Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 I picked up this old Soundcraft Spirit Folio SX mixer for free when our A/V guy at work was going to throw it out. I actually got it a year ago, and it has been sitting gathering dust. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 A/V guy didn't like it for a couple of reasons. issues with the power cord (broken wire, causing loud hum in the mixer), and he didn't like the faders on it. They are VERY loose feeling. Most mixers are a little stiff on mixers in this price range ($500-$1500). Not sure what this cost new, but probably more than what the equivalent would be today. This is a good ten years old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Typical of fmixers in this class, all components are mounted on one huge pc board. It makes them a little harder to work on than those that are modular, with each channel on a separate board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 This mixer uses an outboard supply (almost). Only houses a transformer, which then feeds the mixer with 18.3-0-18.3 VAC. Three wires coming into it. The connector is not anything easily obtainable, and the cable end is molded on. At least one of the wires was broken in the connector. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 So my plan was to replace the proprietary connector with a Neutrik PowerCon connector. This is the cable end of the supplied PS and the chassis mount Neutrik connector. Hmmm, the Powercon is HUGE! Hope it fits into the chassis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Here's the mixer with the side panel removed, showing the smaller power input connector originally supplied. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Original connector pulled out of the chassis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Cool thing is the transformer is mounted in a small box that is held together with screws! This makes it user serviceable, unlike those that are glued together. I made notes of the connections and color coding along the way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Without removing the huge pc board (would require taking off ALL the knobs and about 30 screws), I used paper and tape to mask off the area I needed to operate on. I used a Dremel tool to make the hole in the case, and then drilled the two holes for the bolts that would hold in the new Neutrik connector. I thought I might have to put about a 1/2 inch spacer on the back to keep the PowerCon from extending too far into the case. THe good news is that it fit between the pc board and the heatsink on the chassis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 The Powercon with the leads soldered on. Of course, I couldn't find any of my smaller diameter heatshrink, but the connector has the tabs pretty well protected... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Mounted with new stainless machine screws. Didn't even have to cut out where the Spirt text is on the back. Looks pretty good to me. So far I am a happy camper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Next up is the wiring from the tranny to the plug. I decided to replace it with some heavier wire, although not really needed. I cut the ends off of an IEC power cord, having lots on hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Dang! No grommets in the house. Mama didn't raise no fool, though. These parts may look familiar. I took a couple faucet washers, drilled out the centers and super glued them onto the cable. Looking ok so far... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 I had to carve out the plastic a little bit to get the cable in place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 All closed up, the screws back in place. I'm thinking this will be ok. If I wanted to go all out, I would put the tranny in another box with an IEC connector on it and get a proper grommet for the wire leading to the mixer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 The PowerCon on the other end. If you have never worked with Neutrik connectors before, they are great! Easy to terminate your wires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 This mixer doesn't have a power switch, so plugging in the connector powers up the system. This doesn't have a power amp, and is considered a dead board. I turned all gain controls down, and plugged it it. BUMMER! The meter lights are on full! Hmmmmmmmm... I plug in a cheap pair of headphones. Loud 60/120Hz hum. Unplug the power and open it back up to once again check my wiring. It's ok, so all that is left is to take it totally apart. This means all the knobs come off and about 30 screws come out. Knobs and screws are placed in the little bins so I don't lose them. Of course, I have pics to show what color knobs go on which pots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 While I had it apart, I vacuumed out the faders, got all the lint off the little felt seals. Since it is enclosed, that was about it. The problem was readily apparent... One of the four PS caps had the top blown off. Dang it... Saturday afternoon and the dining room table is a mess (ok, it stays a mess these days). Radio Shack is the only place that is open and MAY have the correct value, so at 5:30 I make a short drive and got what I needed (1000uF/25V). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 The funny thing is that the one that was bad was obviously a replacement. And it was put in backwards! It's no wonder it failed. I may go through the pain of opening this back up to replace all the PS caps with 50 volt parts. Although the transformer is supposed to put out 18.3 volts on each leg, that is at 115 volts input. Our good friends at TVA give us between 120/125 volts, so I was getting 22+ volts out of the transformer. It should be slightly lower under load, but marginal. I put it back together and powered it up. The outcome is great. Everything works, and it is quiet. The specs are decent, and I like the eq. Oh, this is made in England. NOISE Measured RMS, 20Hz to 20kHz Bandwidth Line inputs selected at unity gain and terminated 150R AUX, MIX, SUB O/Ps 16 Inputs routed, faders & pots down <85 dBu E.I.N. Microphone Input, Maximum Gain, terminated 150R -129 dBu CROSSTALK 1kHz 10kHz Channel mute <95 dB <85 dB Fader cutoff (rel to 0 mark) <90dB <80dB Routing isolation <90dB <80dB Aux Sends pots offness <85dB <80dB FREQUENCY RESPONSE Mic/Line In to any output 25Hz to 30kHz <1dB T.H.D. Mic Sens. -30dBu, +20dBu at all outputs @ 1kHz < 0.006% INPUT & OUTPUT IMPEDANCES Microphone Input 1.8 kW Line Input 10 kW Stereo Input A/B 12 kW Stereo Input C/D 10 kW Direct Out, Sub-Mix, Aux, Insert 75 W INPUT & OUTPUT LEVELS Mic Input Maximum Level +22 dBu Line Input Maximum Level >+30dBu Stereo Input Maximum Level >+30 dBu Headphones (@200W) 150mW So... what's next? He just gave me another Soundcraft. An LX7, 16(24) input, 4 buss mixer. It works... and I've cleaned off the tape goo and crud, but it is in pretty good shape. Some of the fader tabs were bent, but I have already fixed those. One of the pots may be messed up, but I have to figure out how to get into this one. One knob is missing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 More features. This one has four band eq on each input, the two middle are parametric. Direct outs on all inputs... Don't know the original cost on this one either, but the LX7ii, successor to this one, lists for around $2200 for the 24 input. It's been a good week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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