Comments on: How would I mix two sources of audio so that I can listen to them through my headphones at the same time?

Question: How would I mix two sources of audio so that I can listen to them through my headphones at the same time?

cbushko — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 13:53:02 -0800

I have audio coming from two sources; a Bell satelite receiver (RCA outputs) and my computer (phono?). I would like to listen to both audio sources so that I can watch TV and play games at the same time while not disturbing my family.

By: dirtynumbangelboy

dirtynumbangelboy — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 14:04:51 -0800

Everything you need can be bought at ~~Radio Shack~~ The Source by Circuit City. You'll need something to convert phono to RCA, and then some splitters to gank everything together. Then a simple converter from RCA to your headphone.

However, this can make adjusting relative volumes rather tricky. A better bet would be to get a really simple two-channel mixer. Plug everything into that, and then listen off the headphone jack. Should let you mix your audio nicely. If you go for a higher-end model, you can even route your TV to one ear, and your computer to the other.

By: RustyBrooks

RustyBrooks — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 14:27:51 -0800

If you have an input on your computer, you can input the satellite receiver into the computer and listen to both through the computer -- most "decent" sound cards support internal sound mixing.

By: junesix

junesix — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 14:39:09 -0800

Building off RustyBrooks' answer, you should be able to connect the RCA outputs to the line-in input on your computer sound card with a RCA-to-3.5mm plug Y-cable adapter. Your computer sound card will mix everything internally - just make sure to turn on the line-in audio and adjust the volume up.

By: cbushko

cbushko — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 15:20:56 -0800

Thanks guys.

I don't think that I can use the line-in on my computer as it is used for my microphone for internet chat.

A two-channel mixer may be what I need.

By: mikeh

mikeh — Wed, 12 Apr 2006 06:33:00 -0800

Your computer isn't outputting phono, by the way. If you use the line-out jack it's a standard line-level audio source. Phono refers to completely unamplified audio sources like a turntable which need a specific, standard amplification curve.

By: RustyBrooks

RustyBrooks — Thu, 13 Apr 2006 06:00:25 -0800

I bought a 4 channel mixer (which is actually what you want, since 2 stereo channels is really 4 mono channels) from radio shack a few years back, for more or less the same purpose. It sucked but it worked. For $50 or $60 you can actually get a pretty nice one from a music place like music123.com or musiciansfriend.com. I have a cute little 8 channel mixer that I use for home recording that I don't think cost me more than $60. Probably way more features than you need though.