Dear friends, some new facts discovered and i want to spread the light on LC-OFC coil wire material and the story behind it. This is interesting.
LC-OFC is not a new mantra or an illicit drug. It stands for linear crystal-oxygen free copper utilized in this Grace LEVEL II BR/MR cartridge coil wire and terminal pins. High technology finally flatters humble copper. Copper ranks behind gold and silver as a conductor of electricity. Unfortunately, gold and silver, being precious metals, generally are far too expensive for electronic use. As electronic circuitry becomes increasingly sophisticated even the quality of wiring becomes important. The LC-OFC patented by Hitachi in 1975. Frequently dubious innovations come from unknown companies in West Podunk, but the fact that one of the world`s largest corporations produces LC-OFC lends credibility. Hitachi occupies roughly the same niche in Japan as General Electric does in the U.S. When viewed at a microscopic level, copper appears as a series of crystals. The boundaries between these crystals detour audio signals. A standard 1-meter length of copper wire contains 150,000 boundaries. Oxygen free copper, a refinement, reduces the number of boundaries by two thirds. Linear crystal-oxygen free copper contains only about 20 boundaries per meter! Almost a decade of research led to these revelations. In ordinary copper, the space between the crystal boundaries creates a microscopic vacuum. This muddies audio signals and alters high frequency response. Oxygen free copper removes the rectifiers but leaves the capacitance. LC-OFC eliminates all interference, allowing the audio signal to meet only simple resistance has little effect on the sound quality. Some major audio companies voted their belief in the superiority of LC-OFC by incorporating it in their products. For example, the line of Grace LEVEL II and F-14 high-end cartridges incorporates LC-OFC in their top models. Audio-Technica did the same in the late 70’s.
This image explain a bit about difference in copper wire from the basic TPC and OFC via LC-OFC to the OCC.
P.S. You can replace the cantilever and stylus tip, but you can't replace the coil wire !
This is the reason to look for the best LC-OFC version of the Grace cartridges.
LC-OFC is not a new mantra or an illicit drug. It stands for linear crystal-oxygen free copper utilized in this Grace LEVEL II BR/MR cartridge coil wire and terminal pins. High technology finally flatters humble copper. Copper ranks behind gold and silver as a conductor of electricity. Unfortunately, gold and silver, being precious metals, generally are far too expensive for electronic use. As electronic circuitry becomes increasingly sophisticated even the quality of wiring becomes important. The LC-OFC patented by Hitachi in 1975. Frequently dubious innovations come from unknown companies in West Podunk, but the fact that one of the world`s largest corporations produces LC-OFC lends credibility. Hitachi occupies roughly the same niche in Japan as General Electric does in the U.S. When viewed at a microscopic level, copper appears as a series of crystals. The boundaries between these crystals detour audio signals. A standard 1-meter length of copper wire contains 150,000 boundaries. Oxygen free copper, a refinement, reduces the number of boundaries by two thirds. Linear crystal-oxygen free copper contains only about 20 boundaries per meter! Almost a decade of research led to these revelations. In ordinary copper, the space between the crystal boundaries creates a microscopic vacuum. This muddies audio signals and alters high frequency response. Oxygen free copper removes the rectifiers but leaves the capacitance. LC-OFC eliminates all interference, allowing the audio signal to meet only simple resistance has little effect on the sound quality. Some major audio companies voted their belief in the superiority of LC-OFC by incorporating it in their products. For example, the line of Grace LEVEL II and F-14 high-end cartridges incorporates LC-OFC in their top models. Audio-Technica did the same in the late 70’s.
This image explain a bit about difference in copper wire from the basic TPC and OFC via LC-OFC to the OCC.
P.S. You can replace the cantilever and stylus tip, but you can't replace the coil wire !
This is the reason to look for the best LC-OFC version of the Grace cartridges.