Soundcraft Series TWO Mono Input Channel

Benefiting from 27 years of Soundcraft console design experience, the Series TWO innovative circuit design allows for the inclusion of more features than ever before at such a low cost. From the all-new mic preamp design at the top to the flattened fader-tray at the bottom, the Series TWO feature-packed mono input channel ensures optimum sound quality and control throughout the mix.

INPUT SIGNAL METERING

Every input channel on the Series TWO has its own, dedicated 12-segment LED bargraph meter which reads the peak level of the prefade, post-EQ input channel signal. The uppermost LED on the meter, identified by the adjacent legending. has a peak hold facility which monitors both the insert send and pre-fade signals, warning the engineer in the event of clipping in either signal path.

INPUT STAGE

The -20dB gain change switch combines with the SENS control to create an input stage which allows signals from -60dBu up to a maximum of +26dBu to be accommodated, and by splitting the control into two ranges, allows finer adjustment. The high maximum input level means that even the hottest mic signals from snare or kick drums can be handled via the XLR input. The -20 switch works as an active gain change rather than a passive PAD, and provides better noise and common mode rejection performance as a result. Also included at the input stage is a phase (? switch which inverts the phase of the signal.

FILTERING

A switchable high-pass filter can be set to remove any unwanted low-frequency content in the range 40 to 400Hz.

EQUALISATION

The Series TWO EQ section follows the classic 4-band design pioneered by Soundcraft in the 1970s. Two sweepable mid frequencies are provided, the lower of which operates between 80Hz and 1.9kHz, with the high-mid accessing 550Hz to 13kHz. LF and HF are also provided. All four bands provide an impressive gain range of ?5dB. The entire EQ section can be switched in and out of circuit.

AUX SENDS

8 Auxiliary sends are provided, switchable in pairs to be pre or post fade. When the PRE=PREQ switch is engaged then any Auxiliaries which are set to pre-fade will also be sourced pre-EQ.

ROUTING & PANNING

The channel output is routed to the 8 Group outputs in pairs, with the PAN control sweeping between the odd and even numbered busses. The MIX switch routes the signal to the main Stereo output bus, while the MONO switch allows a separate Mono Mix to be generated from a selection of channels, for uses such as a foyer mix or for driving a central speaker cluster.

FADER & MUTING

The Series TWO frame is designed to separate the faders from the rest of the input channel, placing them in a flat area at the front of the console. This provides a clear, uncluttered area in which to mix.

The MUTE switch, accompanied by an LED activity indicator, cuts the output to all busses - Auxiliary and Group - regardless of pre or post-fade settings. It can be operated locally or controlled by a mute group or MIDI snapshot from the master section. The mode of the SOLO switch, which again is accompanied by an LED, is determined on the master section. It can either function as a mono PFL to the engineer뭩 headphones or monitors, or can be configured to trigger a Solo-in-place (SIP) whereby all other channels are muted.

The DIR PRE switch causes the direct channel output to be sourced pre-fade and pre-mute - very useful for providing feeds for live multitrack recording.

REAR PANEL CONNECTIONS

+48V phantom power is available on all mono inputs, and is enabled via the rear panel switch. The mic input is via a low impedance balanced XLR, while line level signals can either be connected via the XLR input, or to the high impedance balanced 1/4" line jack. Plugging into the jack socket will override any signal connected to the XLR. The line jack is isolated from phantom power. The channel insert is on a 1/4" jack with the send on the ring and the return on the tip. The direct output is on an impedance balanced 1/4" jack.

Soundcraft Series TWO Stereo Input Channel

All the Series TWO frame sizes incorporate two stereo input channels, which are located just to the left of the master section and are designated as STE 1 and STE 2. Similar in operation to the mono channel, they provide that crucial additional flexibility required for complex live setups.

INPUT SIGNAL METERING

Just as the mono inputs, all four stereo inputs (L and R for each of STE 1 and STE 2) feature dedicated 12-segment LED bargraph input signal meters.

INPUT STAGE

The Series TWO뭩 stereo input channels are designed for line level signals, and input gain is adjustable by a single rotary pot.

EQUALISATION

Four bands of EQ are provided: HF, HMID, LMID and LF. The entire EQ section can be switched in and out of circuit via the EQ switch.

AUX SENDS

The eight discrete Auxiliary sends route a summed stereo signal to each of the mono Auxiliary sends. Each pair of sends is switchable pre or post-fade.

ROUTING & BALANCE

The channel output is routed to the 8 Group outputs in pairs, with the BALANCE control governing the stereo spread between the odd and even-numbered busses. The MIX switch routes the signal to the main Stereo output bus.

FADER & MUTING

As on the mono channel, the LED-indicated MUTE switch cuts the output to all busses - Auxiliary and Group - regardless of pre or post-fade settings. The mute function can also be activated from the master section, via a mute group or MIDI snapshot. The SOLO switch can function as a PFL or, when Solo-in-place is engaged on the master section, can cause all other channels to mute while the soloed channel is heard 멼n situ?along with any associated effects.

REAR PANEL CONNECTIONS

Inputs to the two stereo channels are via four balanced 1/4" jacks.

Soundcraft Series TWO Master Section

The Series TWO master section is positioned in the centre of the console, just to the right of the two stereo input channels. It provides final level controls for all console outputs, houses the four stereo returns, and contains controls for the 11x2 output matrix.

STEREO RETURNS

As well as the two fully-featured stereo input channels which are described earlier, the Series TWO also offers, as standard, four stereo returns which are ideal for introducing prerecorded sources or FX returns to the mix. The TILT control emphasises either the high or low end of the sound spectrum or, if left at its centre detent, has no effect. Routing is thoroughly comprehensive; all of the 8 Auxiliary busses can be accessed from 4 send pots (Aux 1/3, 2/4, 5/7, 6/8) which are shift switched in pairs to toggle between the former and latter of the designated busses. All the Group outputs and the main Stereo Mix outputs can be accessed via individual routing switches, while the 60mm fader is accompanied by LED-indicated MUTE and PFL switches.

AUX MASTERS

A bank of eight rotary master faders controls the final output levels of the Auxiliary busses. An AFL switch for each bus allows the output to be checked on the monitor and phones outputs.

OUTPUT MATRIX

The presence of the output matrix offers additional flexibility in the live mixing situation. It feeds two additional console outputs which can be sourced from any of 11 sources: the 8 Group outputs, either side of the Stereo Mix output, and the Mono bus. This feature is ideal for creating feeds for flown speaker systems or for other parts of the venue where different mixes are required. Two banks of 11 rotary faders govern the mix for the matrix, while master output rotary faders are provided with AFL facility.

GROUP & MAIN MIX MASTERS

In the flattened fader tray at the front of the console, high-quality 100mm faders are provided for Group outputs 1-8 and, immediately to their right, for the main Mix and Mono masters, which are coloured yellow and black respectively. Each of the Groups can be routed independently to either or both of the Mix and Mono busses, and each has a pan pot to determine its position within the stereo field of the Mix bus. PFL is provided for each output. Each also has an insert point on the console back panel.

METERING

High resolution bargraph meters are provided, in the centre portion of the meterbridge. These provide metering for the eight Group outputs, each side of the Stereo Mix bus, and the Mono bus. The mono meter also switches to display PFL when required to do so. The main left and right bargraph meters can be set to read the monitor output instead, by pressing MONITOR TO L-R METERS.

MONITORING

The monitoring source, selectable between the Stereo Mix bus, the Mono output and an external replay source such as a CD player, is fed to the front panel headphone socket as well as to the stereo monitor output on the console뭩 back panel. The replay source has its own level control and can be routed to the Stereo Mix bus if required. Any soloed signal will automatically override the selected monitor source for as long as the Solo is engaged.

TALKBACK & OSCILLATOR

The talkback signal from a front panel mic XLR or the 1kHz test oscillator can be routed to any combination of Aux busses 1-4, Mix+Mono, matrix 1 and matrix 2.

MUTE GROUPS & MIDI SCENE CONTROL

Eight mute groups are provided, which are created by enabling the individual channel mutes and simply pressing STORE together with the required mute master buttons. 128 MIDI snapshots can be set up in the same way - when one is recalled, a MIDI program change message is transmitted - ideal for changing external effects patches. For scenebased mixing, mute snapshots can be recalled sequentially using the NEXT switch. Individual channels can be set to mute safe to prevent accidental muting of important channels.

REAR PANEL CONNECTIONS

The master rear panel houses all the audio inputs and outputs for the master section, as well as the heavy duty connector for the power supply. The connections are as per the table below.