What Is Oxygen Free Copper?
Oxygen free copper is a type of copper that has had much of its oxygen content removed in an effort to improve conductivity. The name actually is a misnomer, because trace amounts of oxygen exist in all oxygen free copper. Many audiophiles prefer this type of wire for stereo systems, claiming that it improves sound and volume quality. There are others within this community, however, who claim that the wiring provides no better results than traditional copper. Oxygen free copper is classified as any copper that has its oxygen levels lowered to anything below 0.001 percent. There are two types of oxygen free copper, oxygen free electronic and oxygen free. Standard copper is called electrolytic-tough-pitch and has an oxygen content of 0.02 percent to 0.04 percent. Oxygen free electronic is classified as having 0.0005 percent oxygen content and was forged in an oxygen free environment. Oxygen free is classified as having 0.001 percent oxygen content, and its conductivity rating is slightly
