AES3 digital audio interface
AES/EBU digital audio interfaces

In the early 1980s, digitization entered recording studios on an experimental basis. An interface for exchanging digital audio signals between equipment emerged. Known as SDIF-2 (Sound Description Interchange Format), this interface was proposed by Sony and adopted by several manufacturers. It uses three coaxial cables to transmit the left channel, the right channel and a synchronization clock (word clock, i.e. one clock cycle per word transmitted). This interface remains inadequate on three counts: users wanted a single cable for this transmission; the range is limited to a few meters, whereas users wanted at least a hundred meters; and finally, no digital data or description is associated with the signal.

In response to these limitations, AES prepared the AES3 standard, the first version of which dates back to 1985 (the first draft was published the previous year)....