We experimentally examine the ripple and its spectra in the dc output of a symmetrical Cockcroft–Walton (CW) cascade rectifier circuit. Results show that the ripple due to the load consists of even harmonics and the ripple due to the circuit asymmetry consists of odd harmonics. In the latter, the ripple caused by the asymmetry of circuit elements cannot be compensated for completely through the asymmetry of the input voltage because of nonlinearity of a CW circuit. Approximately, the residual ripple is inversely proportional to the load resistance. ©1994 American Institute of Physics.