BASIC PRINCIPLES OF RECORDING

 

 

 

 

The Mixer

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

 

total control of the final sound at your finger tips and

 

like an artist playing an instrument you should listen to

 

your fader movements, not look at your hands.

 

Your SPIRIT STUDIO mixer accepts a wide range of in-

 

put signals via a microphone input, for very low level

 

signals, or a line input, for higher level signals from, for

 

instance, tape machines, effects processors, etc.

 

The mixer is split into two sections. The Inputs receive,

 

match and process individual source signals, and dis-

 

tributes them at precise mix levels to a choice of

 

outputs. The Master and Group sections allow overall

 

level control of all outputs, and provides monitoring of

 

the audio signal at many points in the mixer, either on

 

headphones or meters.

 

The Equaliser controls are the most flexible and poten-

 

tially destructive feature of the mixer. They have a

 

similar effect on the frequency response of the input

 

channel as the tone controls on a hi-fi system, but with

 

much greater precision, and allow particular charac-

 

teristics of the input signal to be emphasised or

 

reduced. It is very important that you become familiar

 

with the effect each control has on the sound and this

 

is best achieved by spending time 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 number of secondary outputs, for artists

 

foldback, echo units or additional speaker outputs.

 

The Pan control adjusts the position of the input signal

 

within the stereo mix, and can be swept from full left,

 

through to full right. This allows particular artists to re-

 

tain their correct spatial position within the mix,

 

particularly important for stereo recording.

 

Pre-Fade-Listen(PFL) allows you to monitor the signal

 

at many points in the mixer. Pressing any PFL switch

 

places the signal at that particular point onto the control

 

room outputs (or headphones if plugged in) and the

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SoundCraft Audio Mixing Console Model Spirit Studio manual Basic Principles of Recording, Mixer