SoundCraft Spirit Live 4 User Manual

User Guide

Contents

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Basic Principles of PA Mixing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Connections and Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Fault Finding Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Getting to know your console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Input Channel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Stereo Sections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Group Sections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Master Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Using your SPIRIT LIVE 4 Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Initial Set Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Public Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Care of your mixer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Selectable Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Front Panel Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . fold out rear cover

Block Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . inside rear cover

Page 1

IN TRO DUC TIO N

Congra tulations on you r pu rchase of a SPIRIT LIVE 4 m ixer.
Owning a Soundcraft console brings you the expertise and
support of one of the industry’s leading manufacturers and
th e r esults of over 20 years exp er ien ce su pp or tin g some of the
biggest names in the busin ess.

Designed by engineers who understand the individual needs
of musicians, SPIRIT LIVE 4 has been built to the highest
standard s u sing quality Jap anese com pon ents and emp loyin g
automated assembly techniques beyond the reach of most
man ufacturers of compact mixers.

A rugged steel chassis is combined with moulded side trims
to give protection and distinctive appearance. Custom
moulded controls, designed for the best ‘feel’ and visual
clarity complement the styling, resulting in a truly
p rofes s io n al pro duct which is ide a l for bo t h to ur ing a nd fixed
PA installations.

SPIRIT LIVE 4 is a v a ila bl e in 12, 16, 24 a n d 32 ch a n n e l fr ame
sizes, and the 12 and 16 channel sizes may be extended by
adding an 8 channel Expander. The Expander can be attached
quickly and securely to the console, requiring only a
screwdriver to complete the installation.

SPIRIT LIVE 4 incorporates circuit technology identical to
that used on some of the most sophisticated Soundcraft
consoles. The inpu t chan nels are able to accept a w ide range
of Microphone and Line level signals from separate input
sockets. Every chan nel featu res wid e range gain control and
Line input pad, 3-band Equalisation with swept Mid and LF
r an g e, p lu s a Hi-Pa ss Filte r, 5 A u xil iar y Sen d s , PFL(P re Fa d e
Listen), Peak LED, Panning to a Stereo Bus and routing in
pairs to four Output Groups. Each channel has a separate
Direct Output and is controlled by a high-quality long throw
fader.

All frame sizes are provided as standard with dedicated
stereo inp uts, arran ged in pairs. On e pair is includ ed on the
12 channel frame and two pairs on all other frame sizes. Each
st er e o inp ut in clude s a 2-ba nd EQ a n d a s in g le a uxilia r y se n d
control with switching which allows prefade or postfade
sourcing with access to three of the five A uxiliary b usses. The
stereo chan nel signal m ay be rou ted to either th e Mix outp ut
or t o Gro ups 1 & 2 (upper) or Groups 3 & 4 (lower).

Page 2

The four Outpu t Groups provid e submixin g to the Mix L/ R
outputs or may feed external equipment directly. Each
incorporates stereo panning and PFL m onitoring or bargraph
m eterin g and inclu d es an external Retu rn inp u t for effects or
submixing from external sources.

The Master section p r ovides m ast er level cont rol for th e Left,
Right, Mono and Auxiliary Send busses, with separate AFL
monitoring on each Auxiliary Send and the Mono output.

The Mix L/ R and Group ou tpu ts all have insert p oints for the
connection of external signal pr ocessing.

Co m p r eh en siv e Ta lkb ack facilitie s a re pr ov id e d , w h ich allo w
an external talkback microphone to be routed to Mix L/ R,
Group s and Auxe s 1 & 2 as r e quired. Six 12-segment , 3-colour
peak reading LED bargraph meters provide clear display of
Mix L/ R, Group and PFL signals. Pressing any PFL or AFL
switch puts the selected signal onto both sides of the
headphones outpu t, and the right bargrap h meter.

SPIRIT Live 4 is d esigned to be as user -friend ly as possible,
but a few minutes spent reading through this manual will
help you become familiar with the product away from the
pressure of a live session, an d allow you to gain full benefit
from the superb p erformance offered by your new mixer.

Above all, remember that your SPIRIT mixer is designed to
extend your creativity. The more you explore the controls
and th e effect they have on th e sound ou tpu t, the more you
will appreciate how you can influence and enhance the final
sound.

BASIC PRINCIPLES OF PA MIXING

There was a time when the P.A. system and the operator
existed only to increase the overall v olum e of the perform ers,
so that they could be heard in a large room or above high
amb ie n t no ise le v els . Th is ju st isn ’t t rue a n y m o r e. Th e so u n d
system an d t he sou nd en gineer h ave becom e an in tegral p art
of the p erform ance, and the artists are heavily d ependent on
the operator’s skill and the quality of the equipment.

The following introduction to the basics of mixing are
inclu d ed for the benefit of those users wh o m ay n ot hav e any
significant familiarity with sound equipment, and who are
baffled by the endless jargon used by engineers and artists
alike.

Page 3

The M ixe r

As one would expect, the main purpose of the mixer is to
combine sounds, but under precise and smooth control. This
is why long-throw faders are essential on any professional
product. The faders provide you with clear and instinctive
control of the fin al sound balance and like an artist playin g an
instrument you should listen to the effect of your fader
movements, not look at your hands.

Your SPIRIT LIVE 4 mixer accepts a wide range of input
signals via a microphone inpu t, for very low level signals, or a
line input, for higher level signals from, for instance, tape
machines, effects processors, etc.

Th e mixer is split into two s e ct io ns. The Inputs r e ce ive, mat ch
an d pr ocess in d ivid ua l sour ce sig nals, an d d istribu te t hem at
precise m ix levels to either a stereo Mix outp ut or to on e of
the Groups. The Master section allow s over all level con tro l
of all outpu ts, and p rovides monitoring of the au d io signal at
many po ints in th e mixer, either o n headphones or meters.

The Equaliser controls are the most flexible and potentially
d est r uctive featu r e of th e mixer. They h ave a sim ilar effect on
the frequency response of the input channel as the tone
controls on a hi-fi system, but w ith much greater precision,
and allow particular characteristics of the inp ut signal to be
emp hasised or red uced. It is very imp ortant that you become
familiar w ith the effect each control has on the sound a n d this
is best achieved by spending t ime listening to the effect of each
control on a well-known track played through the mixer.

The Auxiliary Sends provide a way of routing the input
signals to a nu mber of secon dary outp u ts, for artists fold back,
echo units or additional speaker outp uts.

The Pan contr ol ad justs the position of the input signal w ithin
the stereo m ix, an d can be sw ep t from full left, th rough to fu ll
right. This allows particular artists to retain their correct
spatial position within the mix, and can be valuable for live
effects.

Pre-Fade-Listen(PFL) allows you to monitor the signal at
m an y points in th e mixer. Pressing any PFL switch places the
signal at that particular point onto the headphones and the
right m eter, to check the qu ality of the signal or to pin-point
problems. Using PFL will not affect the signals on the outputs
from the desk.

Page 4

Each in put channel and the th ree main ou tpu ts h a ve a n Insert
‘A’ gauge jack socket, which is a break point in the signal
path. It allows the signal to be taken out of the mixer,
through an externa l piece of equip ment and then back into the
m ixer d ir ectly afte r it s or igin a l exit p o int . The Ins er t p oin t is
norm ally byp assed by the ‘A’ gauge jack socket contacts, and
is only brought into operation when a plug is inserted.
Typical uses would include Effects Processors, Limiters,
additional Equalisers or Delay units. In addition, each
channel has a Direct output which may also be used to feed
external equipment.

The terms PRE and POS T are often used in the context of
Insert s, Equa lisers an d A uxiliary Sends, and describe w hethe r
that facility is placed before (Pre) or after (Post) another
particular section. This is explained further in the detailed
description of facilities.

A mixer is often jud g ed, amon g st other factor s, by the a mount
of Headroom available. This is a measure of the reserve
available to cope with sudden peaks in the input signal,
without distortion caused by Clipping, when the signal
becomes so high that it w ould exceed the p ower supp ly rail
voltages and is as a result limited. This commonly occurs
where gain settings are incorrectly set or where sources are
imp rop er ly matched to th e m ixer in p u t. If th e sour ce sign al is
too high, clipping and d istortion results. If the signal is too
low it becomes masked by the background noise which is
present to some degree in all mixers. The diagram below
illust ra tes this point.

Clipped

Signal

Noise

If the signal level is too high, clipping distortion
may occur.

Signal

If the signal level is too low it may be masked
by the noise.

Noise

Page 5

GETTING STARTED

CONNECTIONS AND
CONNECTORS

2. Hot(+ve)

3. Cold(-ve)

1. Screen

Balanced

Input

Althou gh th is m ay seem a sim p le su bject, faulty connectors and
cabling are the source of most sound system problems.

Correctly-made cables of the proper type, with the right
connectors for the job will ensure peak performance from
your system with minimum noise pick-up. The following
section will help you to connect SPIRIT LIVE 4 correctly.

Two d ifferent typ es of a ud io conn ectors are u sed, 3-pin XLR

1

⁄4" t hree p o le (‘A’ gauge) ja cks. These are used in sever a l

and
configurations as shown in the diagrams below.

2. Hot(+ve)
Link 3

to 1

Unbalanced

1. Screen

Input

Link 3

to 1

1. Screen

2. Hot(+ve)

Unbalanced

Output

Send

Return

Screen

Tip

Ring

Sleeve

Insert Points

3 POLE (stereo) JACK 2 POLE (mono) JACK

Tip

Ring

Sleeve

Line Input

Aux Outputs

FX Returns

Direct Outputs

Hot(+ve)
Cold(-ve)
Screen

Left Signal
Right Signal
Ground

Headphones Unbalanced

Output

(see text)

Signal

Ground

Page 6

Ba la nc e d a nd
Un ba l an ced

All channel inputs are balanced, i.e. there are separate
+ve(hot) and -ve (cold) wires for each signal plus a ground.
The design of the differential input amplifiers is such that
interference picked u p on th ese w ires is can celled ou t. This is
because, since both wires are in close proximity, the same
interference will be picked up on each wire and balanced
input amplifiers will only amplify the difference between
+ve(hot) and -ve(cold ). An y signal on both h ot and cold (i.e.
n ois e) w ill n o t b e a mplified - this is kno w n a s co m mo n m o d e
rejection (CMR). Balanced inp uts should always have both
+ve and -ve connected or if only an unbalanced source, the

-ve pin shorted to ground.
Note: many modern audio/musical instruments have

electronically balanced outputs which should not be
u n ba lanced by sh or ting one wire to ground. Alwa ys use your
inputs balanced w here possible.

The Mix L/ R and Mono outputs, Group and Auxiliary
ou tputs are ground compensated and provide a very effective
way of optimising noise immunity, without the cost and
complexity of balanced outputs. These outputs employ
ground compensation techniques to cancel out the effects of
variation in ground potential between the mixer and other
equipment w hich would otherwise show up as hum. If the
outp ut is driving a device or amp lifier that has an u nbalanced
input, connect the -ve(cold) signal to the ground at the
destination, not at the output of your SPIRIT LIVE 4 conso le.

Pola rity

Grounding and Shielding

You will p robably be fam iliar w ith the concep t of p olarity in
electrical signals and this is of particular importance to
balanced audio signals. Just as a balanced signal is highly
effective at cancelling out unwanted interference, so two
microphones picking up the same signal can cancel out, or
cause serious d egra dation of the signal if one of the cables has
th e +ve an d -ve w ires r ever sed . Th is phase reversal can b e a
real problem when microphones are close together and you
should therefore take care always to connect pins correctly
when wiring audio cables.

For optimum performance it is vital that all signals are
referenced to a solid, noise-free earthing point and that all
signal cables have their screens connected to ground. To
avoid earth ‘loops’, u se balan ced co nnections w her e possible
and ensure that all cable screens and other signal earths are
connected to ground only at their source and not at both ends.

Page 7

UNBALANCED

✗

BALANCED INPUT

✓

Ground loop

through screen

and chassis

+

-

Mixer

+

-

Mixer

Source

Device

Source

Device

GND

+

-

+

-

If th e use of u nbalanced connections is u navoid able, you can
mimimise noise by following these wi ring guidelines:

• On INPUTS, unbalance at the source and use a twin,

screened cable as though it were balanced. (see below)

• On OUTPUTS, connect the signal to the +ve output pin,

and the ground of the output device to -ve. If a twin
screened cable is used, connect the screen only at the mixer
end. (see below)

Source
Device

Mixer

GND

GND

+

INPUT

+

-

OUTPUT

+

-

Mixer

+

GND

Output
Device

Avoid running audio cables or placing audio equipment,
close to th yristor dim mer units or power cables.

N oise im munit y is im pr oved sign ificantly by the u se of low
impedance sources, such as good quality professional
microphones or the outputs from most modern audio
equipment. Avoid cheaper high impedance microphones,
which may suffer fr om in terference over long cable runs, eve n
with well-made cables.

Page 8

Fault Finding Guide

Repairin g a s o und mixing conso le req uir e s s pecia lis t s k ills , b ut
basic Fault Finding is within the scope of any user if a few
basic rules are followed.

• Get to know the Block Diagram of your console (see inside

rear cover)

• Get to know what each component in the system is

supposed to do.

• Learn where to look for common trouble spots.
The Bl o ck Di ag ram (see in sid e rear cover) is a representative

sketch of all the components of the console, showing how
they connect together and how the signal flows through the
system. Once you have become familiar with the various
comp on en t blocks you will find the Block Diagra m q u ite easy
to follow and you w ill have gained a valuable und erstanding
of the internal structure of the console.

Each Component h as a sp ecific fu n ctio n a nd on ly b y g ettin g
to know w h at each p art is supp osed to d o w ill you be able to
tell if th ere is a ge nu ine fau lt! Many ‘fau lts’ a re t he r esu lt o f
incorrect connection or control settings which may have been
overlooked.

Basic Troubleshooting is a process of applying logical
thought to the signal path through the console and tracking
down the problem by elimination.

• Swap input connections to check that the source is really

present. Check both Mic and Line inputs.

• Eliminate sections of the channel by using the insert point

to re-route the signal to other inputs that are known to be
working.

• Route channels to different outputs or to auxiliary sends to

identify problems on the Master section.

• Compare a suspect channel with an adjacent channel

which has been set up identically. Use PFL and AFL to
monitor the signal in each section.

Page 9