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Visit SSL at: www.solidstatelogic.com © Solid State Logic All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions SSL® and Solid State Logic® are ® registered trademarks of Solid State Logic. BiG SiX™, SiX™ and SuperAnalogue™ are trademarks of Solid State Logic. All other product names and trademarks are the property of their respective owners and are hereby acknowledged.
Introduction to BiG SiX In the mid '70s Solid State Logic designed the first A Series Console and Studio Computer. The idea behind the project was to build a system for the company’s studio which was buried deep in the Oxfordshire countryside, in a small village called Stonesfield. SSL’s development of advanced analogue mixing consoles has been continuous since those early days. As the name implies, BiG SiX is the natural expansion of SSL’s successful SiX desktop console.
This Page Is Intentionally Almost Blank! BiG SiX User Guide
About SuperAnalogue SSL’s SuperAnalogue technology is the sum of an applied design philosophy, constant invention, and dedication to optimising every detail of our precision audio products. There are many contributing aspects, including our bespoke circuits, ground-breaking low-noise gain control, servo-coupled amplifier stages, and many more.
Table of Contents Introduction ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������1 Unpacking �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������2 Safety Notices ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������
SUM INPUT TO MAIN BUS �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 17 ST CUE 1 TO G COMP & SUM TO MAIN BUS �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 18 G-Series Bus Compressor ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������19 US
Introduction This Page Is Intentionally Almost Blank! H BiG SiX User Guide
Introduction Introduction BiG SiX is a studio grade, SuperAnalogue mixing console that delivers all of the quality and flexibility audio professionals expect from an SSL console, but in a package that is designed to fit the compact footprint needed for smaller personal studios. Its design doesn't compromise on performance because of its size, but delivers a powerful set of professional features in a 9U 19" rack width package.
Introduction Unpacking The unit has been carefully packed and inside the box you will find the following items. ➤ BiG SiX Console ➤ IEC power cord or cords (depending on territory) ➤ 1.8 m, 6 A IEC mains Cable - UK Plug (SSL Part # 32VGL3A1) ➤ 1.8 m, 6 A IEC mains Cable - EU Plug (SSL Part # 32VGL3A3) ➤ 1.8 m, 6 A IEC mains Cable - US Plug (SSL Part # 32VGL3A2) ➤ 1.8 m, 10 A IEC mains Cable - JPN Plug (SSL Part # 32VGL3J3) ➤ External Power Supply with multi-pin connector (SSL Part # 37147HHJ) ➤ 1.
Introduction USB-C Digital Interface BiG SiX contains a class compliant USB interface to connect to a PC or MAC. The interface is paired with 16 high quality A to D and D to A converters that are connected to the SuperAnalogue signal chain in BiG SiX. USB Cables & Power Please use one of the provided USB cables ('C' to 'C' or 'C' to 'A') to connect BiG SiX to your computer. The connector on the rear of BiG SiX is a 'C' type.
4 Switch Fader Option USB Channel Output with Post Channel Insert Fully Balanced switch and meter Threshold control Compressor with Channel Channel Pan Frequency Shift Curve with Centre HF & LF Bell EQ with switchable 3 Band HF/MF/LF pan controls switch, level and switched with Post Two Stereo Cues Polarity Invert Switch USB Source Select Mic/Line Input Level Fader Channel 100 mm switch PFL Line (TRS Jack) Preamp Inputs Microphone(XLR) or Fully Balanced SuperAnalogue switch M
Console Overview Rear Panel The rear panel of SiX is shown below. The connectors are identified on a panel above the connector panel. All audio connectors are Balanced TRS 1/4" Jacks.
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Console Overview Detailed Description SuperAnalogue Mono Channels There are four SuperAnalogue mono channels on BiG SiX; each channel has identical facilities. This section explains the features found in each. SuperAnalogue Pre-Amp input BiG SiX’s pre-amp is a wide gain range SuperAnalogue design inherited from SiX and developed from the mic pre-amps of the larger SSL Duality and AWS consoles. In these consoles, line and mic inputs are served by separate pre-amps.
Console Overview Channel EQ The channel EQ on BiG SiX has its roots in SSL’s classic E series EQ. It is a gentle, broad stroke three-band design with high and low shelving filters at 3.5 kHz and 60 Hz, adjustable from +15 dB to -15 dB of gain and a fixed Mid Frequency control at 700 Hz. The HF and LF bands can be independently switched between shelving and bell curves using the BELL switch.
Console Overview Channel Compressor The channel compressor in BiG SiX is an evolution of the design in SiX. As with the design in SiX, it is inspired by the sophisticated channel dynamics sections of earlier SSL analogue consoles, but with some clever design features to give powerful and versatile performance from its deceptively simple appearance. The attack time of the compressor is somewhat program dependant and varies between approximately 8 ms and 30 ms.
Console Overview Stereo Cue Sends Each mono channel can access two Stereo Cue sends with independent Level and Pan controls. The ON switch sends the channel signal to the cue bus indicated by a green LED. Both sends are fed from channel pre-fade, post-insert, but can be switched to Post Fader by engaging the corresponding CUE POST switch in the Foldback master section.
Console Overview Stereo channels SuperAnalogue Stereo Input The inputs to the stereo channels are on ¼” TRS balanced jack connectors on the rear of the unit. These are labelled 5L, 6R, 7L, 8R, 9L, 10R, 11L and 12R for the four pairs of inputs. Optionally the stereo channel inputs can be switched from DA converters from relevant USB returns by selecting the USB switch at the top of the strip. The USB input is before the input Trim gain control.
Console Overview Monitor section The monitoring facilities in BiG SiX are very comprehensive given the size of the console. The block diagram below shows the structure of the Main Monitor, Alternate Monitor and Headphone outputs.
Console Overview Headphone (Phones) outputs In addition to the Main and Alt loudspeaker outputs, BiG SiX has two stereo headphone output on ¼” Stereo Jacks on the upper connector panel above the Power indicator. Each headphone level is independently controlled by the two PHONES knobs above the Monitor Level control. By default, the headphone outputs follows the MONITOR SOURCE selection.
Console Overview Cue Outputs and External Inputs CUE 1 TO MON & B/C L R EXT 1 TO EXT 2 TO MAIN MAIN L R L CUE TO USB CUE 1 TO 9/10 R STEREO CHANNEL USB FEEDS 9/10 & 11/12 USB SEND 9 CUE 2 TO MON USB SEND 10 L R CUE TO USB CUE 2 TO 11/12 USB SEND 11 MIX L R MON L USB RTN 13/14 TO EXT 1 L LEVEL R EXT 1 EXT 1 + USB SEND 12 LMIX R1 CUE L R ST CUE 1 LEVEL - USB RTN 13 + EXT 1 1L - R + USB RTN USB RTN 14 15/16 TO EXT 2 L STEREO CUE 1 OUT EXT 2 + to +20dB LEVEL EXT 2 to +10
Console Overview Talk Input and LMC The Talk input is a balanced female XLR connector. Below the connector are switches for Phantom Power and the LMC. LMC is the legendary SSL Listen Mic Compressor (here being used for Talkback, which is arguably its original design purpose). The Talk Input feeds a fixed +45 dB high quality mic pre-amplifier and then optionally the LMC compressor.
Console Overview Main Meter The twelve Segment LED ‘main’ meter in BiG SiX follows the Monitor Source selector to provide a more versatile output metering solution. The fast response peak meter has specific segments for +24 dBu and +18 dBu as with the channel meters, it also has a +15 dBu segment for other standards as well as 0 dBu. The meter has a fast peak response (rise time to 60% Full Scale Deflection approx 1 ms @ 1 kHz) and a slower release to meter peaks while still showing useful signal levels.
Console Overview SUM INPUT TO MAIN BUS The "SUM I/P TO MAIN connections on the rear panel are a simple pair of unity gain, stereo, buffered line input connections that sum directly onto the Main Left and Right buses. Typically these might be used to cascade the mix bus signals from another submix console onto the BiG SiX Main bus, such as an SSL SiX console as illustrated below.
Console Overview ST CUE 1 TO G COMP & SUM TO MAIN BUS This somewhat strangely named switch/feature allows the use of Stereo Cue 1 to create parallel mixes. A typical example is where you want to use the bus compressor to act on a drum mix and this to then be summed in parallel to the main mix i.e. creating a compressed drum mix, but with other elements left uncompressed.
Console Overview G-Series Bus Compressor The G Series Bus Comp in BiG SiX is a stereo compressor applied across the Main Mix bus, using exactly the same circuit topology as the original design found on the SL4000 G-Series console released in 1989 (which in-turn was evolved from the earlier E-Series consoles). The T/HOLD pot adjusts the Threshold for the compressor, with five LEDs indicating the amount of gain reduction applied (-1, -3, -6, -9, -15 dB).
Console Overview USB-C Interface BiG SiX contains a class compliant USB interface to connect to a PC or MAC. The interface is paired with 16 high quality A to D and D to A converters that are connected to the SuperAnalogue signal chain in BiG SiX. USB Cables & Power Please use one of the provided USB cables ('C' to 'C' or 'C' to 'A') to connect BiG SiX to your computer. The connector on the rear of BiG SiX is a 'C' type.
Console Overview To manage the routing of the Mac System Audio to BiG SiX, this is set-up using the AUDIO DEVICES menu of the AUDIO MIDI SETUP menu, typically found in the Applications/Utilities Menu of OSx e.g. Also in this menu is where the Mac's audio routing to the BiG SiX may be set-up, using the CONFIGURE SPEAKERS menu on this page.
Console Overview The outputs from BiG SiX now appear as discrete sources for the input routing of the DAW again an example for Logic Pro is shown on the right... Similarly the inputs to BiG SiX appear as discrete sources for the output routing of the DAW again an example for Logic Pro is shown on the right... It's worth noting that a quirk of Logic Pro is that the 'Stereo Output' routing is 'attached' to Logic's outputs 1 and 2.
Console Overview Windows Windows based PCs will need to install the SSL USB Audio ASIO/WDM driver, which can be found in the Support/Downloads section of the SSL website at www.solidstatelogic.com/. The USB Driver for BiG SiX is also shared with other SSL USB interfaces, if other SSL USB interfaces are connected then there will be a drop-down selector for the connected SSL USB devices. After selecting 'Next' the screen changes to ask where the Driver is to be installed.
Console Overview USB Interface in Windows The BiG SiX Windows driver supports both ASIO and standard Windows audio support. The ASIO support will allow the 16 individual audio channels to appear to DAWs as discrete channels. You may need to set up your DAW to both see the SSL ASIO driver and also have the 16 inputs and outputs appear. For example, here's the Audio Device Preferences panel from Cockos' Reaper DAW. The Audio System is set to use ASIO driver and see USB inputs 1-16 and outputs 1-16.
Console Overview USB Signal Routing and Block Diagram BiG SiX retains all the SuperAnalogue signal quality attributes of its smaller sister SiX console, however with a larger footprint BiG SiX also incorporates 16 high quality Analogue to Digital and Digital To Analogue converters and a class compliant USB interface. This interface is capable of interfacing all 16 digital channels of digital audio to and from a connected workstation at sample frequencies of 44.1, 48, 88.2 and 96 kHz with 24 bit resolution.
26 Main Bus Bus B BUS B USB Out Post Fader Fader Insert USB 1 (2,3,4) BUS B USB Out Post Fader Fader BUS B USB 5/6 (7/8) St EQ EQ Dyn From USB 9/10 USB 9/10 USB Out Post Fader Fader St EQ St Cue 2 St Cue 2 Line Amp Stereo In 9/10 St Cue 2 From USB 5/6 (7/8) USB 5/6 (7/8) St Cue 1 Line Amp Stereo In (x 2) St Cue 1 From USB 1 (2,3,4) USB 1 (2,3,4) USB Send To DAW USB Return From DAW St Cue 1 Pre Amp SuperAnalogue Channel In (x 4) Key USB 9/10 BUS B St Cue 2 Bus St Cue
BiG SiX User Guide MIC 1 MIC 2 DI 1 DI 2 STEREO 9/10 STEREO 7/8 STEREO 5/6 MAIN MONITORS TALK BACK MIC ALTERNATIVE MONITORS STEREO 11/12 U S 1 B S T C U E EXT 2 EXT 1 PHONES 2 (STEREO CUE 2) PHONES 1 16 AUDIO IN USB 16 AUDIO OUT DIGITAL AUDIO WORKSTATION Application Examples 27
Application Examples Application Examples - Desktop Studio Opposite is a simple application of BiG SiX in a typical desktop studio application. The mics for the vocals and guitars are connected to the SuperAnalogue XLR microphone inputs then processed with the SSL Channel Compression and EQ. The headphone 2 output is used to feed the artists with the Phones source being Stereo Cue 2. Sequenced drum machines and keyboards are connected to the Stereo Line Input channels 5-10.
BiG SiX User Guide HP AMP ISO BOOTH RACK EQ & DYN PROCESSING MIC 1 MIC 2 MIC 3 MIC 4 RETURN CHANNEL INSERTS SEND ST CUE 1 STEREO 9/10 STEREO 7/8 STEREO 5/6 MAIN MONITORS TALK BACK MIC ALTERNATIVE MONITORS U S B RETURN MAIN BUS INSERT SEND ST CUE 2 PHONES 1 EXT 2 EXT 1 FX O/L dB 0 +4 +12 INPUT TRIM –12 –4 –8 +8 OFF Hz 40 HPF 30 50 3 1 5 11 7 DRIVE 9 IN 2 MIN 4 8 MAX 6 DENSITY VINTAGE DRIVE –6 –9 –3 dB 0 LOW 30 +9 Hz +6 +3 50 90 IN 8 –6 20
Application Examples Application Examples - Small Project Studio, Record/Overdub Opposite is a simple application of BiG SiX in a typical small project studio application. A key difference in this example is that the artists are in an isolation booth and the two console headphone outputs are being used by a separate engineer and producer each with their own level control.
BiG SiX User Guide B A S S V o x 1 1 B A S S V o x B D B D S N R S N R D R U M S D R U M S G T R S G T R S MAIN MONITORS K E Y S K E Y S B K G V X B K G V X M I X PHONES 1 RETURN MIX EQ SEND MAIN BUS INSERT ALTERNATIVE MONITORS DAW CONTROLLER PHONES 2 16 AUDIO OUT USB DIGITAL AUDIO WORKSTATION USB I N A U D I O 1 6 Application Examples 31
Application Examples Application Examples - Small Project Studio - Hybrid SuperAnalogue Mixdown In this example, BiG SiX is being used as part of a hybrid mixdown setup. Individual signals and stereo stems are being fed to BiG SiX via USB from the DAW, with separate stem mixes for the various components of the mix. The detailed balance of the stems is controlled using the external DAW controller (in this case SSL's UF8).
VOICE BOOTH BiG SiX User Guide HP AMP MIC 1 MIC 2 MIC 3 MIC 4 V / O M 2 V / O M 1 MAIN MONITORS M 3 V / O M 4 V / O ALTERNATIVE MONITORS ST CUE 1 TALK BACK MIC ST CUE 2 SEND TO DIALOGUE FX/REVERB DIALOGUE MIX PHONES 2 PHONES 1 MUSIC STEM to ST 9/10 FX STEM to ST 7/8 DIALOGUE FX/REVERB RETURN to ST 5/6 KEY USB CONNECTIONS ANALOGUE CONNECTIONS DIGITAL AUDIO WORKSTATION Application Examples 33
Application Examples Application Examples - Post Production - ADR or Foreign Language Dubbing In this example, BiG SiX is being used as the hub of a multi-mic ADR or foreign language dubbing suite. The key elements are low latency headphone feeds for the actors, Talkback from the studio to the VO booth and separate record feeds and cue send for both artist headphone mix and dialogue reverb.
LOCAL SOURCES BiG SiX User Guide HP AMP MIC 1 MIC 2 MIC 3 FX REPLAY MIC 4 STEREO 5/6 MAIN MONITORS ST CUE 1 TALK BACK MIC ALTERNATIVE MONITORS U S B S T R E A M ST CUE 2 PHONES 2 PHONES 1 USB REMOTE PLAYBACK REMOTE SOURCES USB DIGITAL AUDIO WORKSTATION Application Examples 35
Application Examples Application Examples - Podcast Studio BiG SiX is a powerful choice for professional online content creation. It’s ideal for vloggers, producers and podcasters who need to achieve high fidelity audio recordings quickly and intuitively.
Troubleshooting & FAQs Troubleshooting & FAQs Frequently Asked Questions and additional support contacts can be found on the Solid State Logic Website at: https://www.solidstatelogic.com/support/ Troubleshooting Tips My BiG SiX is warm to the touch BiG SiX’s SuperAnalogue audio circuits are designed to run warm and BiG SiX contains a lot of electronics in a small space.
Troubleshooting & FAQs Warranty Warranty claims will only be accepted if the purchased product has been used for its intended purpose. Any purchased product used for an unintended purpose will not be eligible for warranty protection. For all warranty inquiries or claims please address your claim to the dealer that you purchased the product from or to Solid State Logic if the purchase was directly from Solid State Logic.
Appendix A Appendix A - Physical Specification Front to Back Depth 390.2 mm / 15.4" Height (from table top inc. feet) 141.2 mm / 5.6" Width 437.2 mm / 17.2" (Excluding Trim) Power 70 Watts Unboxed Weight 6.8 kg / 15.0 lbs (Console excluding PSU) Boxed Size Width x Height x Depth Boxed Weight 10.1 kg / 22 lbs 489.4 mm / 19.3" (Including Trim) 600 mm x 260 mm x 540 mm (23.6" x 10.2" x 21.3") Note: All physical specification values are approximate.
Appendix A Main Bus Outputs 1/4" TRS Jack Socket Bus B Outputs 1/4" TRS Jack Socket Pin Description Pin Description Tip Signal +ve (Hot) Tip Signal +ve (Hot) Ring Signal -ve (Cold) Ring Signal -ve (Cold) Sleeve 0 V Chassis Main Monitor Outputs 1/4" TRS Jack Socket Sleeve 0 V Chassis Alternate Monitor Outputs 1/4" TRS Jack Socket Pin Description Pin Description Tip Signal +ve (Hot) Tip Signal +ve (Hot) Ring Signal -ve (Cold) Ring Signal -ve (Cold) Sleeve 0 V Chassis Sle
Appendix B Appendix B - Performance Specification Audio Performance Default test conditions (unless otherwise stated): Source impedance of Test Set: 40 Ω Input impedance of Test Set: 200 kΩ Reference frequency: 1 kHz Reference level: 0 dBu where 0 dBu = 0.
Appendix B Channel Equaliser Signal applied to line input and measured at the channel insert send. EQ switched in with EQ controls centred in shelf mode. Measurement Conditions Output Headroom Value >+27 dBu at onset of clipping THD+Noise +20 dBu @ 1 kHz (filter 22 Hz to 22 kHz) Noise < 0.0015 % <-87.5 dBu Channel Compressor Signal applied to line Input and measured at the channel insert send. Compressor switched into channel path with the compressor’s threshold set to +10 dB.
Appendix B Overall Channel Signal Chain Specifications Signal applied to Line Input of a mono channel, and routed to specified output by shortest path. All controls set flat, out or at unity gain as appropriate. Pan set to full left or right. Measurement Conditions Value Foldback, B-Bus & Main Output Output Headroom into 600 Ω at onset of clipping >24 dBu THD+Noise +20 dBu @ 1 kHz (filter 22 Hz to 22 kHz) < 0.0015 % Frequency Response 20 Hz to 20 kHz +0.0/-0.
Appendix C Appendix C - BiG SiX Block Diagram BUS COMP to ∑ ST CUE 1 USB POST FADER SUPER ANALOGUE IN (1 of 4) USB SEND 1..4 LF MIC LINE HPF USB +48V 1.
Appendix D Appendix D - Recall Sheet This image should scale if you print this page at larger sizes, e.g.
Notes Notes 46 BiG SiX User Guide
Notes Notes BiG SiX User Guide 47
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