield is bonded to the chassis ground through the XLR case, providing extremely effective shielding without contaminating the quality of the negative conductive path. When Diamondback is equipped with RCA plugs, two conductors are used together for the much higher potential across the negative connection, providing a substantial performance advantage. The shield is fixed only at one end,

CONDUCTORS: All Red River XLR conductors are solid. The electrical and magnetic interaction between the strands of a conventional cable is the biggest source of distortion, often causing a somewhat dirty and harsh sound. Solid conductors are critical to achieving Diamondback's very clean sound.

METAL: PSC (Perfect Surface Copper) has an amazingly smooth and pure surface. Patented metal processing technology protects the surface of the wire 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 low-distortion conductor. For fifteen years AudioQuest has pioneered the use of higher metals; however, even we were surprised by this huge jump in performance. PSC clearly outperforms previous AQ metals that cost more than ten times as much.

INSULATION: Any solid material adjacent to a conductor is actually part of an imperfect circuit. Wire insulation and circuit materials absorb energy (loss). Some of this energy is stored and then released in the form of distortion. Red River XLR uses air-filled FPE (Foam Polyethylene) insulation on both conductors because air absorbs almost no energy, and polyethylene is low-loss and has a benign distortion profile. Thanks to all the air in FPE, it causes much less of the blurring effect common to other materials.                                                                                                

COLD WELDING SYSTEM: The innovative plug design allows a perfect heat-free connection between the cable and the plug. XLR plugs are also available.

Diamondback's gold-plated RCA plugs use a proprietary design that eliminates distortion caused by extra contact inside most plugs. Because ground hulls are stamped rather than machined, the metal can be chosen for low distortion rather than machining.

The combination of these main ingredients and many more subtle details add up to explain how Red River XLR can sound so clean, clear and dynamic.