[IPodPJ]

Quote:

Silver is ~7% more conductive than copper.

 
Not quite.  More like 4.8%.  Regular annealed copper is 100% of the IACS, and silver is at 105%.
Silver is definitely the best conductor though, which is why people like using solid silver or silver plated copper conductors for audio.
 
OCC copper can run between 100.6% and 101.2% of the IACS (if I remember correctly).  Not a very significant difference.
If you're looking at it from a standpoint of conductivity, you can just use a slightly larger gauge wire to achieve the same effect.
Proponents of OCC say it has other benefits, which I won't comment on one way or the other.
 

 

[Steve Eddy]

 
Quote:

Originally Posted by IPodPJ /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
OCC copper can run between 100.6% and 101.2% (if I remember correctly).  Not a very significant difference.
 

FYI, even plain Jane ETP copper made today is typically 101% IACS.
 
Materials processing has come a way since the IACS standard was established 98 years ago.

 
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[IPodPJ]

Quote:

 

FYI, even plain Jane ETP copper made today is typically 101% IACS.
 
Materials processing has come a way since the IACS standard was established 98 years ago.

 
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I know.  I was going to mention that but I didn't want to cause a stir. 

  And OFC has approximately the same conductivity as OCC.
 

 

[Steve Eddy]

Quote:

I know.  I was going to mention that but I didn't want to cause a stir. 

  And OFC has approximately the same conductivity as OCC.
 

 
OFC's also around 101% IACS.
 
When processing ETP copper, very small, very precisely controlled amounts of oxygen are used to scavenge impurities, taking them out of solution and increasing conductivity. But because OFC can't contain any appreciable amount of copper, it has to be of a higher intrinsic purity in order to achieve the same conductivity as oxygenated ETP copper.
 
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[scootermafia]

Sweet, the circulation desk at my university's library got me in a copy of Dr. Ohno's book, I'll pick it up in a few days.  Wonder if it's comprehensible.  If anyone is curious about the process, I can get some technical information.  

 

[Steve Eddy]

Quote:

Sweet, the circulation desk at my university's library got me in a copy of Dr. Ohno's book, I'll pick it up in a few days.  Wonder if it's comprehensible.  If anyone is curious about the process, I can get some technical information.  

Cool. Would be interesting to see what it has to say in the book as he makes no mention whatsoever in any of his patents regarding OCC's electrical properties.
 
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[scootermafia]

Yeah, when this process was being developed Mr. Ohno was probably not at all interested in building a neato stereo system.  After this wedding of mine this weekend I will get the info, very curious.  More than likely he was just advancing the field of metallurgy and any audio uses of OCC were spur of the moment.

 

[PXSS]

Awesome!
Thanks for the info, was a very interesting read there and I did look up the book at my university's library but they didn't find it in the system.
It'd be great to learn more about the process, it's a very interesting process.

 

[Steve Eddy]

Quote:

It'd be great to learn more about the process, it's a very interesting process.

 
It's basically just continuous casting using a heated mold. Read the patents.
 
Personally, with respect to regular wire, I'm still at a complete loss as to what advantages it offers over conventional continuous cast rod (which is then subsequently drawn into wire).
 
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[PXSS]

Quote:

 
It's basically just continuous casting using a heated mold. Read the patents.
 
Personally, with respect to regular wire, I'm still at a complete loss as to what advantages it offers over conventional continuous cast rod (which is then subsequently drawn into wire).
 
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This is not my field and I'm kind of new to the audiophile scene as a whole so what may seem as something conventional and old to you may be interesting and new to others.
I'm an enthusiast DIYer so knowing more about this kind of things will help decide when choosing materials for mods and other projects.