Audioquest Yukon XLR interconnect cable

AUDIOQUEST YUKON XLR: CONDUCTORS

The Audioquest Yukon XLR interconnect cable uses “Perfect-Surface Copper Plus” (PSC+) conductors. They have a surprisingly smooth and pure surface. An Audioquest proprietary metal processing technology protects the conductor’s surface at each manufacturing step.

This high-purity low-oxide copper is flexible and smooth. These characteristics allow it to provide very little distortion.

We can highlight the fact that Audioquest has been a pioneer in the use of superior quality copper and silver for over 35 years.

Electrical and magnetic strand-interaction in a conventional cable is the main source of distortion, as it usually produces a rather rough and blurry sound. Solid core conductors used by Audioquest overcome this problem. They play a key role in providing clean and distortion-free reproduction.

The Audioquest Yukon uses polyethylene Air-Tube insulation for its three conductors to achieve increased stabilisation of the geometry and improved clarity. Air absorbs next to no energy, and polyethylene is low-loss as well as having a benign distortion profile.

It allows cable conductors to maintain stable connection and geometry on the cable’s entire length, thus ensuring stable impedance and further limiting distortion.

AUDIOQUEST YUKON XLR: SHIELDING

There’s also an NDS shield (Noise-Dissipation System) preventing a large amount of radio disturbance to reach the conductors.

The NDS carbon-filled alternate layers of metal and synthetic material “shield the shield”, by absorbing and reflecting most of this radio noise/energy before it reaches the layer connected to the mass.

Moreover, the shield is never used as a conductor in this configuration. There are 3 different conductors (0, signal + and signal -) and the screen.

AUDIOQUEST YUKON XLR: CONNECTORS

The Audioquest Yukon XLR interconnect cable uses specific male and female XLR plugs. The very high-quality contact areas feature a silver plating. Inner conductors are not welded to avoid any distortion. They are crimped or “cold-welded” on purple copper connectors.

Contact quality is perfect, no matter the material used.

AUDIOQUEST YUKON RCA: REPRODUCTION

The Audioquest Yukon XLR interconnect cable provides very natural reproduction with rare articulation and refinement. It’s able to combine very open sound and very airy instrument spatial presentation. It gives plenty of space around speakers.

Mid-range and treble are reproduced without any hardness or aggressiveness while avoiding to mask any part of the signal. The low end of the spectrum is tense and very articulated. It’s a lot more full-bodied than with the Audioquest Sydney interconnect cable but seems less extended than with some other competitors. Lower frequencies are clearly present however, but they are very contained and don’t go off their part of the spectrum.

It’s recommended to use the Yukon XLR with systems having a minimum of rigour in the low end of the spectrum.

Therefore, it’s not a “universal” cable, yet it has numerous assets for a cable sold at this price.