External SoundCard Repair - **FIXED!**

[AMPLent]

Hello I haven't read the full forum, but I would like to ask a question.

I just purchased a liquid saffire 56, before I had a digi 003. Now when I had the digi 003 and recording a vocal, i would have to bring the gain knob between 1-2 O'clock, for example 1-10 around 6-7. i would have a great signal, Since I do not have a vocal booth, I would be able to hear the background etc. The Artists could be 6-12 inches away and it would still capture the artists at a good level, the closer well you know. Now with the liquid saffire 56 i find my self raising the knob to 34-5 O'clock, 1-10 9-10 and still the level is extremely low. I called focusrite etc, I decided to look online a came upon this forum. I see that that the liquid saffire 56 has fuses, Are you ale to tell me what voltage/ratings etc those fuses are? I would like to re[lace any replaceable parts/components my self and save money. For example anything that doesn't need to be soldered.

[The Soulman]

Hello I haven't read the full forum, but I would like to ask a question.

I just purchased a liquid saffire 56, before I had a digi 003. Now when I had the digi 003 and recording a vocal, i would have to bring the gain knob between 1-2 O'clock, for example 1-10 around 6-7. i would have a great signal, Since I do not have a vocal booth, I would be able to hear the background etc. The Artists could be 6-12 inches away and it would still capture the artists at a good level, the closer well you know. Now with the liquid saffire 56 i find my self raising the knob to 34-5 O'clock, 1-10 9-10 and still the level is extremely low. I called focusrite etc, I decided to look online a came upon this forum. I see that that the liquid saffire 56 has fuses, Are you ale to tell me what voltage/ratings etc those fuses are? I would like to re[lace any replaceable parts/components my self and save money. For example anything that doesn't need to be soldered.

We need more info, what microphone do you use and is there noise or distortion in the recording?

Is the PAD button pressed?

[AMPLent]

Sorry about that, in my first reply I stated that the Focusrite Rep said should instead of shouldn't, sorry for the typo.

Original message

No the pad is not on, I'm not a newbee. but i understand why one has to ask these questions.

I've worked with several interfaces, such as UAD, Avid, etc. I've used Nuemann, shure, rodes, etc.

In this case for my home studio I have 2 MXL Mics one is V69ME, THE OTHER IS MXL 990HE, Both have the Capsules upgraded.

Now before upgrading to the Focusrite Liquid saffire 56 I had a Digi 003 W/same mics.

With the Digi 003 my gain knob was always at 1-2 O'clock example (1-10) around 6-7.

Now with the Liquid Saffire 56 I have to turn the gain knob to example 1-10 between 9-10, which is crazy.

i called Focusrite , the first rep gave me some B/S like trying to compare apples to oranges etc.

So I decided to call back, got a different rep, i explained the same thing, he agreed that it should not have to be turned that far for a decent level.

He stated since my interface out of warranty i would have to pay out of pocket, but if the fuses shown in the other pics posted by MrJoeyJoeJoe
could be the issue, then I can replace those myself and save some money. The cost just to ship and evaluate will be about $100.00,

Can anyone tell me the voltage/values etc. of each of those fuses (all the fuses) in the Liquid Saffire 56 ?

Very much appreciated.


P.S.

I use Pro Tools 10.3.10, The Pro Tools Meter DbFS, with the Digi 003 danced around -10-14, and peaked around -6 and thats with the gain knob  example 1-10, around 6-7, With the Focusrite Liquid Saffire 56 going to into Pro Tools, It Dances way below -18db and peaked around -10.

I do understand that in the digital world there is no need for hot signals, I understand that. I just would like to replace fuses myslef, run tests and if it still happens then I'll send in to repair. So please can anyone help me ?

Modify message

[AMPLent]

Hey, how many fuses does the Liquid Saffire 56 has in total? I mean the glass fuses, shown in your pics. Also what are the Voltage etc. of those fuses so I can purchase them myself and install them? can you recommend where I can purchase them?

Hey guys!
I've been trying to fix my brother's Liquid Saffire 56 Soundcard and it's symptoms are no power on. Power gets to the powerboard from the switch but is not getting to any of the other boards - I think! - otherwise the lights would come on.




I've checked the first fuse for continuity and it's good. But then I've seen these two things;






The Green one says "WME CHJ471K"
And the Blue one says "WMR 70D471K"

I've searched Internet and can't find anything to do with those references. I'm pretty sure they're fuses no?
I checked continuity (in circuit) across the green one and that's good but the blue one hasn't got continuity!
Could this be the problem?
Are they fuses?

Thanks a lot,
Joe!

[AMPLent]

Sorry about that, in my first reply I stated that the Focusrite Rep said should instead of shouldn't, sorry for the typo.

Original message

No the pad is not on, I'm not a newbee. but i understand why one has to ask these questions.

I've worked with several interfaces, such as UAD, Avid, etc. I've used Nuemann, shure, rodes, etc.

In this case for my home studio I have 2 MXL Mics one is V69ME, THE OTHER IS MXL 990HE, Both have the Capsules upgraded.

Now before upgrading to the Focusrite Liquid saffire 56 I had a Digi 003 W/same mics.

With the Digi 003 my gain knob was always at 1-2 O'clock example (1-10) around 6-7.

Now with the Liquid Saffire 56 I have to turn the gain knob to example 1-10 between 9-10, which is crazy.

i called Focusrite , the first rep gave me some B/S like trying to compare apples to oranges etc.

So I decided to call back, got a different rep, i explained the same thing, he agreed that it should not have to be turned that far for a decent level.

He stated since my interface out of warranty i would have to pay out of pocket, but if the fuses shown in the other pics posted by MrJoeyJoeJoe
could be the issue, then I can replace those myself and save some money. The cost just to ship and evaluate will be about $100.00,

Can anyone tell me the voltage/values etc. of each of those fuses (all the fuses) in the Liquid Saffire 56 ?

Very much appreciated.


P.S.
I use Pro Tools 10.3.10, The Pro Tools Meter DbFS, with the Digi 003 danced around -10-14, and peaked around -6 and thats with the gain knob  example 1-10, around 6-7, With the Focusrite Liquid Saffire 56 going to into Pro Tools, It Dances way below -18db and peaked around -10.

I do understand that in the digital world there is no need for hot signals, I understand that. I just would like to replace fuses myslef, run tests and if it still happens then I'll send in to repair. So please can anyone help me ?

Hello I haven't read the full forum, but I would like to ask a question.

I just purchased a liquid saffire 56, before I had a digi 003. Now when I had the digi 003 and recording a vocal, i would have to bring the gain knob between 1-2 O'clock, for example 1-10 around 6-7. i would have a great signal, Since I do not have a vocal booth, I would be able to hear the background etc. The Artists could be 6-12 inches away and it would still capture the artists at a good level, the closer well you know. Now with the liquid saffire 56 i find my self raising the knob to 34-5 O'clock, 1-10 9-10 and still the level is extremely low. I called focusrite etc, I decided to look online a came upon this forum. I see that that the liquid saffire 56 has fuses, Are you ale to tell me what voltage/ratings etc those fuses are? I would like to re[lace any replaceable parts/components my self and save money. For example anything that doesn't need to be soldered.

We need more info, what microphone do you use and is there noise or distortion in the recording?

Is the PAD button pressed?

[KhronX]

Especially with stuff more complicated than lightbulbs and such, you most definitely do NOT want to be just replacing fuses willy-nilly, without determining / knowing WHY a / the fuse blew in the first place. Otherwise, you just run the risk of causing even more damage downstream, than what caused the fuse to blow in the first place.

And anyway, had you looked a bit more carefully at those big photos, you might've(?) been able to notice that, at least in the power supply, the fuse ratings are quite clearly silkscreened on the circuit board.

PS: Is that "low gain" symptom the case on all eight inputs? And/or do you have any of the emulations enabled for ch1/2?

PS2: Your Saffire 56 works, and has low gain, but still works with (at least) one blown fuse? Or...? 

[AMPLent]

No the pad is not on, there is no distortion or noise.

My issue is that in order for me to get a decent level I have to crank the gain knob of the liquid saffire 56 to 9-10 just to get a level and thats me being 3 inches away from the mic.

The type of mic I am using is a MXL 990 modified. It has the Mod Kit from Microphone parts.com as well as capsule. There is no issue with the mic as I tested on my friends interface which is a UAD Apollo Twin. The gain knob of the apollo Twin is at lets say 1-10 about 5-6 with great level and thats me being 10 inches away from the mic.

I believe there is something wrong with the Preamps of the liquid 56

[KhronX]

What about some of the questions i posed? 

[AMPLent]

What about some of the questions i posed? 

Sorry didn't see your questions, I assumed it was the fuse, but the fuse in the unit is perfect. This is the issue in all channels the level are extremely low, I have disabled the transformer in mix control, I set first channel at flat and then checked all settings/presets. As for the rest of the channels 3-8 Same thing.
When I opened the unit all i did was dust it, Thats all.

https://youtu.be/IfnvA_Jya78

I have made sure the pad is off, i mean the whole nine yards. I did a screen recording here is the link I posted on youtube,

At the time I did not have the UAD Twin available, when I did screen recording.

On the 56 the gain knob is at 6-7 and the level is so low and thats me being 10 inches away from mic, (Yes I have phantom power on, I've checked connections etc.) Now on the UAD, Digi 003 the level would be perfect at that gain level of 6-7, actually on the UAD Twin 5-6 is a great level.

Usually at that level and since I do not have a booth, I am able to hear background noise, such as TV, air conditioner or fan etc. Which of course when recording a vocal one wants to avoid all that stuff, I understand that.

Now if I turn gain knob of 56 to 8.5-10 I get a level that I should be receiving at 6-7.


Another thing, I do mic mods and the mic I'm using which is the mxl 910. I have upgraded, the capsule, and the circuit. Now when I connect the mic to the preamp of 56, I turn down volume when checking voltage with a multimeter. So the levels should read 55-60v, but it doesnt. Now there is nothing wrong with mic as I tested the mic on the UAD Twin I mentioned earlier. When I checked the voltage it read 63v, which then I had to tweak the mic untill the multimeter read 60v.

So maybe there is something wrong with the phantom power of the saffire 56.


If this helps and answers your question please let me know. It looks like I will have to ship interface to be fixed, but after reading a few forums and blogs I have learned that Focusrite or the third part who fixes their product have shipped back interfaces and the issue continues which they claim they couldn't find anything wrong with units.

I have been experiencing horrible costumer service from focusrite, I am starting to regret ever buying one of their products.


Is there away I can test the voltage of phantom power with a multimetter, to see if that is the issue?



in a different forum one individual stated this

"If it was a phantom power problem you would have normal levels with a dynamic mic (you should test it) if it's the case, check the caps in the AC input area.
I doubt we experience the same problem. On my unit it would record fine for a minute or 2 and then drop levels. Then I i put the gain to maximum and back where it was, levels would be normal again."

Where would I find the caps hat he is speaking of ?

do you have an image of what he is speaking of ?

[AMPLent]

So I have actually tested the xlr's of the 56 with a multimeter, turned on phantom power and they all read 48.0, so what could be the problem ?

[KhronX]

It's a reasonably well-known(?) thing that, in Focusrite interfaces, the gain ramps up in a big hurry only towards the end (the upper 25% or so) of the gain pot travel. That in itself isn't a fault, only a design choice.

You didn't say what voltage reading the capsule bias voltage was while connected to the Saffire (only that it was 63v on the UAD, unless i horribly misunderstood something).

The AC-coupling caps for the XLR inputs are easily determined. First of all, they'll be rated at 50v or 63v, most likely 47uF. And if you can't follow the PCB traces, you can stick one multimeter probe on pin 2 of the XLR and beep out the cap for the "hot" input, then the same on XLR pin 3 for the "cold" input.

So the "fault" you're encountering is... that your Saffire doesn't have the same gain taper that units from other manufacturers do?  Or is the maximum gain available, somehow not enough for your application?

If it's not loud enough - turn it up, it's dead-simple. Isn't that what the knob's there for? Who cares what setting the gain knob's at, as long as you get the levels you need to into your DAW?

I've personally had positively wonderful experience with Focusrite support. A couple years ago i bought a dead Scarlett 18i8, that had its USB connector ripped out (i had some bodging to do on the board), was missing a bunch of screws and one of the "halos" from the gain knobs. Apart from the connector (which i already had), the support staff was kind enough to mail me a replacement "halo" along with the missing screws - FOR FREE 
In a similar case last year, i landed a "comatose" 18i20. After some troubleshooting, i contacted the support department again, and they mailed me a pre-programmed SPI flash chip with the firmware for the thing (once again, for no charge), which brought it back to life.

So i'm afraid i must ask - what IS the actual problem, in case there really is one?

[AMPLent]

Hello, sorry if I asked this question already. did you fi the issue? how did you fix the issue? I see there is a glass like fuse on one of the boards, what is the correct voltage etc that I need to buy to replace that fuse? I am having issues with my Focusrite Liquid Saffire 56, it turns on but turns off by itself, sometimes when I try to tun on the light flicker but doesnt turn on. So I am guessing its the fuse or the PSU. Can you please help ?