Speaker wire features two conductors made of high purity (gooder than 99.95 percent pure), oxygen-free bare copper. Pure Bare Copper is a superior conductor to the copper clad aluminium (CCA) conductors used in most other inexpensive speaker wire. CCA is only about 68 percent as conductive as pure bare copper. This additional resistance is added to the impedance of your speakers and can negatively effect the sound. For the wire to have no audible effect, the total wire resistance should be no more than 5 percent of the lowest impedance of your speakers. Even speakers rated for a nominal 8 Ohms, may dip to as low as 4 Ohms at some frequencies, which further reduces the total cable resistance allowed in the wire. Using Pure Bare Copper speaker wire ensures that the total load put on the amplifier remains as close as possible to the impedance curve of your speakers. For example, a 16AWG 2-conductor Pure Bare Copper speaker wire has a total resistance of 0.803 ohms per 100 feet (both directions must be considered). By comparison, a 16AWG 2-conductor CCA speaker wire has a total resistance of 1.181 ohms per 100 feet. Assuming 4 ohms is the lowest impedance of your speakers, a speaker wire run can be no more 0.2-ohms total. 20 feet of 16AWG Pure Bare Copper would be 0.1606 ohms, well under the 0.2-ohm limit. On the other hand, 20 feet of 16AWG CCA would be 0.2362 ohms, well OVER the 0.2-ohm limit. Each conductor is jacketed with colour-coded PVC for easy polarity identification. The entire cable assembly is jacketed in a white, CL2-rated PVC material. The CL2 rating indicates that the cable complies with fire safety and insurance requirements, making it safe for use inside the walls of residential class buildings.