{"id":1741863,"date":"2018-06-20T17:45:15","date_gmt":"2018-06-20T17:45:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/?post_type=articles&#038;p=1741863"},"modified":"2022-08-10T13:45:23","modified_gmt":"2022-08-10T13:45:23","slug":"connecting-scarlett-spdif","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/","title":{"rendered":"Connecting to a Scarlett with S\/PDIF"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The Focusrite 6i6, 8i6, 18i8, and 18i20 all have S\/PDIF connections that allow you to increase your channel count by connecting another digital device. In this article we\u2019ll show you how to connect, sync, and route S\/PDIF devices with your Scarlett series interface. This guide breaks down into two parts:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><strong><a href=\"#What-is-SPDIF\">What is SPDIF?<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"#Focusrite-Scarlett-SPDIF-connections\"><strong>Focusrite Scarlett SPDIF connections<\/strong><\/a><ul><li><strong><a href=\"#SPDIF-input\">SPDIF input<\/a><\/strong> <\/li><li><strong><a href=\"#SPDIF-output\">SPDIF output<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"What-is-SPDIF\" class=\"wp-block-cgb-block-customheader blackHeader alignLeft noUnderline customh2 swheader\">What is SPDIF?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>SPDIF <em>(also known as <\/em><a aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/insync\/s-pdif\/\" target=\"_blank\"><em>S\/PDIF<\/em><\/a><em>)<\/em> connections are another way to get stereo audio in and out of your system. SPDIF <em>(Sony\/Philips Digital Interface Format)<\/em> coaxial sockets are often confused with analog phono <em>(<a aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/insync\/rca\/\" target=\"_blank\">RCA<\/a>)<\/em> jacks. Although the connections appear to be the same, they are not compatible with each other because one is analog and the other is digital. That means the SPDIF IN\/OUT sockets of your Scarlett can send &amp; receive a digital stereo signal to &amp; from another device\u2019s SPDIF sockets. We recommend only using <a aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/c840--SPDIF_Cables\" target=\"_blank\">SPDIF cables<\/a> for SPDIF connections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column\">\n<h4 id=\"SPIDF\" class=\"wp-block-cgb-block-customheader blackHeader alignLeft underline customh4 swheader\">SPIDF<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Stereo audio over a single digital cable. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column\">\n<h4 id=\"Phono-RCA\" class=\"wp-block-cgb-block-customheader blackHeader alignLeft underline customh4 swheader\">Phono RCA<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Analog stereo signal split over two cables; white <em>(left)<\/em> and red <em>(right)<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-right\"><a href=\"#\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"button flat s blue\">Return to top<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"Focusrite-Scarlett-SPDIF-connections\" class=\"wp-block-cgb-block-customheader blackHeader alignLeft noUnderline customh2 swheader\">Focusrite Scarlett SPDIF connections<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Connecting another device to your Scarlett via SPDIF is really just a matter of connecting the cables, synchronizing both devices, and then setting up the routing. Synchronizing two digital devices might sound a little intimidating but if you follow the steps below, you\u2019ll be surprised just how easy it is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 id=\"SPDIF-input\" class=\"wp-block-cgb-block-customheader darkBlueHeader alignLeft underline customh3 swheader\">SPDIF input<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ol><li>Using a <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/c840--SPDIF_Cables\" target=\"_blank\">SPDIF cable<\/a>, connect a device\u2019s SPDIF output to your Scarlett\u2019s SPDIF IN socket.<\/li><li>Set all devices in your system to the same sample rate <em>(44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, etc.)<\/em>.<\/li><li>Set your device\u2019s clock settings so that all devices are receiving clock signal from a single master device.<\/li><li>Route the signal in your DAW or Focusrite Control:<ul><li><strong>DAW:<\/strong> Assign your track\u2019s input to SPDIF.<\/li><li><strong>Focusrite Control:<\/strong> Add the SPDIF channels to a Scarlett Output\u2019s Mix or choose SPDIF as the direct output.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h3 id=\"SPDIF-output\" class=\"wp-block-cgb-block-customheader darkBlueHeader alignLeft underline customh3 swheader\">SPDIF output<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ol><li>Using a <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/c840--SPDIF_Cables\" target=\"_blank\">SPDIF cable<\/a>, connect your Scarlett\u2019s SPDIF OUT socket to a device\u2019s SPDIF input.<\/li><li>Set all devices in your system to the same sample rate <em>(44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, etc.)<\/em>.<\/li><li>Set your devices\u2019 clock settings so that all devices are receiving clock signal from a single master device.<\/li><li>Route the signal in your DAW or Focusrite Control.<ul><li><strong>DAW:<\/strong>&nbsp;Assign your track\u2019s output to SPDIF.<\/li><li><strong>Focusrite Control:<\/strong>&nbsp;Select the SPDIF output\u2019s source: Mix, DAW, or direct output.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>If your audio interface isn&#8217;t showing up, check out our articles on how to resolve audio interface issues on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/resolving-audio-interface-issues-on-windows-10\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"PC (opens in a new tab)\">PC<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/resolving-audio-interface-issues-on-mac\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Mac (opens in a new tab)\">Mac<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/focusrite-scarlett-install-and-setup-guide\/\" class=\"relatedcontent_link\" class=\"wp-block-cgb-block-related-content\"><div class=\"relatedcontent_block\" style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/media\/2019\/07\/Focusrite-Scarlett-Hero-Image.png);background-size:cover;background-position:center\"><div class=\"relatedcontent_overlay_content\"><\/div><div class=\"relatedcontent-text relatedcontent_content\"><p class=\"relatedcontent_title\" style=\"color:#fff\">Focusrite Scarlett Install and Setup Guide<\/p><p class=\"relatedcontent_subhead\" style=\"color:#fff;border:none\"><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/a>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/resolving-audio-interface-issues-on-windows-10\/\" class=\"relatedcontent_link\" class=\"wp-block-cgb-block-related-content\"><div class=\"relatedcontent_block\" style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/media\/2017\/11\/TS-Interface-Windows-UPDATE-Hero.png);background-size:cover;background-position:center\"><div class=\"relatedcontent_overlay_content\"><\/div><div class=\"relatedcontent-text relatedcontent_content\"><p class=\"relatedcontent_title\" style=\"color:#fff\">Resolving Audio Interface Issues on Windows 10<\/p><p class=\"relatedcontent_subhead\" style=\"color:#fff;border:none\"><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/resolving-audio-interface-issues-on-mac\/\" class=\"relatedcontent_link\" class=\"wp-block-cgb-block-related-content\"><div class=\"relatedcontent_block\" style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/media\/2019\/09\/Mac-Sound-Audio-Device-Solutions-Hero.png);background-size:cover;background-position:center\"><div class=\"relatedcontent_overlay_content\"><\/div><div class=\"relatedcontent-text relatedcontent_content\"><p class=\"relatedcontent_title\" style=\"color:#fff\">Resolving Audio Interface Issues on Mac<\/p><p class=\"relatedcontent_subhead\" style=\"color:#fff;border:none\"><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-right\"><a href=\"#\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"button flat s blue\">Return to top<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"Connect-with-ADAT\" class=\"wp-block-cgb-block-customheader blackHeader alignLeft noUnderline customh2 swheader\">Connect with ADAT<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Scarlett 18i8 and 18i20 interfaces also have ADAT Optical connections. ADAT connections are typically used to connect additional input and output channels with another ADAT equipped device. Visit our <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-adat\/\" target=\"_blank\">Connecting to a Scarlett with ADAT<\/a> page to read more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-adat\/\" class=\"relatedcontent_link\" class=\"wp-block-cgb-block-related-content\"><div class=\"relatedcontent_block\" style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/media\/2018\/06\/focusrite-scarlett-getting-started-featured-image.jpg);background-size:cover;background-position:center\"><div class=\"relatedcontent_overlay_content\"><\/div><div class=\"relatedcontent-text relatedcontent_content\"><p class=\"relatedcontent_title\" style=\"color:#fff\">Connecting to a Scarlett with ADAT<\/p><p class=\"relatedcontent_subhead\" style=\"color:#fff;border:none\">Learn more about how to connect to a Focusrite Scarlett with ADAT.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/a>\n\n\n","protected":false},"featured_media":1773445,"template":"","categories":[],"tags":[54722,54726,54058,142668,115947,34845,53815,142667],"storecat":[],"itemids":[233817,233821,233816],"manufacturers":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v17.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In this article, we will show you how to connect to a Focusrite Scarlett with S\/PDIF. Click here to learn more!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Connecting to a Scarlett with S\/PDIF - SweetCare\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In this article, we will show you how to connect to a Focusrite Scarlett with S\/PDIF. Click here to learn more!\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"SweetCare\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-08-10T13:45:23+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/media\/2018\/06\/Scarlett-SPDIF-featured-image.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"628\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/\",\"name\":\"SweetCare\",\"description\":\"Service and Support\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/media\/2018\/06\/Scarlett-SPDIF-featured-image.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/media\/2018\/06\/Scarlett-SPDIF-featured-image.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":628},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/\",\"name\":\"Connecting to a Scarlett with S\/PDIF - SweetCare\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/#primaryimage\"},\"datePublished\":\"2018-06-20T17:45:15+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-08-10T13:45:23+00:00\",\"description\":\"In this article, we will show you how to connect to a Focusrite Scarlett with S\/PDIF. Click here to learn more!\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Articles\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Connecting to a Scarlett with S\/PDIF\"}]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"description":"In this article, we will show you how to connect to a Focusrite Scarlett with S\/PDIF. Click here to learn more!","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Connecting to a Scarlett with S\/PDIF - SweetCare","og_description":"In this article, we will show you how to connect to a Focusrite Scarlett with S\/PDIF. Click here to learn more!","og_url":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/","og_site_name":"SweetCare","article_modified_time":"2022-08-10T13:45:23+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":628,"url":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/media\/2018\/06\/Scarlett-SPDIF-featured-image.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/","name":"SweetCare","description":"Service and Support","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/#primaryimage","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/media\/2018\/06\/Scarlett-SPDIF-featured-image.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/media\/2018\/06\/Scarlett-SPDIF-featured-image.jpg","width":1200,"height":628},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/#webpage","url":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/","name":"Connecting to a Scarlett with S\/PDIF - SweetCare","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/#primaryimage"},"datePublished":"2018-06-20T17:45:15+00:00","dateModified":"2022-08-10T13:45:23+00:00","description":"In this article, we will show you how to connect to a Focusrite Scarlett with S\/PDIF. Click here to learn more!","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/connecting-scarlett-spdif\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Articles","item":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/articles\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Connecting to a Scarlett with S\/PDIF"}]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles\/1741863"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/articles"}],"version-history":[{"count":54,"href":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles\/1741863\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1773451,"href":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles\/1741863\/revisions\/1773451"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1773445"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1741863"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1741863"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1741863"},{"taxonomy":"storecat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/storecat?post=1741863"},{"taxonomy":"itemids","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/itemids?post=1741863"},{"taxonomy":"manufacturers","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sweetwater.com\/sweetcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manufacturers?post=1741863"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}