Cranborne Audio C.A.S.T. Intro Bundle

What’s In The Box

N8 - C.A.S.T. Distribution Hub and Audio Over Cat 5 System
19” Rackmount Kit for N8
N22H - Reference-Grade Headphone Amplifier, Cat 5 Snake, and C.A.S.T. Breakout Box
N22H 9v power supply
N22 - Cat 5 Snake and C.A.S.T. Breakout Box
2x 10m Cat 6e Cable with custom Cranborne Audio Velcro cable ties

Key Features

Bundle with 4 Cranborne Audio products and 2x 10m C.A.S.T cables for instant C.A.S.T. connectivity

N8 - C.A.S.T. Distribution Hub and Audio Over Cat 5 System
19” Rackmount Kit for N8
N22H - Reference-Grade Headphone Amplifier, Cat 5 Snake, and C.A.S.T. Breakout Box
N22H 9v power supply
N22 - Cat 5 Snake and C.A.S.T. Breakout Box
2x 10m Cat 6e Cable with custom Cranborne Audio Velcro cable ties
Cranborne Audio Sticker

Connectivity for up to 4 C.A.S.T. breakout boxes with 2 breakout boxes included in the bundle
Completely passive operation*
Fully-balanced, high-quality audio paths
8 Inputs and 8 outputs over DB25 (Tascam wiring) (sold separately)
C.A.S.T. IN A, B, C, and D ports on RH45 with 2 dedicated Input and output paths each
Compatible with any shielded Cat 5e/Cat 6/Cat 7 cable with distances up to 100m/330ft
Improved crosstalk performance with high-performance Cat 6 and Cat 7 (recommended)
Ruggedised metal enclosure
Compatible with all Cranborne Audio C.A.S.T.-enabled devices including N22, N22H, Camden EC1, and Camden EC2
Fully-support of 48v phantom power
N8 Rack-mountable with supplied Half Rack Kit

*N22H Needs power supply for headphone amplifier operation (included)

N8 Quick Start Guide [PDF]

N22H Quick Start Guide [PDF]

Audio Over Cat 5 Made Easy

A single Cat 5 cable using C.A.S.T. can replace 4 XLR cables - providing better cable management, consistent sound quality, and easier deployment during mobile recording.

Using the C.A.S.T. Intro Bundle, you can use standard network cables to distribute IO around your studio with plug-and-play simplicity.

Everything You Need To Get Started

Featuring a central connectivity hub in the form of N8 as well as the N22 and N22H breakout boxes, the C.A.S.T. Intro Bundle is an entry-level into the world of C.A.S.T. and ships with two 10m Cat 6 cables and other accessories to get you started.

N8 is an advanced audio distribution hub that uses Cranborne Audio’s C.A.S.T. system to transform network cable (Cat 5e, Cat 6, or Cat 7) into 4-channel analogue snakes and breakout boxes that can be routed around the studio or stage.

Set N8 in your control room and patch directly to the IO of your audio interface via DB25. N8 then converts analogue IO from the audio interface into 4 discrete C.A.S.T. connections that can be distributed to C.A.S.T. breakout boxes such as N22 and N22H in your studio or on the stage.

In a real-world example, a vocal booth created with XLRs, would require 2 XLR cables for microphones, 2 more XLR cables for a stereo monitor mix for the singer, and a headphone amp with power. And after that, unless you're handy with a soldering iron, you'll be left with trailing XLRs and no discrete box to patch to.

N8 and C.A.S.T. replaces all of that complexity with one networking cable and neat, compact breakout boxes over distances up to 100m (330ft).

Do you think Cat 5 is for networking only and shouldn't be used for analogue audio? Well, networking cable is actually perfectly suited for analogue audio - here's why!

Networking cable isn't only designed for networking, it's still an analogue cable that transports signals and voltage along a copper line - just like an audio cable.
Cat 5 is manufactured to a rigorous high-standard to reliably transmit data across buildings (which is very important to make the world go round!) whereas XLR cables come in varying quality and aren't designed to perform to a specific technical standard.
Network cables transfer huge amounts of data at very high bandwidths (1000mHz on Cat 7.... which is 1,000,000,000kHz) so comparatively speaking, transporting audio which is 20Hz to 20kHz is pretty easy and can be done with minimal crosstalk and without signal degradation.
One Cat 5 cable can also be used to transport up to 4 channels of fully-balanced analogue audio. It does this in the same was as analogue multicore as there are 4 twisted pairs of cables each with their own shield - they just happen to be packaged into a single cable.
Finally, as networking cable is ordered by the trillions, it's music more affordable than XLR cable which comparatively, is manufactured in much lower quantities. That means a 10m Cat 7 cable (which transports 4 channels of audio) can be bought at any retailer for the fraction of a price of a single XLR cable.