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====Digital====
* <u>USB</u> - the standard USB cable familiar to computers. For pro audio purposes, these are typically the larger type, with an "A" connector (slim and rectangular) on one end and a "B" connector (square) on the other end. These make them dummy-proof. For example, many modelers and sufficiently complex digital guitar gear can be connected to a computer as well as also have peripherals like a USB flash drive or keyboard. The device would be forced to accept the "B" connector for the computer, while the "A" ports on the device would connect to peripherals.
** <u>USB 3</u> - while USB 1 and 2 use the same cables and ports, USB 3 introduces extra signal lines. While USB 3 is backwards compatible with older USB specs (including the physical connections), you must use USB 3-specific cables to take advantage of the largest speed benefits it provides. For the standard size A and B jacks, a look inside the connector should be colored blue and have an additional 5 lines. For smaller connectors, such as micro-USB, the cables and jacks have a larger profile - basically an additional connector in parallel to the USB 1/2 variant. You can still use the older cables, but they only use about half of the jack.
* <u>Firewire</u> - this is a somewhat rare connection type that operates similarly to USB but faster (although USB 3 may exceed some Firewire connections). Some outboard audio interfaces use Firewire as its main method of communicating with the computer. It uses its own type of connector.
* <u>S/PDIF</u> - This is a digital connection to transfer audio. Many digital devices feature this connection to deliver audio from the device to an audio interface on a PC/DAW. Although the connector is identical to a common RCA cable for transporting analog audio and video, the cables themselves tend to have a different resistance. While you can often get a standard RCA cable to work, you may find it intermittently stops working - I recommend you use dedicated S/PDIF cables. (S/PDIF is actually a consumer-grade format that uses the same protocol as AES/EBU below.) S/PDIF uses 2 wires for its connection and may be prone to electrical interference.