User Guide 1
IMPORTANT Please read this manual carefully before using your mixer for the first time. © Harman International Industries Ltd. 2006 All rights reserved Parts of the design of this product may be protected by worldwide patents. Part No. ZM0338-01 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.
Contents User Guide IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS SAFETY SYMBOL GUIDE OVERVIEW THE 60-SECOND GUIDE INTRODUCTION WIRING UP BLOCK DIAGRAM MONO INPUT CHANNEL STEREO INPUT CHANNELS MASTER SECTION USING YOUR EPM CONSOLE FITTING OPTIONAL RACKMOUNT EARS APPLICATIONS GLOSSARY TYPICAL CONNECTING LEADS MARK-UP SHEETS TYPICAL SPECIFICATIONS WARRANTY 1 4 6 7 7 9 10 14 15 18 20 22 24 25 28 30 32 34 35 3
IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS Read these instructions. Keep these instructions. Heed all warnings. Follow all instructions. Do not use this apparatus near water. Clean only with a dry cloth. Do not block any ventilation openings. Install in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. Do not install near any heat sources such as radiators, heat registers, stoves, or other apparatus (including amplifiers) that produce heat. Do not defeat the safety purpose of a polarised or grounding type plug.
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. WARNING: To reduce the risk of fire or electric shock, do not expose this apparatus to rain or moisture. Do not expose the apparatus to dripping or splashing and do not place objects filled with liquids, such as vases, on the apparatus.
For your own safety and to avoid invalidation of the warranty please read this section carefully. SAFETY SYMBOL GUIDE For your own safety and to avoid invalidation of the warranty all text marked with these symbols should be read carefully.
OVERVIEW THE 60-SECOND GUIDE To get you working as fast as possible, this manual begins with a 60-second guide. Here you can find quick information on any feature of the console. 1 MIC INPUT (XLR) Connect Microphones here. If you are using a condenser mic, ensure phantom power is supplied by pressing the switch at the top of the master section. WARNING: Do Not apply Phantom Power before connecting a microphone. 2 LINE INPUT (¼” Jack) Connect Line level sources here, e.g. Synth, Drum Machine, DI etc.
10 PEAK LED This is used to indicate that the signal is close to distorting (clipping) on a specific channel. 11 INPUT CHANNEL FADER This is used to control the level fed to the Mix Bus and post-fade sends. 12 MIX OUTPUTS (XLR) Connect these to your analogue recording device, or to your amplification system. 13 MIX INSERTS (¼” Jack) This is a pre-fade break in the signal path which can be used to feed a dynamics or mastering device.
INTRODUCTION Thank you for purchasing a Soundcraft EPM mixer. The EPM range is our most cost-effective mixing solution, bringing you all the features and performance that you expect from a Soundcraft product, at an extraordinarily low price. The packaging, which your EPM arrived in, forms part of the product and must be retained for future use.
WIRING UP Please refer to pages 30/31 for additional wiring details. Mic Input The MIC input accepts XLR-type connectors and is designed to suit a wide range of BALANCED or UNBALANCED low-level signals, whether from delicate vocals requiring the best low-noise performance, or drum kits needing maximum headroom. Professional dynamic, condenser or ribbon mics are best because these will be LOW IMPEDANCE.
Stereo Inputs STEREO 1/2 These accept 3-pole ‘A’ gauge jacks, or 2-pole mono jacks which will automatically ground the ‘cold’ input. Use these inputs for sources such as keyboards, drum machines, synths, tape machines or as returns from processing units. The input is BALANCED for low noise and immunity from interference, but you can use UNBALANCED sources by wiring up the jacks as shown, although you should then keep cable lengths as short as possible to minimise interference pick-up on the cable.
Polarity (Phase) You will probably be familiar with the concept of polarity 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 degradation of the signal if one of the cables has the +ve and -ve wires reversed.
PROBLEM SOLVING Basic problem solving is within the scope of any user if a few basic rules are followed. • Get to know the Block Diagram of your console (see page 14). • Get to know what all controls and/or connections in the system are supposed to do. • Learn where to look for common trouble spots. The Block Diagram is a representative sketch of all the components of the console, showing how they connect together and how the signal flows through the system.
BLOCK DIAGRAM 14
MONO INPUT CHANNEL 1 Mic Input The MIC input accepts XLR-type connectors and is designed to suit a wide range of BALANCED or UNBALANCED signals. Professional dynamic, condenser or ribbon mics are best because these will be LOW IMPEDANCE. You can use low-cost HIGH IMPEDANCE mics, but the level of background noise will be higher. If you turn the PHANTOM POWER on (top right-hand side of the mixer) the socket provides a suitable powering voltage for professional condenser mics.
background hiss will be more noticeable and you may not be able to get enough signal level to the output of the mixer. Note that some sound equipment, particularly that intended for domestic use, operates at a lower level (-10dBV) than professional equipment and will therefore need a higher gain setting to give the same output level. See “Initial Setup” on page 22 to learn how to set GAIN correctly.
8 MUTE All outputs from the channel except inserts are on when the MUTE switch is released and muted when the switch is down, allowing levels to be pre-set before the signal is required. 9 INPUT CHANNEL FADER The 60mm FADER, with a custom-designed law to give even smoother control of the overall signal level in the channel strip, allows precise balancing of the various source signals being mixed to the Master Section.
STEREO INPUT CHANNELS 1 INPUTS STEREO 1/2 These inputs accept 3-pole ‘A’ gauge (TRS) jacks. Use these inputs for sources such as keyboards, drum machines, synths, tape machines or processing units. The inputs are BALANCED for low noise and top quality from professional equipment, but you can use UNBALANCED sources by wiring up the jacks as shown in the “Wiring it Up” section earlier in this manual, although you should then keep cable lengths as short as possible.
7 FADER The 60mm FADER gives you smooth control of the overall signal level in the channel strip, allowing precise balancing of the various source signals being mixed to the Master Section. It is important that the input level is set correctly to give maximum travel on the fader which should normally be used at around the “0” mark. See the “Initial Setup” section on page 22 for help in setting the right level.
MASTER SECTION 1 PHANTOM POWER Many professional condenser mics need PHANTOM POWER, which is a method of sending a powering voltage down the same wires as the mic signal. Press the switch to enable the +48V power to all of the MIC inputs. The adjacent LED illuminates when the power is active. WARNING: TAKE CARE when using unbalanced mics which may be damaged by the phantom power voltage.
6 RECORD OUTPUTS These two RCA outputs carry a copy of the MIX L and MIX R signals. They allow the use of a recording device, e.g. DAT player, Minidisc, Cassette tape recorder etc. 7 2 TRACK These two RCA phono sockets are unbalanced Left and Right line-level inputs, used for connecting a playback device. 8 2 TRACK TO MIX Press this switch to route the 2 Track in signals, connected to the Left and Right RCA sockets 7, to the MIX Left/Right signal at the MIX outputs.
USING YOUR EPM CONSOLE The final output from your sound system can only ever be as good as the weakest link in the chain, and especially important is the quality of the source signal because this is the starting point of the chain. Just as you need to become familiar with the control functions of your mixer, so you must recognise the importance of correct choice of inputs, microphone placement and input channel settings.
Note: The initial settings should only be regarded as a starting point for your mix. It is important to remember that many factors affect the sound during a live performance, for instance the size of the audience! You are now ready to start building the mix and this should be done progressively, listening carefully for each component in the mix and watching the meters for any hint of overload.
FITTING OPTIONAL RACKMOUNT EARS Note: a rack extender is included in the EPM6 and EPM8 rack mounting kits to make the console fit into a 19” frame.
APPLICATIONS APPLICATION 1 - LIVE SOUND REINFORCEMENT APPLICATION 2 - MULTISPEAKER APPLICATIONS This configuration demonstrates how multiple speaker configurations can be driven by the EPM.
APPLICATION 3 - PLACES OF WORSHIP This configuration uses the Aux 2 output to drive an induction loop for the hard of hearing. Aux 1 output is used to generate foldback monitoring for the speaker/singer. The main outputs are used to drive the main speaker system. The record and playback connections are used to pass audio to and from a DAT machine or CDR.
APPLICATION 4 - RECORDING The insert points on channels 1-8 may be used to feed a multitrack recorder as shown (link the send and return signals). The Mix outputs are used for a preliminary stereo mix on a DAT recorder.
GLOSSARY Auxiliary send An output from the console comprising a mix of signals from channels derived independently of the main stereo mix. Balance The relative levels of the left and right channels of a stereo signal. Balanced A method of audio connection which ‘balances’ the wanted signal between two wires, these wires also have a screen which carries no signal. Any interference is picked up equally by the two wires, which results in cancellation of the unwanted signal.
Pre-fade The point in the signal path before a fader, and therefore unaffected by the fader position. Rolloff A fall in gain at the extremes of the frequency response. Shelving An equaliser response affecting all frequencies above or below the break frequency i.e. a highpass or lowpass derived response. Spill Acoustic interference from other sources. Transient A momentary rise in the signal level.
TYPICAL CONNECTING LEADS 30
MARK-UP SHEETS 32 You may freely copy these pages, and use them to record the settings used for particular applications/gigs.
TYPICAL SPECIFICATIONS Noise (22Hz-22kHz measurement bandwidth) Mic EIN @ max gain, 150 ohms source impedance Mix @max, faders down Crosstalk (typ.
WARRANTY 1 Soundcraft is a trading division of Harman International Industries Ltd . End User means the person who first puts the equipment into regular operation. Dealer means the person other than Soundcraft (if any) from whom the End User purchased the Equipment, provided such a person is authorised for this purpose by Soundcraft or its accredited Distributor. Equipment means the equipment supplied with this manual.
