OK, my wife wanted to play something on one program .... mix it with her voice .... then put it back into the computer on a zoom session.

So .... she had an external mixer a few decent powered microphones ....

I bought a cheap USB to audio adapter ... think it was $10

It had a USB plug to go into the laptop.

The small enclosure had two 3.5mm plugs.

I took one (output) to an open channel on the mixer.

I took the other from the mixer out put (that had now combined the computer output with a microphone) and fed that back into the other jack on the adapter.

It works ...well I bought two or three and one worked.

**** I was going to post a picture of the site I got it from but it is gone and looking at other sites I see some are 3 pole and some are 4 pole inputs ***** I just wanted a three pole stereo jack (or RCA jacks or ...) **********

I also might have made a mistake in that they are all marked microphone input .... I am putting in line level ( I always thought this was about 0-1 volt) from the mixer.

She used it several times.

Problem .... I am sure the audio is not great quality.

She wants to do this again ... maybe even more microphones so the mixer idea is still great.

Is there a better adapter I can get ?

I am guessing (you are talking to a none electronics guy) there is an a/d and d/a converter in there (don't know how since it is soooooo small).

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks .... Mike

 

Is there a better adapter I can get ?

Hard to answer that, as we don't know which one(s) you bought.

 

If you are putting line level into a microphone input you will have an impedance mismatch. There are purpose built pads that sit between the line and the input.

The one linked is pretty pricey, I usually see them much cheaper but I don't see any substantially cheaper at the moment though I didn't look that hard.

​

 

Is there a better adapter I can get ?

I made my own using a PCM2904. There is no software or programming required.
I’ve also used the Behringer UFO202 or UCA222 (I think it was the red one), which had a PCM2906 inside (because it also had a S/PDIF output), and that was pretty good.

 

If you are putting line level into a microphone input you will have an impedance mismatch. There are purpose built pads that sit between the line and the input.

The one linked is pretty pricey, I usually see them much cheaper but I don't see any substantially cheaper at the moment though I didn't look that hard.

View attachment 263966​

Thanks ... I still need a line in and line out ... but you are correct, I think I have a major miss match. That is why I am looking around trying to find a new one.

 

I used one of these USB audio interfaces very successfully...

These have a Line In connector.
It was fed from a Swamp brand mixer.
But, going the way of a mixer with built in USB would be easier.
Something like these?

These are $AU prices, so you can see they are pretty cheap, and wok well.

EDIT: here is the manual...
https://www.swamp.net.au/assets/brochures/ICM-SE-6-ME.pdf
(I have no connection to Swmp, other than I have purchases a couple of their mixers, not the USB ones as they were not available then.)

 

I used one of these USB audio interfaces very successfully...
View attachment 264001
These have a Line In connector.
It was fed from a Swamp brand mixer.
But, going the way of a mixer with built in USB would be easier.
Something like these?
View attachment 264003
These are $AU prices, so you can see they are pretty cheap, and wok well.

EDIT: here is the manual...
https://www.swamp.net.au/assets/brochures/ICM-SE-6-ME.pdf
(I have no connection to Swmp, other than I have purchases a couple of their mixers, not the USB ones as they were not available then.)

AWESOME! That exactly the the interface box I was going to order tonight!

I did order a mixer with a USB input/output.

My fear is I keep things forever (I am still using a dot matrix printer from the 80's to print wire marker labels). The large powered mixer we use for performances is 25 plus years old.

wire label with dot matrix printer

I try to get two ways of inputting / outputting signals. Who knows how long USB will be around .... or more importantly how long things like Windows will support it.

Thanks again so much!

 

The USB audio converter that I'm (too) fond of is the ADS Tech "Instant Music" RDX-150. It has a Burr-Brown/TI codec, usually the PCM2902. RCA line level audio and Toslink optical (digital audio) inputs and outputs. No special USB driver is needed; it even works with my Android tablet (with an OTG cable). They've been around long enough to show up at thrift stores from time to time, and it's very hard to resist getting one more for $3.49. A good thing about it is that they seem to have faithfully copied the TI/BB application example; bad things are that they didn't add a gain control, phono input, or headphone amp, which would have made it really awesome. And so I suggest:
The "ART USB Phono Plus" (or USBPhonoPlus). It has all those things the Instant Music lacks and in a nice metal case rather than oddly shaped white plastic. And it can serve as a standalone phono preamp.
https://artproaudio.com/product/usb-phono-plus-project-series/

If your computer still has a Firewire interface (IEEE 1394), there can be good deals on Firewire audio gear. I paid $5 for a working tc electronic DesktopKonnekt6 at the recycling yard thrift store.
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/tc-electronic-desktop-konnekt-6

 

The USB audio converter that I'm (too) fond of is the ADS Tech "Instant Music" RDX-150. It has a Burr-Brown/TI codec, usually the PCM2902. RCA line level audio and Toslink optical (digital audio) inputs and outputs. No special USB driver is needed; it even works with my Android tablet (with an OTG cable). They've been around long enough to show up at thrift stores from time to time, and it's very hard to resist getting one more for $3.49. A good thing about it is that they seem to have faithfully copied the TI/BB application example; bad things are that they didn't add a gain control, phono input, or headphone amp, which would have made it really awesome. And so I suggest:
The "ART USB Phono Plus" (or USBPhonoPlus). It has all those things the Instant Music lacks and in a nice metal case rather than oddly shaped white plastic. And it can serve as a standalone phono preamp.
https://artproaudio.com/product/usb-phono-plus-project-series/

If your computer still has a Firewire interface (IEEE 1394), there can be good deals on Firewire audio gear. I paid $5 for a working tc electronic DesktopKonnekt6 at the recycling yard thrift store.
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/tc-electronic-desktop-konnekt-6

Will the RDX-150 still work with windows 10?

Thanks for the info!

 

The Burr-Brown codecs are recognized as generic USB audio devices by Windows and Mac (and even Android), so the RDX-150 should be fine with Windows 10 or 11. If you don't need the headphone monitor output or phono preamp, the ADS Tech boxes sell for less money on ebay than the UCA202 or ART USB Phono.