Audioquest - What did their "x3" designation mean?

As far as I know the x3 means that the cable has 3 identical conductors, which makes it perfectly suitable for balanced use (with XLR-plugs).

been waiting for posts as i'm uncertain myself.
ruby had a X2 also. my assumption was an X3 was the latter version of the cables lifespan, or current production run. uncertain if any internal changes took place. kurt

I had the Lapis x3 for years.Just thought it was the 3rd generation. The Lapis x 3 I think was the first Lapis to use Silver wire.Good question though!

I think Peterb is right. I think the original (x1?) had one conductor/wire encased in dielectric and wrapped in shield/drain. The x2 had two conductors/wires to pass both directions of the signal (drive & drain), with shielding wrapped around the two -- for single ended (RCA) connections. The x3 had three conductors wrapped in shielding, appropriate for balanced (XLR) connections. You wouldn't expect to see x2 used for balanced or x3 used for single ended interconnects.