<s>
A	O
stage	B-Protocol
box	I-Protocol
is	O
an	O
interface	O
device	O
used	O
in	O
sound	O
reinforcement	O
and	O
recording	O
studios	O
to	O
connect	O
equipment	O
to	O
a	O
mixing	O
console	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
typically	O
consist	O
of	O
a	O
rugged	O
metal	O
enclosure	O
,	O
with	O
XLR	B-Device
connectors	I-Device
on	O
the	O
front	O
whose	O
signals	O
are	O
routed	O
through	O
a	O
snake	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
traditional	O
sense	O
,	O
a	O
stage	B-Protocol
box	I-Protocol
is	O
effectively	O
a	O
simple	O
termination	O
box	O
at	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
an	O
analog	O
multicore	O
cable	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
many	O
modern	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
convert	O
between	O
analog	O
and	O
digital	O
,	O
using	O
a	O
single	O
twisted	O
pair	O
cable	O
instead	O
of	O
an	O
analog	O
multicore	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
typically	O
house	O
1632	O
female	O
XLR	B-Device
connectors	I-Device
and	O
48	O
male	O
connectors	O
,	O
but	O
occasionally	O
phone	B-Device
connectors	I-Device
are	O
used	O
instead	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
are	O
rack-mountable	B-Application
which	O
allows	O
them	O
to	O
be	O
mounted	O
in	O
either	O
a	O
road	O
case	O
or	O
equipment	B-Application
rack	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Smaller	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
use	O
compact	O
metal	O
cases	O
which	O
may	O
sit	O
on	O
a	O
stage	O
inconspicuously	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Labels	O
on	O
the	O
stage	B-Protocol
box	I-Protocol
make	O
it	O
easier	O
to	O
identify	O
cables	O
for	O
troubleshooting	O
and	O
setup	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
,	O
especially	O
digital	O
ones	O
,	O
include	O
microphone	O
preamps	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
feature	O
of	O
some	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
is	O
integrated	O
DI	O
interfaces	O
for	O
direct	O
connection	O
of	O
instruments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
many	O
modern	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
contain	O
an	O
array	O
of	O
DACs	O
and	O
ADCs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Digital	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
are	O
typically	O
easier	O
to	O
set	O
up	O
and	O
more	O
reliable	O
than	O
their	O
analog	O
counterparts	O
,	O
and	O
their	O
cables	O
are	O
much	O
more	O
compact	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
digital	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
are	O
designed	O
for	O
use	O
with	O
analog	O
mixers	O
,	O
and	O
this	O
type	O
include	O
a	O
corresponding	O
converter	O
box	O
which	O
is	O
located	O
at	O
the	O
mixing	O
console	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Others	O
are	O
intended	O
for	O
use	O
with	O
a	O
digital	O
mixer	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
cable	O
can	O
be	O
connected	O
directly	O
from	O
the	O
stage	B-Protocol
box	I-Protocol
to	O
the	O
mixer	O
,	O
or	O
through	O
an	O
Ethernet	B-Protocol
switch	I-Protocol
in	O
some	O
cases	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
of	O
the	O
main	O
disadvantages	O
of	O
digital	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
,	O
and	O
digital	O
audio	O
systems	O
in	O
general	O
,	O
is	O
their	O
latency	O
which	O
is	O
introduced	O
in	O
the	O
analog-to-digital	O
and	O
digital-to-analog	O
conversion	O
processes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
was	O
originally	O
a	O
major	O
drawback	O
of	O
digital	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
,	O
but	O
recent	O
systems	O
have	O
lowered	O
latency	O
to	O
insignificant	O
levelstypically	O
23	O
ms.	O
</s>
<s>
Common	O
cables	O
used	O
for	O
digital	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
are	O
Cat	B-Protocol
5e	I-Protocol
,	O
Cat	B-Protocol
6	I-Protocol
,	O
Cat	B-Protocol
7	I-Protocol
,	O
and	O
fiber	O
optic	O
cable	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
EtherCON	B-Protocol
locking	O
connector	O
is	O
commonly	O
used	O
for	O
twisted	O
pair	O
cables	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
manufacturers	O
use	O
proprietary	O
standards	O
for	O
the	O
transmission	O
of	O
digital	O
audio	O
,	O
for	O
example	O
Behringer	O
's	O
ULTRANET	O
,	O
Digigram	O
's	O
EtherSound	B-Protocol
or	O
Allen	O
&	O
Heath	O
's	O
dSNAKE	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
live	O
setting	O
,	O
all	O
of	O
the	O
microphones	O
and	O
musical	O
instruments	O
on	O
stage	O
connect	O
to	O
the	O
stage	B-Protocol
box	I-Protocol
,	O
which	O
then	O
connects	O
to	O
the	O
mixing	O
console	O
with	O
a	O
single	O
cable	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
are	O
sometimes	O
also	O
used	O
to	O
connect	O
speakers	O
to	O
a	O
mixereither	O
foldbacks	O
or	O
front-of-house	O
speakers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
sound	O
engineers	O
connect	O
wireless	O
microphone	O
receivers	O
to	O
the	O
stage	B-Protocol
box	I-Protocol
and	O
position	O
them	O
in	O
the	O
same	O
rack	O
next	O
to	O
the	O
stage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
recording	O
studios	O
,	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
are	O
used	O
to	O
connect	O
the	O
control	O
room	O
and	O
the	O
live	O
room	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
are	O
commonly	O
rack-mounted	B-Application
or	O
mounted	O
on	O
walls	O
in	O
studios	O
,	O
in	O
contrast	O
to	O
the	O
portable	O
method	O
of	O
installation	O
used	O
for	O
live	O
sound	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Smaller	O
stage	B-Protocol
boxes	I-Protocol
(	O
typically	O
with	O
2	O
or	O
4	O
connectors	O
)	O
with	O
shorter	O
multicore	O
cables	O
are	O
called	O
drop	O
boxes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
are	O
typically	O
used	O
to	O
carry	O
microphone	O
signals	O
from	O
one	O
side	O
of	O
the	O
stage	O
to	O
the	O
other	O
,	O
or	O
as	O
an	O
extension	O
cable	O
for	O
a	O
few	O
channels	O
on	O
a	O
larger	O
stage	B-Protocol
box	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
