CAT6 would not last on stage for very long, even the robust heavy cable and connectors used on stage need to be regularly repaired and replaced. The expense for most of the stuff used on stage is in making it durable enough to have a decent lifespan. Stage life is very hard on gear.
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Agreed: CAT6 ruggedized to the required degree would cost the same.
Then you would need POE to power the ADC and DSP at the stage end, which would also need to deal with microphone interfaces which have remained compatible since 1950 -- so there's 73 and counting years of working equipment that people already have.
You can get nearly all the benefit at the cabinet end of the cable runs.
> CAT6 would not last on stage for very long, even the robust heavy cable and connectors used on stage need to be regularly repaired and replaced.
The complexity of digital solutions doesn't help either. A huge amount of maintenance in current systems can be done with just a can of contact cleaner, an ohmmeter and a soldering iron. I can't imagine anyone wants to add problems with configuration, addressing, EMI etc.