The S/PDIF connection on the back of a Pro 14 is a connection that allows two channels of digital audio to be passed along a single unbalanced co-axial connection. This can be used to connect a device with a digital output or input to avoid unnecessary conversion from analogue to digital and vice versa

To send audio to another external device

If you are sending audio from your Saffire Pro 14 to another device you should first connect the S/PDIF output of the Saffire Pro 14 to the S/PDIF input of the external device - such as a CD recorder.

You should then launch Saffire MixControl in order to route audio to the S/PDIF outputs. To do this, select the desired S/PDIF output (pictured below) and choose what you wish to route to this output using the drop down menu. You can choose one of the six analogue or digital inputs, the twelve DAW outputs, or one of the six Saffire MixControl custom mixes blending a combination of these. Make sure that if the S/PDIF input is connect to the same external device then this is muted to prevent feedback.

You should also select the 'Sync Source' to 'Internal' using Saffire MixControl and refer to the user guide of the external device to set its sync source to external S/PDIF. You should also make sure the sample rate for both the Saffire Pro 14 and the external device are the same. This will set the Saffire Pro 14 as the master clock and the external device as the slave with the clock embedded in the channel code being sent from the Saffire Pro 14 to the external device.

To receive audio from another external device with S/PDIF output

If you are receiving audio from an external device (such as a CD player) you should first connect the S/PDIF output of the external device to the S/PDIF input of the Saffire Pro 40.

You should then launch Saffire MixControl and set the sync source to SPDIF (shown below). You should also refer to the user guide of your external device to make sure that it is set to its internal clock. Finally, make sure that the sample rate of the two devices are matched. The output from the external device should now appear as inputs 5 and 6 within your DAW.