SoundCraft Si3 User Manual
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SoundCraft Si3 User Manual

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Soundcraft® Si3

User Guide

Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide
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Summary of Contents for SoundCraft Si3

  • Page 1: User Guide

    Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page i...
  • Page 2 Soundcraft is a trading division of Harman International Industries Ltd. Information in this manual is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of the vendor. Soundcraft shall not be liable for any loss or damage whatsoever arising from the use of information or any error contained in this manual.

  • Page 3: Table Of Contents

    CHANNEL FUNCTION BUTTONS .................... 3 - 10 INTERROGATE MODE ........................... 3 - 10 PANNING & WIDTH CONTROL....................3 - 11 Chann ................................ 3 - 11 Global Mode ............................... 3 - 11 Selecting The Width Control ........................3 - 11 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page iii...
  • Page 4 Monitor Outputs ............................5 - 5 Headphones Outputs ............................5 - 5 Source Select ...............................5 - 5 Signal Routing .............................. 5 - 5 Delay ................................5 - 5 Monitor Dimming ............................5 - 5 Mono Check ..............................5 - 5 Page iv Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...
  • Page 5 2-TRACK INPUT ........................8 - 4 LEXICON™ FX RETURNS ......................8 - 5 OUTPUT BAY (MASTER & MATRIX) ..................8 - 6 OUTPUT BAY (AUX/GROUP) ....................8 - 7 MONITOR ..........................8 - 8 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page v...
  • Page 6 Page vi Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 7: Installation

    INSTALLATION For your own safety and to avoid invalidation of the warranty please read this section carefully. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 1 - 1...

  • Page 8: Important Safety Instructions

    Note: It is recommended that all maintenance and service on the product should be carried out by Soundcraft or its authorised agents. Soundcraft cannot accept any liability whatsoever for any loss or damage caused by service, maintenance or repair by unauthorised personnel.
  • Page 9 This Class A digital apparatus meets the requirements of the Canadian Interference-Causing Equipment Regulations. Cet appareil numérique de la Classe A respecte toutes les exigences du Règlement sur le matériel brouilleur du Canada. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 1 - 3...

  • Page 10: Safety Symbol Guide

    NOTES Contain important information and useful tips on the operation of your equipment. HEADPHONES SAFETY WARNING Contain important information and useful tips on headphone outputs and monitoring levels. Page 1 - 4 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 11: Installation

    MAINS INSTALLATION General Wiring Procedures To take full advantage of the excellent signal to noise ratio and low distortion of Soundcraft consoles, care must be taken to ensure that incorrect installation and wiring does not degrade the performance of the desk.
  • Page 12 0.01 mF capacitor. This will present a short circuit at RF frequencies, thus lowering the effective shield impedance to ground. However, at low audio frequencies the reactance of the capacitor will be sufficiently high not to cause an earth loop problem. Page 1 - 6 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 13: Working Safely With Sound

    Most importantly - don’t be afraid to experiment to find out how each parameter affects the sound - this will extend your creativity and help you to get the best results. Recommended headphone impedance is 50-600 ohms. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 1 - 7...

  • Page 14: Audio Connector Pinouts

    AUDIO CONNECTOR PINOUTS Page 1 - 8 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 15: Warranty

    Soundcraft. Any Equipment or component returned will be at the risk of the End User whilst in transit (both to and from the Dealer or Soundcraft) and postage must be prepaid. This warranty shall only be available if: a) the Equipment has been properly installed in accordance with instructions contained in Soundcraft's manual;...
  • Page 16 Page 1 - 10 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 17: Console Overview

    SUMMARY OF SWITCH ACTIONS State Action Result Short press Start console Long press, >5s Start console in loader mode 2 short presses Restart, maintaining audio Long press, > 1.5s Shutdown including audio Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 2 - 1...

  • Page 18: Features

    56 encoders · Central touch screen · 4 Lexicon effects processors · 4 Option cards slots supporting 64 inputs and 64 outputs (digital) · Flader Glow™ · Full metering of all output busses Page 2 - 2 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 19: Input Faders

    The following assignments can be made. Selected Layer Fader 1-16 Fader 17-32 Inputs 1-16 Inputs 17-32 Inputs 33-48 Inputs 49-64 Inputs 1-16 Inputs 17-32 Inputs 33-48 Inputs 49-56, Stereo Line Inputs 1-4, Lexicon FX Returns 1-4 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 2 - 3...

  • Page 20: Output Faders

    This button selects the output faders to be master level controls for Matrix Outputs 1-8 and the Left, Right and Centre busses. This button selects the output faders to be master level controls for the VCA groups 1-12. Page 2 - 4 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 21: Monitoring

    MONITORING The Monitor System on the Si3 is more sophisticated than would usually be found on an equivalent analogue desk, with features that suit many applications – Control Room, LR, LCR, Headphones, FOH and Stage monitors. Features Three Monitor Speaker Outputs.

  • Page 22: Rear Connector Panel

    MIDI IN OUT & THRU connectors (each a 5-pin DIN connector), HiQnet™ connector (XLR-housed EtherCon). Each channel-section rearcon module has the following connectors: 16 Mic/Line Input connectors and 8 Bus Output connectors, all on XLRs. Page 2 - 6 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 23: Channel And Bus Names

    The default matrix output names tell the user which output connector is patched to each matrix output bus. The names are in the format MXnn, where nn is the bus number 01 to 24. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 2 - 7...

  • Page 24: Touchscreen

    To the left of the Touchscreen are two illuminated short cut buttons which navigate to either the CUE LIST or the main MENU. To the right of the Touchscreen is a rotary encoder – the ADJUST knob, and two illuminated navigation buttons, BACK and APPLY. Page 2 - 8 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 25: Metering

    Signal level metering for all output buses is displayed on the 12-segment bar graph meters located at the top of the console. There is dedicated metering for the following: Left, Right and Centre buses Buses 1-24 Matrix Outputs 1-8 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 2 - 9...
  • Page 26 Page 2 - 10 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 27: Inputs

    BUS 13-24 GATE IN COMP IN EQ IN INSERT IN SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO INPUT INPUT FADERS FADERS SELECT SELECT Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 3 - 1...

  • Page 28: Input Fader Select Buttons (Layers)

    Inputs 1-16 Inputs 17-32 Inputs 33-48 Inputs 49-64 Inputs 1-16 Inputs 17-32 Inputs 33-48 Inputs 49-56, Stereo Line Inputs 1-4 & Stereo Lexicon FX Returns 1-4 SOLO INPUT INPUT FADERS FADERS SELECT SELECT Page 3 - 2 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 29: Channel Fader

    When SIP mode is selected (see page 6-8), activating a SOLO button will create a destructive Solo where all other channel contributions to the Main Mix outputs will be muted. The SOLO button will illuminate Red when in SIP Solo mode. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 3 - 3...

  • Page 30: Select Button

    This collective function is called the Virtual Channel Strip (VCS). This mode is activated when an Input Channel’s SEL button is pressed. Page 3 - 4 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 31: Channel Mode (Vcs)

    The highlighted controls in the analogue equivalent above represent what will be displayed on the VCS, which is displayed to the right of it, the VCS has been rotated through 90° to make the comparison more complete. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 3 - 5...
  • Page 32 Note that Group sends are always post-fade. Note: when the AUX PRE button is selected a bus cannot be switched on or off by pressing the encoder. Note: buses can be configured as Auxes or as Groups, see page 4-16. Page 3 - 6 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 33: Global Mode

    In this mode the channel encoders are used to emulate the controls as found in the horizontal plane of a traditional analogue console, e.g. the row of PAN controls is shown highlighted in the picture below of a typical analogue mixer. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 3 - 7...
  • Page 34 If the feed to an Aux bus is off, pressing and holding the encoder switches the feed on and sets the level to unity (0dB). If the feed is on, pressing and holding the encoder switches the feed off and sets the level to minus infinity. Page 3 - 8 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...
  • Page 35 The BUS 1-8, BUS 9-16 and BUS 17-24 menus wrap around to each other as shown. This allows for fast access to a specific bus number. Note: The Global Scroll buttons are only available for use when they are illuminated. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 3 - 9...

  • Page 36: Channel Function Buttons

    In this mode the Input Channel SEL buttons will illuminate to show which channels have the selected function active (e.g. Phantom Power). Additional SEL buttons may be pressed at this time to toggle the function in question. Release the held Channel Function button to exit this mode. Page 3 - 10 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 37: Panning & Width Control

    The Input Channels’ Faders are used to control contributions from their associated Input Channels to the selected Output bus. The input channels’ FaderGlow colours will show the colour of the selected output bus. Note: pressing an Input Fader SEL button will place that channel onto the VCS. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 3 - 11...

  • Page 38: Linking Mono Inputs

    These Channels each take their input from one of the four inbuilt LEXICON FX modules. Note that the parameter controls for the Lexicon FX modules are located in the master section: press the LEXICONS button in the UPPER ROW group to access the controls. Page 3 - 12 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 39: Outputs

    OUTPUTS OUTPUT BAY OVERVIEW POWER POWER BUS TO BUS TO MATRIX MATRIX SETUP SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO SOLO 1-12 13-24 MTX/ Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 4 - 1...

  • Page 40: Mute All Outputs Button

    VCA group is muted and the ON button illuminates Red. When the VCA group master is muted, the ON buttons on all channel faders assigned to the VCA group will also illuminate Red. Page 4 - 2 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 41: Solo Button

    See pages 4-3 to 4-7 for more information. Creating VCA groups or MUTE groups See pages 4-14 to 4-15 for more information. Creating Auxiliary or Effect mixes. See pages 4-16 for more information. SOLO Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 4 - 3...

  • Page 42: Output Bay Displays & Encoders

    In addition to displaying output bus data, the output bay can also display input channel data provided that an appropriate selection from the UPPER ROW or LOWER ROW buttons has been made. BUS TO BUS TO MATRIX MATRIX Page 4 - 4 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 43: Output Status Windows

    Indicates the function of the button below Note that each upper window has a function button below it. Its function, when applicable, is indicated at the bottom of the window. LOWER STATUS WINDOW Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 4 - 5...

  • Page 44: Upper Row Buttons

    CONTROLLERS This is reserved for future use. Note: selecting a button in the Both Rows section will make the selected buttons in the Upper and Lower Row sections extinguish. Page 4 - 6 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...
  • Page 45 FX Type FX Type EXPAND EXPAND EXPAND EXPAND LEXICONS 1 X 12 Mode Parameters depend on the FX type LEX # FX Type Some button functions available, depending on the FX type CLOSE Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 4 - 7...

  • Page 46: Lower Row Buttons

    VCA MASTER button, in which case the INPUT DYN, OUTPUT DYN and MATRIX SENDS buttons will revert to their previous states. Note: Selecting a button in the Both Rows section will make the selected buttons in the Upper and Lower Row sections extinguish. Page 4 - 8 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...
  • Page 47 VCA MASTERS Master 1 Master 2 Master 3 Master 4 Master 5 Master 6 Master 7 Master 8 Master 9 Master 10 Master 11 Master 12 Content Depends On OUTPUT FADERS SELECT buttons Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 4 - 9...

  • Page 48: Both Rows Buttons

    Note: if the bus is configured as a Group, the BUS PRE button has no effect. Note: selecting a button in either the Upper or Lower Row section will extinguish any of the BOTH ROWS buttons. Page 4 - 10 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...
  • Page 49 Level of Level of Level of Bus 18 Bus 20 Bus 13 Bus 14 Bus 15 Bus 16 Bus 17 Bus 19 B21(Lex1) B22(Lex2) B23(Lex3) B24(Lex4) Content Depends On OUTPUT FADERS SELECT buttons Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 4 - 11...

  • Page 50: Channel Scroll Buttons

    Lower Row. The SEL buttons in the associated output fader bay will illuminate and will track the selection made using the CHANNEL SCROLL buttons. Page 4 - 12 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 51: Both Rows Mode

    CHANNEL SCROLL buttons. Note! When in Both Rows mode, the CHANNEL SCROLL buttons next to the upper and lower row of encoders are linked in their operation. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 4 - 13...

  • Page 52: Vca Groups

    Note: an input channel can be assigned to more than one VCA Group if required. Using VCA Groups In order to use the VCA Master faders the VCA button in the OUTPUT FADERS SELECT must be selected. Page 4 - 14 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 53: Mute Groups

    Any Mute Group Master that has inputs assigned to it will be illuminated white (when setup mode has been completed and exited). The Mute Group Master buttons illuminate red when activated. Any associated input channel ON buttons illuminate red when a Mute Group master button is pressed. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 4 - 15...

  • Page 54: Configuring The Output Channels

    7: Press MENU to exit the configuration process. Note: it is possible to set up a combination of aux and group outputs, each with a mixture of mono singles and stereo pairs. Page 4 - 16 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 55: Creating Auxiliary Mixes

    The input channels’ faders or their associated encoders can be used as the send level controls. Press ENCODERS (FOLLOW OUTPUT SEL) or FADERS(FOLLOW OUTPUT SEL) on one or both input Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 4 - 17...

  • Page 56: Creating A Group Mix

    You may also want to control the output levels of the group buses as you proceed with setting up your group mixes. This is done by selecting the 1-12 or 13-24 button, as appropriate, from the OUTPUT FADERS SELECT set. Page 4 - 18 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...
  • Page 57 Use the INPUT FADERS SELECT buttons A-D as required to access all of the input channels. To exit this mode press ENCODERS (FOLLOW OUTPUT SEL) or FADERS (FOLLOW OUTPUT SEL) again to deselect it. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 4 - 19...

  • Page 58: Creating Matrix Mixes

    Note: pressing & holding a bus send when it is off will switch it on and set the send level to 0dB. Note: pressing & holding a bus send while it is on will switch it off and set the send level to minus infinity. Page 4 - 20 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 59: Monitor System

    Switches LR button selections OFF for all channels Switches C button selections OFF for all channels Switches all LCR button selections OFF for all channels Isolate Switches ISOLATE button selections OFF for all channels Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 5 - 1...

  • Page 60: Output Bays

    Resets BUS MASTER levels to default LOWER ROW Buttons Action INPUT DYN Resets DYN parameters for selected channel OUTPUT DYN Resets DYN parameters for selected channel MTX SENDS Resets MTX SEND levels for selected channel Page 5 - 2 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 61: Solo System

    When SIP mode is selected (via the SOLO touchscreen, see Chapter 6), activating a SOLO button will create a destructive Solo where all other channel contributions to the Main Mix outputs will be muted. The SOLO button will illuminate red when in SIP Solo mode. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 5 - 3...

  • Page 62: Output Bay

    When a SOLO button is pressed, the soloed signal is routed to the monitor system, at the same time the monitor system’s other signal sources are reduced to the level set by this parameter. The default is minus infinity. Adjustment is via the Solo page of the touchscreen (see Chapter 6). Page 5 - 4 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 63: Audio Monitors

    This prevents, for example, the engineer’s wedge signal being picked up by the internal talkback mic. Mono Check This is enabled via the Monitor page of the touchscreen. It routes the monitor system’s left signal and the right signal to both left and right monitor outputs. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 5 - 5...

  • Page 64: Talkback

    TB headphone level parameter on the Internal Talkback screen. Talkback To Busses If the Talkback On button is active, and an output bus solo is pressed, the internal talkback signal will be routed to the soloed output bus. Page 5 - 6 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 65: Meters

    The overbridge hosts the following meters: Bus Outputs 1-24, located at the top of the left-hand input bay; Master Outputs (LRC), Solo (LR) and Matrix Outputs (M1-M8), located at the top of the right-hand input bay. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 5 - 7...
  • Page 66 Page 5 - 8 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 67: Menu

    The Apply button will be illuminated when it is available for use. It allows the user to confirm a change without leaving the current screen. ADJUST (Encoder) The ADJUST encoder is used to scroll through lists. It has a press function which is used to select a menu item. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 6 - 1...

  • Page 68: Lexicon™ Button (Shortcut)

    This moves the currently-selected cue down one place in the list. DELETE Deletes the currently-selected cue. A confirmation dialogue box appears, giving you the option to respond YES or NO to the cue being deleted. Page 6 - 2 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 69: Cue Control Buttons

    For output buses, the isolate control is located via the OUTPUT PROCESSING button in the BOTH ROWS section. The isolate button is below the fourth soft button from the left of the top row of encoders. Pressing this will isolate the bus whose SEL button is active. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 6 - 3...

  • Page 70: Show

    Pressing the EDIT SHOW pad will open the following page. It allows the user to Change the name of the show and also to edit which parameters will be recalled by the automation. Page 6 - 4 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 71: System

    LEX send bus, otherwise feedback will occur. Note: the FX processors are stereo, when they are inserted in a mono bus the mono signal is routed to the L and R FX inputs. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 6 - 5...

  • Page 72: Channel

    If this is enabled the Int TB signal will be routed to any Aux/Group bus which is Soloed whilst the Talkback ON key is enabled. Talk to all buses If this is enabled the Int TB signal will be routed to all Aux/Group buses whilst the Talkback ON key is enabled. Page 6 - 6 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 73: Oscillator

    Route to headphones Enables the routing of the External Talkback signal from the External Talkback Line Input XLR on the rear-con to the headphones. Level Adjusts the gain of the External Talkback input. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 6 - 7...

  • Page 74: Solo

    If input priority is off then an output bus solo will cancel any input solos, and vice versa. Solo Trim Refer to the block diagram on page 5-2. This allows the user to adjust the overall level of the solo bus. The default is 0dB. Page 6 - 8 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 75: Monitor

    This sets the dimming level, see field above. Delay This field enables the delay which may be set in the field below. Delay Time This sets the delay time from 0 to 1 second. The units (frames/msec/sec) are auto-selected. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 6 - 9...

  • Page 76: Bus

    Mono or Stereo. If Stereo is selected then an odd-numbered and the next even-numbered bus are linked. Bus Send The Bus Send parameter globally sets, for the output bus in question, the signal send from the input strips to the bus to be either Post-EQ or Pre-EQ. Page 6 - 10 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 77: Specifications

    All other analogue Inputs >10 kOhms Line Ouptuts <75 Ohms Oscillator 20Hz to 20kHz Sine/Pink Noise, variable level Filters Channel HP Filter 22Hz-1kHz, 18dB per octave Channel LP Filter 500Hz-20kHz, 18dB per octave Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 7 - 1...
  • Page 78 0°C – 45°C (32°F – 113°F) Relative Humidity 0% – 90%, non-condensing Ta=40°C (104°F) Storage Temperature Range -20°C – 60°C (-4°F – 140°F) Errors & Omissions excepted. Soundcraft reserves the right to change specifications without notice. Page 7 - 2 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 79: Block Diagrams

    BLOCK DIAGRAMS Note that these block diagrams are a conventional representation only. The console implements these structures within DSP hardware. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 8 - 1...

  • Page 80: Mono Input

    MONO INPUT Page 8 - 2 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 81: Stereo Line Inputs

    There are 4 Stereo Line inputs. The inputs are via 4 pairs of TRS jacks which are located on the master rear connector panel. By default these channels are mapped to faders 25 to 28 on bank D. The controls and routing available are similar to those of the Mono Input Channels. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 8 - 3...

  • Page 82: 2-Track Input

    It is possible to configure one of the Stereo Line Inputs into a dedicated channel for playing pre-show material. The output of this channel is routed directly to the mix outputs (post master fader). The block diagram is shown below. The configuration is done via the touch screen. Page 8 - 4 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 83: Lexicon™ Fx Returns

    These Channels each take their input from one of the four inbuilt LEXICON FX modules. Note that the parameter controls for the Lexicon FX modules are located in the master section: press the LEXICONS button in the UPPER ROW group to access the controls. Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 8 - 5...

  • Page 84: Output Bay (Master & Matrix)

    OUTPUT BAY (MASTER & MATRIX) Page 8 - 6 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

  • Page 85: Output Bay (Aux/Group)

    OUTPUT BAY (AUX/GROUP) Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide Page 8 - 7...

  • Page 86: Monitor

    MONITOR Page 8 - 8 Soundcraft® Si3 User Guide...

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