SOLID PERFECT-SURFACE COPPER+ (PSC+) CONDUCTORS
Rocket 88 uses a carefully finessed, optimized and extremely high-purity Perfect-Surface Copper+. The astonishingly smooth and pure combination of PSC+ significantly eliminates harshness and greatly increases clarity. Rocket 88’s conductor mix is PSC+.

CARBON-BASED NOISE-DISSIPATION and CROSS-TALK-DISSIPAITON SYSTEMS (INSULATION)
The four negative conductors in Rocket 88 are insulated with partially conductive Carbon-Loaded Polyethylene. This remarkable material damps radio-frequency garbage from being fed back into the amplifier. The sonic benefit is exactly the same reduction in “hash” and better dimensionality that comes whenever RF garbage is reduced in an audio circuit. Rocket 88 uses Nitrogen-Injected Foamed-Polyethylene Insulation on its positive conductors because air absorbs next to no energy, and Polyethylene is low-loss with a benign distortion profile. Thanks to all the air in Foamed-Polyethylene Insulation, it causes much less of the “out-of-focus” effect common to other materials.

DIELECTRIC-BIAS SYSTEM (DBS, US Pat #s 7,126,055 & 7,872,195 B1)
All insulation slows down the signal on the conductor inside. When insulation is unbiased, it slows down parts of the signal differently, a big problem for very time-sensitive multi-octave audio. AudioQuest’s DBS creates a strong, stable electrostatic field which saturates and polarizes (organizes) the molecules of the insulation. This minimizes both energy storage in the insulation and the multiple nonlinear time-delays that occur. Sound appears from a surprisingly black background with unexpected detail and dynamic contrast. The DBS battery packs will last for years. A test button and LED allow for the occasional battery check.

DOUBLE STAR-QUAD GEOMETRY
The relationship between conductors defines a cable’s most basic electrical values (capacitance and inductance). However, even when those variables are kept in a reasonable balance, the relationship between conductors can be varied in ways that greatly affect the sound. The Double Star-Quad construction of Rocket 88 allows for significantly better dynamic contrast and information intelligibility than if the same conductors were run in parallel.

SPREAD-SPECTRUM TECHNOLOGY (SST)
Any single size or shape of conductor has a specific distortion profile. Even though radially symmetrical conductors (solid or tubular) have the fewest discontinuities, any conductor of a particular size does have a sonic signature. SST is a method for significantly reducing the awareness of these character flaws by using a precise combination of different sized conductors. The different SST-determined conductor sizes used in Rocket 88 allow an exceptionally clear, clean and dynamic sound.

BIWIRING
Rocket 88 is an exceptional Single-BiWire cable. When the halves are separated at the speaker end, the Double Star-Quad Geometry turns Rocket 88 into a true Double-BiWire set thanks to the magnetic autonomy of each Quad-conductor section. On its own, one Star-Quad conductor group would be a little lightweight in performance as it is biased towards treble finesse. The other Star-Quad conductor group is biased toward the bass; it’s more forceful and lacking ultimate resolution. Together they form a completely optimized full-range design. When separated, the Double Star-Quad design allows Rocket 88 to be a maximum-performance Double BiWire in a single cable.

TERMINATIONS
AudioQuest offers a wide range of high-quality connectors that allow Rocket 88 to be securely attached to any type of equipment. Quality is in the low-distortion sound, not necessarily in the eye-candy effect. AQ ends are either dull looking gold or silver because these metals are plated directly over the connector. There is no shiny and harsh sounding nickel layer underneath. AQ PK-spade lugs are soft because better metal is soft, and facilitates a higher quality connection. For pieces requiring a banana plug or BFA connector the AQ PK-BFA/Banana provides unprecedented performance over conventional brass versions.