Audio Input Mac Mini M2 Turntable RCA jack trouble

[carolmarol66]

For the love of God... how do I INPUT audio to my new mac mini m2. I have a turntable with rca cables and it doesn't need a pre-amp. I just bought rca to usb-c converter but the mini wont recognize it. I currently use the RCA to headphone jack in my older iMac 2010 and the stereo input to Audacity software is fantastic. So I bought the headphone to headphone (with mic TRRS) adapter to input into the macmini. The sound is really awful and is only mono... I have searched the internet, would like to have mini recognize the USB-C as an audio input or any other port for that matter. Im just at a loss.

 

[Bigwaff]

Is Audacity allowed to use the "Microphone" (i.e. audio input) .. check Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone

 

[helmetguy]

It's possible that your TRRS adapter has the wrong contact arrangement for the Mac Mini. Unfortunately this isn't standardised and manufacturers just use whichever one they want.

The adapter has to have the contact arrangement in the middle:

It's also possible that bad soldering within the adapter is causing the issue you are having.

Does your RCA to USB-C converter show up in Audio MIDI Setup? Can you give a link to its product page?

 

[carolmarol66]

Is Audacity allowed to use the "Microphone" (i.e. audio input) .. check Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone

yes...

Is Audacity allowed to use the "Microphone" (i.e. audio input) .. check Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone

 

[carolmarol66]

It's possible that your TRRS adapter has the wrong contact arrangement for the Mac Mini. Unfortunately this isn't standardised and manufacturers just use whichever one they want.

The adapter has to have the contact arrangement in the middle:

View attachment 2328020
It's also possible that bad soldering within the adapter is causing the issue you are having.

Does your RCA to USB-C converter show up in Audio MIDI Setup? Can you give a link to its product page?

I just sent it back... it was cheap enough that I could order another one but the description said it was for iphones and apple products so I assumed it was what I needed. I didn't check with the RCA to USB... from what I read, the USB-C would only allow audio OUT. Every post was discussing using the headphone/mic jack. When I TRIED the adapter below, the audio was so loud and distorted, crazy.

Movo MC3 3.5mm TRS to TRRS Adapter - Microphone Adapter for iPhone and Android Smartphones and Tablets

Allows you to connect your standard TRS (3-pole) 3.5mm microphone connector to your TRRS (4-pole) smartphone Impedance-matched TRRS cable for mobile devices Gold-Plated Connectors 1-Year Warranty with support based in the U.S.A. Say goodbye to disappointing sound. This TRS to TRRS adapter signifi...

www.amazon.com

 

[helmetguy]

I just sent it back... it was cheap enough that I could order another one but the description said it was for iphones and apple products so I assumed it was what I needed. I didn't check with the RCA to USB... from what I read, the USB-C would only allow audio OUT. Every post was discussing using the headphone/mic jack. When I TRIED the adapter below, the audio was so loud and distorted, crazy.

Movo MC3 3.5mm TRS to TRRS Adapter - Microphone Adapter for iPhone and Android Smartphones and Tablets

Allows you to connect your standard TRS (3-pole) 3.5mm microphone connector to your TRRS (4-pole) smartphone Impedance-matched TRRS cable for mobile devices Gold-Plated Connectors 1-Year Warranty with support based in the U.S.A. Say goodbye to disappointing sound. This TRS to TRRS adapter signifi...

www.amazon.com

I've realised that what I said about the TRRS adapter wasn't correct for your use case. It actually isn't possible to record stereo audio using the Mac Mini M2's 3.5mm jack, as the stereo audio part of the jack is an output only.

You'll only get mono audio input because the jack is designed for wired headsets with a mono mic.

You would either need an audio capture device like this (I'm not sure if this works with later versions of macOS):

FLY KAN USB 2.0 Audio Capture Card for Windows 10/8.1/8 / 7 / and Mac OS 10.14 - Audio Grabber for Vinyl Cassette Tapes to mp3 Converter

FLY KAN USB 2.0 Audio Capture Card for Windows 10/8.1/8 / 7 / and Mac OS 10.14 - Audio Grabber for Vinyl Cassette Tapes to mp3 Converter

www.amazon.com

Or stick to using your 2010 iMac.

 

[Fishrrman]

Another thought...

If the OP does a lot of vinyl-to-digital conversion, it might be worth it to get a USB-equipped turntable. Will surely make the connections easier.

 

[rachalmers]

For the love of God... how do I INPUT audio to my new mac mini m2. I have a turntable with rca cables and it doesn't need a pre-amp. I just bought rca to usb-c converter but the mini wont recognize it. I currently use the RCA to headphone jack in my older iMac 2010 and the stereo input to Audacity software is fantastic. So I bought the headphone to headphone (with mic TRRS) adapter to input into the macmini. The sound is really awful and is only mono... I have searched the internet, would like to have mini recognize the USB-C as an audio input or any other port for that matter. Im just at a loss.

Actually, I don't think there is a decent solution unless you get something like an iRig-Pre which is designed to use the Mini headphone port and inputs the Audio via that. It's pretty good and will cost a bit, but I use it a lot.

 

[Darjeeling]

Another thought...

If the OP does a lot of vinyl-to-digital conversion, it might be worth it to get a USB-equipped turntable. Will surely make the connections easier.

I rip a lot of vinyl and can confidently say there's no need to buy a separate USB turntable for this purpose.

To the OP: the usual solution for USB audio input from a turntable via RCA involves an ADC (analogue to digital convertor), was that a feature of your unspecified RCA to USB-C converter?

I use: turntable (RCA out from hifi phono stage) ---> ADC (currently using a ART USB Phono Plus, about $100, but got good results with the $30 Behringer U-Control UCA222 USB Audio Interface) ---> computer USB.

The ART Phono Plus outputs via USB-A. I found an ancient USB-A to USB-B cable in my parts box and stuck a USB-C hub on the end to attach to my M2 Pro Mini or M1 MacBook Air.

When I last checked, the ADCs/USB audio interfaces with RCA input and USB-C output were much more expensive (and feature-laden) but they may have since dropped in price.

Audacity is an excellent tool but I find VinylStudio makes the ripping process so much quicker and simpler.