SoundCraft Series 1/1S "Story...."

  • Thread starter Thread starter samth3mancgp
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This one has already been modded (or custom ordered I'm not sure) to have line inputs where the inserts should be and modded to have phantom power. These direct outputs are essential for me to get the sound of the pre and EQ for multi-tracking.

It's cool to own a piece of history, but i just wanted a quality mixer for cheap. I'm also learning alot by modding it. It's my own personal piece of history I guess. It's also nice to know that I paid $5 per channel for this thing :cool: while some dude on eBay paid about $106 per channel (and only got 2 pres not all 16).

I'm almost done with the first test channel I just have to put the ground on all the parts of the 3 jacks.
 
I figured out why the EQ would not come through on the DI out. I soldered the hot wire for the output to where the hot input signal was at the monitor send pot. I just confirmed that the monitor send is pre EQ and I can see on the board because there was a wire soldered right after the input that went down the the monitor send. I now have it wired just before the signal goes to the fader. I have the EQ now. If I want to just get the flat sound from the preamp will setting the EQ level at 0 be enough for a "flat signal"??

I'm AB-ing music right now from itunes and from the ipod (except that the ipod is playing mono.) I hear a difference for sure. I wonder if this is the preamp color or that the signal is not flat?
 
The EQ, even with all it's settings at 0 is still going to add some small degree of coloration to the signal because the sound is always passing through its circuitry. If you truly want to bypass it completely, you could always wire in an SPDT switch to have an EQ bypass to your direct out jack with one side of the switch from the pre-EQ position and the other from the post EQ position and the third center wire contact feeding the direct out jack...if you get what I'm saying?

About your a/b test, I'm not really sure what you're comparing? Can you explain that in a little more detail?

Cheers! :)
 
I see exactly what you are saying :). I could just stick the hot signal for Pre-EQ side of the switch. where I had it originally before the monitor send. Correct me if i'm wrong but the switch would have 3 solder points. the middle would be the shared ground, and one side would be the hot signal for the pre-EQ and the other would be the hot signal for post EQ.

I guess I would have to buy a simple 2 way switch for each channel. If I get the 25 1/4" jacks for $20 on eBay and I find another good auction for the switches I could get it to be pre and post EQ for probably under $50.

However, would the coloration from the post EQ setup have enough effect on the signal when it is set as flat to make it not "flat"? I kind of like the colored sound as long as it is still flat if that makes sense? I don't want to do the Mod f it is not going to make a whole lot of difference.

The one channel that I did yesterday didn't take very long at all to do. cutting the notch in the cards will be the most difficult part probably. It's only a few wires soldered to the PC board. I wonder If there would be any other mods that might be worth while? It's going to make this mixer much more versatile I'llbe using it Alot! I feel kind of bad cutting the boards but It's the only way the jacks are going to fit :( I need to measure where the holes for the jacks need to be drilled really accuratley so the jacks dont look like an addition and they line up with the line in jacks.

The AB setup that I did was an ipod plugged into the modded channel. I compared it to the song playing right out of itunes.
 
I don't want to do the Mod f it is not going to make a whole lot of difference.
Click to expand...
As I stated at the beginning of my previous post, it is going to be a subtle difference, not a night and day one unless the circuitry of the EQ stage when set to all its zero positions is still abnormally coloring the sound. One could "hope" that this is not the case or you could take a more scientific approach and mod one channel with the switch and see for yourself if there's an audible difference. I can offer you opinion, which I have done but, I can not offer you a fact. That, will require effort on your part to really see.

One other note about your interpretation of my switch wiring suggestion. The center pole connection of the switch is not the ground, it is the signal carrier to the direct out jack. The other thing to keep in mind when running these wires is that if they are of any appreciable length, those will need to be shielded wire runs so that no hum or RF is picked up. I am not sure where the length of such a wire determines where the wire must be a shielded one and where it does not have to be. You will need to research that on your own to find out for sure. We can also hope that someone here who knows about those sorts of things will chime in. One other thought on that subject. If the wires do need to shielded, then this will mean the switch will now have to be a DPDT switch to accommodate the additional grounding connections.

You may well be saying to yourself at this point that perhaps an EQ bypass switch is not that critical to have. Odds are, that is true.

Cheers! :)
 
So I've been wondering.. What are these transformer pres generally used for in recording? I know lots of the API pres like the 512 are used for their coloration to a snare drum (with a 57) and on guitar stuff for rock. I have done an AB of recording snare using the Soundcraft Pre (going to the line input on the project mix and using the mic pre on the project mix.

I think the Neve preamps also use transformers, but a specific kind for their sound? They seem to be used all around as opposed to the API stuff that seems more commonly used on certain instruments because of what it does to it.

What are the situations that it would be better for either type of pre. I seemed to like the sound (after processing) of the snare done with the soundcraft pres. It had much more liveliness to it than the project mix pres which were every dry, but pristine and "crystal clear". I also have preamps from my Presonus Digimax box that are the "XMAX Class A" stuff which are also very clean and clear, as well as the ones on The Peavey SRC console, and the old Behringer Eurorack mixer. The SRC ones are fairly clear, and the Behringer ones sound alright, but "cheap". (surprise surprise haha).

The Soundcraft has the most coloration of them all though. I'm really looking forward to using this board for some recordings and I want to see if I can get some feedback as to what would be the best approach for what to run through it. :)
 
Greetings!
i'm refreshing this old post...
i'm the owner of a series one from 1976...i like this board for her sound and the simplicity of the circuitry, very easy to mod! i did some directs out post faders/ pre-pan on 8 channels, and two direct out post pan on the echo channel, wired the pfl to echo 1 in, so the pfl is now acting like a buss with 2 outputs, the pan pot of the echo channel controls the amount of signal going to the two D-outs...
What about yours samth3mancgp? do you still have this board? have you made some other mods on it? like changing the fixed freqs of the eq or something else?
Peace.
Manu.
 
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