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I was wondering this: When you take a laptop and connect it to an audio interface (Steinberg UR22mk2) via a 3.5mm line to 6.3mm line, aka plug the laptops analogue output into the interfaces analogue input it sounds terrible.

With "proper" use, aka getting the input by a microphone or an instrument and the sound input by USB its all just how you'd expect it.

Note: It was a stereo 3.5 to 6.3 mm line cable that connected the laptops analogue out and the interfaces analogue input

Simon Bosley
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Alon
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1 Answers1

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The laptop output is stereo, while the audio interface has 2 mono inputs. It would be best to use an Y cable that goes stereo on one end and dual mono on the other.

Pluging stereo sources into mono inputs can at the best capture audio signal on either L or R, but it usualy sounds distorted - like you describe.

Dalv Olan
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  • I thought about this too, but I wonder: Why then has the XLR inputs? These are stereo aren' they – Alon Jul 05 '17 at 14:59
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    XLR is almost always used for balanced connections, except for a few pieces of equipment that use single 3-pin XLR for unbalanced stereo, which is quite annoying (or even worse, DMX512). Much better to use dual XLR or dual TRS for stereo. – uint128_t Jul 06 '17 at 00:29