[ale] Bad Line In

[Matt Smith]

Is it possible that you used (or only have) mic-level inputs, rather than
line-level?  That could explain a horrible sound (extremely clipped).  You
might be able to get around it by turning off any preamp or auto-gain
controls that might exist.  Or just set the record level to near its lowest.

Also, depending on if the XM radio is made for car use, car audio sources
often have a variety of line-levels (from 1-4 volts or so) - not always
switchable), which would dramatically affect how it sounds depending on what
the receiving device is expecting (usually 1 volt for standard line-level
inputs).  Not sure about what model XM radio you're using, but you might
need to make sure that the chassis ground level for the pc is the same as
the XM radio.. made a huge difference when dubbing audio cassettes to MP3
using an old car stereo.  A simple jumper wire from ground point to chassis
will do it.

Hope that helps.


--Matt


-----Original Message-----
From: Christopher Fowler [mailto:cfowler at outpostsentinel.com]
To: ale at ale.org
Sent: Tuesday, June 25, 2002 8:35 PM
To: ale at ale.org
Subject: [ale] Bad Line In


Well,,  I just attempted to plug my XM radio into my line in on my
Ginstar G1 Amptron PC.  Horrible sound.  I had to power off the PC to
restore good sound.  Is this common for onboard sound chips?  I just
wanted to use Line-In to play the radio through the speakers.  I booted
up into windows and go the same effect.

What is a good cost-effective sound card I can purchase to make this
sound better? Or do I have a hardware error?

Thanks,
Chris



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