A line-in is an Audio jack on an audio device that can connect to another audio output device or microphone. Line inputs can be digital or analog. The main function of the input jack is to help record audio or edit the input sound.

What is Line In?

Most audio devices and computers have at least one input and output port. The input and output jacks in all audio devices do the opposite. In the case of a computer, the port connects directly to the computer’s sound processor or sound card. Additionally, you can turn down the volume and configure other settings, especially at the input and output locations of the computer.

For most audio devices, the input jack is located on the top, back, or side, while it is usually on the back of a computer. But laptops are mostly absent; Instead, there are headphones and mic jacks on both the front and sides of the laptop.

The line-in port looks like a headphone jack, except that the latter is shown with a headphone icon, while a circle with two triangles inside usually marks the former and is usually blue.

It has a line-level electro-audio Signal. The line jack lets you connect a microphone, portable music player, or any other audio device. In some cases, the input jack can be used for other purposes, such as four or six channels on the motherboard and if there are no rear speakers.

Types of Audio Signal

• Mic Level
• Line Level
• Speaker Level
• Instrument Level

Mic Level: The mic is much quieter now. It usually survives 1 to 10 millivolts or -60 to -40 decibels. As the name suggests, the microphone level is what we get from the microphone connected to our system via XLR. You will need to upgrade it to bring it up to line level.

Depending on the model, the microphone output level can be hot or cold. It can also be argued that some microphones are more “sensitive” than others and require less preamp gain to reach safe levels. Many earplugs are built into high-output microphones to prevent blockage when used with loud sound sources.

Line Level: The strongest signal we process in audio is line level. That is about 1 volt or 0 dB volts in terms of voltage. Usually, the line level passes through the system after the preamplifier stage and before the output of our speakers. The microphone level is proportional to the line level. We need to bring the mic level up to line level for recording and playback. Another thing to keep in mind:

• -10dBV is the level for consumer products like CD players, and o +4dBu is the level for professional equipment such as preamplifiers, mixers, and outdoor equipment. +4 dBu on the VU meter equals 0 (fun fact).

Speaker Level: Finally, we come to the speaker level. The speaker level is where all of our signals are amplified to line level and ready to be delivered to speaker level. Because the voltage is very high, you must use special speaker wires to ensure that the signal travels safely from the interface to the speakers.

Instrument Level: Mic and line levels for instruments are balanced. An electric guitar or bass instrument generates this signal. Some interfaces have dedicated 1/4″ “Hi-Z” or high-impedance inputs for connecting devices. Others use a hybrid XLR/1/4″ input so that your microphone or plugin device allows you to choose between them. Achieving Line-Level

A small amount of device-level pre-amplification is required.

Line Level

Line level refers to the overall strength (amplitude) of audio signals from mixers, signal processors, and other consumer and professional audio equipment Consumer and professional line levels. There are two types of line levels. A signal at a level of -10 dBV is commonly called consumer line level (0.316). Consumer goods include, for example, CD players and DVD players. For example, signal processing equipment and professional mixing consoles are examples of professional line-level equipment.

Is the Line Level Signal Balanced or Unbalanced?

Line-out and line ports handle line-level audio signals. Line-level signals are transmitted between audio components such as audio amplifiers, mixers, televisions, and DVD players.

Technically, a line-level signal can be balanced or unbalanced. This is affected by the type of cable used to transmit or carry the line-level signal. Line-level signals are generally unbalanced and are mostly transmitted over 1/4″ and RCA cables. However, the line-level signals transmitted over the 14 TRS connections are balanced signals.

Noise and interference are unlikely to affect a balanced signal. Audio connections and cables indicate whether the audio signal is balanced or unbalanced. It makes no difference which ports the connector is placed on.

Balanced audio cables have three conductors inside a plastic outer jacket. The signal wires consist of two lines, with the ground wire being the third. These two signal lines send identical copies of the same signal but with different polarities.

On the other hand, unbalanced cables have only two conductors within a plastic outer sheath. The signal and ground wires are connected to these two wires. It is more susceptible to unbalanced cables than balanced cables.

Explanation of Line In

Most audio devices and systems have at least one Line of input. Line-in jacks are used in reverse on all audio devices. The line input is connected directly to the system’s sound processor or sound card when on a computer. A function on the computer reduces the volume and configures another setting on the input line.

Line jacks are found on most audio devices’ top, back, or sides. However, in terms of the system, it is basically secondary. And in the case of laptops, it is on the front of the laptop. The last port has the same appearance as the headset port, but the difference is that the latter is represented by the headset logo, while a circle with two forward-facing triangles represents the former. Inside and in blue.

Electronic signals exist at the line level. The line jack can be used to connect any audio device, such as headphones, portable music player, microphone, or more. When the motherboard has only four or six channels and no other connectors, the input jack can connect the rear speakers.

Audio Input

When using the input jack, this allows systems to accept audio input. This input is your voice, which can be recorded using a microphone. However, in many cases, the plugin can also be used to record an instrument. If you want to record audio, each device can be connected to an input port that can be used as a sound recorder, such as a Microsoft Sound Recorder, Audacity, or any other speaker.

Line Out

A line is an audio connector port that allows us to send line-level audio signals to other computing devices. Line-level signals are generally too strong to be transmitted without signal degradation.

You can locate the line outputs of keyboards, digital photos, guitars, bass amps or synthesizers, mixers, audio interfaces, and more. It helps in transferring audio signals from one device to another.

Using the amp’s line output, your guitar can carry sound from your amp to the mixer at any time. You can use this method to send an audio signal from the aux output of a mixer, which is usually a line output, to the input of your keyboard amplifier. You can use this method to send an audio signal from the aux output of a mixer, which is usually a line output, to the input of your keyboard amplifier.

You can also pronounce the Line out as audio output or sound out.

Difference between Line-out and Line-in

Each sound system’s input and output jacks are designed to work in opposite directions. Connect a line from one system to a line in a port on another. There are also technical differences between Line in and line out, e.g.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MIC-IN AND LINE-IN

A line-in (line input) is an audio connector found on audio interfaces, computer sound cards, and some mixers. It connects external audio devices such as musical instruments, microphones, or CD players (remember them?).

In contrast, a mic input is for a microphone: you plug a wired or wireless mic into a mic input. Not designed for line-level input microphones.

It can be tricky, but reading your product manual to determine the right input is the best way to understand your audio device. For example, many wireless receivers have different output levels. Reading the manual will ensure that you assemble it correctly and prevent any damage to your equipment.

KEY DIFFERENCES:

The line level signal is about one volt, about 1000 times larger than the microphone level signal. The two types of signals usually do not use the same inputs. This signal travels from your preamp to your amplifier.

You have RCA, quarter-inch, or 3.5mm jacks for line-level input. A female XLR connector is usually used for microphone-level input.

The line input in consumer and professional audio products is the highest preamplifier level. The small micro-in operates at 10 km, unlike the 600-1 km.

The mic input is an input designed to control the strength of the microphone-level signal (coming from the microphone), and the line input is designed to control the strength of the line-level signal, so when you Connect the microphone to the level input, then silence signal is indicated on the Line. So you can think of signal level as “loudness” if you want to keep things simple.

CAN YOU USE THE MIC IN A A LINE IN?

No, if you hit a line-level signal, it will overload. What you hear will be loud and distorted and can even damage your equipment.

It is possible to eliminate some of this distortion by reducing the level of the output source, but this will degrade the signal-to-noise ratio. You can use an attenuator or a two-port device with an attenuator to reduce the line-level signal by 50 dB.

CAN YOU USE INSTRUMENT LEVEL INSTEAD OF MIC LEVEL?

The machine-level signal sits between the microphone level and the line-level signal. Pre-amplification is still required to bring these signals up to line level. You face them when recording instruments like electric guitar or bass.

These devices are unbalanced, which can cause noise if long or poorly shielded cables are used.

The ones with pickups (guitar/bass) have a lot of impedance signals. If you run them through low-impedance inputs, you’ll cut out a lot of high-end detail. These problems can be solved with passive or active DI boxes such as the Countryman 85, Radial Pro DI, or Rupert Neve RNDI.

WHAT ABOUT PHONO INPUT?

This is for players/turntables. A special equalizer is required before the signal can be sent directly from the turntable to the amplifier. This is partly because the stylus can drop out if there is too much bass in the record, and it takes longer to record.

RIAA will implement equalization so that your recording sounds like high-fidelity audio. Some decks have already implemented this equalizer and have an alternate line, auxiliary output, or switch that allows the user to decide.

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Difference Between Line Out And Line In

The output and input ports are designed to work in reverse on each audio device. This is why the outer Line of a machine can be connected to the inner Line of another machine. Let’s examine some of the technical differences between these two audio ports.

Signal Direction

One difference between a line out and a line in is the direction of the signal. This signal direction refers to the signal path where the signal travels. The Line out is responsible for transmitting the audio signal from the audio device. On the other hand, line inputs are designed to feed signals to audio devices. They are in stark contrast with each other.

Simply put, the Line out is designed to act as a signal source, while the Line in acts as a load component or receiver of the audio signal.

Impedance

Impedance may seem technical to many. And you probably shouldn’t bother finding out. It’s not really useful for how you use those ports. However, since I’m talking about the difference between lines and internal lines, I might as well include it.

Impedance refers to an electrical component’s resistance to the current flow. Typically, the output impedance of line-out connections is between 100 ohms and 600 ohms.

On the other hand, the impedance of the line input connection is higher than that of the line output connection. The impedance of the line output is called the input impedance. Line input impedance is typically 10,000 ohms or more.

The impedance levels of the line inputs allow them to accept voltage levels within the range provided by the output lines.

Can I Use Line In as Line Out?

You cannot use an incoming line as an outgoing line. Since the input port circuit is designed to receive and receive audio signals, while the input port is designed to send audio signals, you can’t even use the Line as a line between ports.

The Line-in and Line ports for an audio device are connected differently. And the two port circuits are different. Audio devices connected to the line input receive sound, and then the signal is processed. A signal cannot be sent from an audio device with a line input.

The Line out, on the other hand, sends a pre-processed audio signal from the device to which it is connected. And they can’t get an audio signal anyway.

Do Speakers Go In Line Out Or Line In?

If your speaker is an active or powered speaker, you can connect it to a Line-out Active speaker with a built-in power amplifier that amplifies line-level sound from the line-out so that it can be played through your speakers. However, if the speaker is turned off, do not connect it to a Line-out or Line-in.

Neither Line in nor Line out should be used for passive speakers. This is because passive loudspeakers need an external power amplifier to drive them. And as I mentioned earlier in the article, the Line out doesn’t have a built-in power amp. So it can’t drive the speaker.

Thus, using passive speakers, you can connect a line to your audio device, sending the sound to the power amplifier Line In. The amplifier will amplify the line-level signal from the line output to the speaker-level signal. And then connect the speaker to the speaker output of the amplifier.

They go into the speaker port or speaker output of professional audio devices. Speaker outputs are ports designed to send signals to speakers capable of driving speakers. The line level signal is not strong enough to drive the speakers.

However, if your speakers are powered or active, you can plug them directly into the output. The difference between active speakers and passive speakers is that active speakers have built-in power amplifiers.

This means that when it receives a signal from the line output of your audio device, the built-in power amplifier amplifies the signal and then outputs it through your speakers.

When you connect the speaker to the Line, you will hear little or no sound from the speaker.

Do Headphones Go in Line Out or Line In?

The headphones do not go to line output or line input. This is because, as I said, there is no amplifier in the line-level port. Therefore, it is not powerful enough to drive headphones. You get little to no sound when you plug the headphones into the output.

I detailed this in my article, comparing line and headphone outs. You should really check it out.

The headphone jack is separate from the Line out. They have a built-in headphone amplifier. And headphones can and do work.

What’s the difference between mic and line level?

The difference between mic and line levels is that mic-level signals require high amplification levels while line-level signals do not. Microphone levels are based on weak electrical signals, usually generated by a microphone. Line levels are based on strong signals that can be reproduced through speakers such as DVD players, televisions, and mixing consoles.

For recording, the microphone input should be used to connect the microphone, while the line input should be used to connect the instrument. Some audio engineers distinguish between instrument-level signals and line-level signals, but most instrument microphones can be recorded well with little or no advantage, and analog synthesizers and digital pianos are huge. The same is true of plurality.

WRAPPING UP

With that, we’ve covered the basics of these two audio signals. I hope my “inputs” have been helpful.

I’ll leave you with a summary of the salient points to remember:

• Mic and Line have different signal levels (voltage).
• Mic-in is used for directly plugging in microphones, and line-in is for consumer and pro-grade gear.
• Mic-level signals are weak and line-level signals are strong.
• Mic inputs use a female XLR connector.
• Line inputs require RCA, ¼” phone jack, or 3.5 mm phone jack.
• A mic-level signal must be raised to a line-level signal through a preamp or mixer.