Headphones out to line out

[Pooh Bear]

Meindert Sprang wrote:

"martin griffith" <martingriffith@XXyahoo.co.uk> wrote in message
news:1jktd15psrvuefqgfm21ceqcvtdhhq4ebo@4ax.com...
On Wed, 20 Jul 2005 23:36:56 +0200, in sci.electronics.design Benjamin
Myklebust <benjaminmyklebust@yahoo.com> wrote:

My mp3 player only has a headphone jack. I suppose that is a current
signal? When I hook it up to the amplifier it sounds fuzzy. I guess it's
because it should be a voltage signal?

Is there a way to transform headphones to line out without turning the
world upsidedown?

Benjamin
MP3== fuzzy audio

That depeds on the compession of course. I have read about tests where
"audiophiles" got to listen to an top-notch CD player and an MP3 recording.
Many of them couldn't tell the difference and some even chose the MP3
recording to be the best.

Some ppl are also deaf it seems !

Graham

 

[Jim Thompson]

On Thu, 21 Jul 2005 04:56:25 +0100, Pooh Bear
<rabbitsfriendsandrelations@hotmail.com> wrote:

Jim Thompson wrote:

On Thu, 21 Jul 2005 01:06:55 GMT, Joerg
notthisjoergsch@removethispacbell.net> wrote:

Hello Jim,

I have an iPod Mini that I use for "books on tape" so I can "read"
while I fly. Sounds OK to me. But I did copy Rossini's "La Gazza
Ladra" on to it as a first test... sounded great, but what would I
know, I'm gradually losing my hearing ;-)

For speech they must be great. Even with music I am not too critical
since I listen to shortwave and AM a lot. Quality checks I have to do on
one ear since the other got a ding in the army when something went
weeeooouuu-kaboom.

Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com

I have the same sort of problem... left ear severely dinged, about 30
years ago, by over-pressure while testing a hearing aid compressor
circuit, by hammering on the bench while the earphone was in my ear...
blew a hole in my eardrum :-(

...Jim Thompson

Did you get any compensation for that ?

Graham

Yep, You're right, it needed a capacitor ;-)

Seriously, I was already a consultant... dinged on my own dime.

The design is one I have posted on A.B.S.E in the past. Works quite
nicely, even at 0.9V

...Jim Thompson
--
| James E.Thompson, P.E. | mens |
| Analog Innovations, Inc. | et |
| Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems | manus |
| Phoenix, Arizona Voice480)460-2350 | |
| E-mail Address at Website Fax480)460-2142 | Brass Rat |
| http://www.analog-innovations.com | 1962 |

I love to cook with wine. Sometimes I even put it in the food.

 

[Joerg]

Hello Keith,

I usually use 128K-192K for music and 32K for voice recordings and find
they are perfectly acceptable in the home, in the car and on
headphones.

Cell phone companies seem to think that a fraction of that 32K should be
acceptable :-(

Considering that speech is pretty recognizable over POTS at 7-bits by
8KHz (and far less than that usefull for *many* years), 32K should work
with some intelligent compression.

32K works well but my impression is that isn't what you get on many cell
phone connections. On POTS I can often recognize who is at the other end
by the time they said "Hello". Then when the same person calls me from a
cell phone many times I would not be able to recognize who it is if they
hadn't said their name. Words such as "car', "for", "more" sound almost
the same.

When talking about a diversity project an engineer who works in cell
system HW design told me that kB are to cell phone companies what money
is to us. The more paid minutes can be squeezed into a limited bandwidth
the higher the profits. It's like leg room on airplanes.

Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com

 

[Joerg]

Hello Graham,

Some ppl also like to be able to fit 50-100 tracks on a CD-ROM.

That is what I want to try out some day. The stereo we bought a few
years back can play MP3 CDs but I have never tried it. I don't want to
pay for songs again that I already have paid for on CD. Downloading from
clandestine sites is something I find unethical. Maybe there are sites
that have some free tunes just to try that out.

Foreign radio stations would be a source but they use a hodge podge of
standards. They don't seem to understand what MP3 could do for them.
Even the BBC doesn't. They have their own little player and when I load
it nothing happens.

Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com

 

[Joel Kolstad]

Joerg,

"Joerg" <notthisjoergsch@removethispacbell.net> wrote in message
news:_dUDe.19555$NU2.6748@newssvr13.news.prodigy.com...

Foreign radio stations would be a source but they use a hodge podge of
standards. They don't seem to understand what MP3 could do for them.

I'm not sure it could do all that much for them... I've yet to see am MP3
encoder that performs particularly well down in the, say, 16-64kbps range
(whereas at the original 'standard' of 128kbps, it sounds fine). On the other
hand, satellite radio uses something like 48kbps for the music channels (XM
using a variant of AAC, Sirius using something called PAC 4 that iBuquity
cooked up for them -- PAC 4 is purportedly a variable bit rate mode, though,
so the 48kbps rate is perhaps only an average), and the quality seems a lot
better than MP3 at similar data rates.

Even the BBC doesn't. They have their own little player and when I load
it nothing happens.

That's too bad. I suppose the demise of the BBC actually _broadcasting_ could
already have been seen years ago when they shut down the transmitters aimed at
the US.

---Joel

 

[Joerg]

Hello Joel,

Foreign radio stations would be a source but they use a hodge podge of
standards. They don't seem to understand what MP3 could do for them.

I'm not sure it could do all that much for them... I've yet to see am MP3
encoder that performs particularly well down in the, say, 16-64kbps range
(whereas at the original 'standard' of 128kbps, it sounds fine). On the other
hand, satellite radio uses something like 48kbps for the music channels (XM
using a variant of AAC, Sirius using something called PAC 4 that iBuquity
cooked up for them -- PAC 4 is purportedly a variable bit rate mode, though,
so the 48kbps rate is perhaps only an average), and the quality seems a lot
better than MP3 at similar data rates.

Sorry, I wasn't making myself clear enough. I meant for their webcasts.
On shortwave it should stay as is, plain old AM. Otherwise most
listeners in not-so-wealthy countries would be cut off. That is also one
reason why I believe DRM isn't a great idea for the short term. Or maybe
not at all.

That's too bad. I suppose the demise of the BBC actually _broadcasting_ could
already have been seen years ago when they shut down the transmitters aimed at
the US.

Actually I can receive them on shortwave quite well here in California.
Sometimes they also pipe their news into local FM stations.

Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com

 

[Ted Edwards]

Benjamin Myklebust wrote:

My mp3 player only has a headphone jack. I suppose that is a current
signal? When I hook it up to the amplifier it sounds fuzzy. I guess it's
because it should be a voltage signal?

Is there a way to transform headphones to line out without turning the
world upsidedown?

Your problem is one or more of:
the quality of the mp3 player
the quality of the mp3 source
the compatability of the levels
How are you hooking it up to the amplifier? i.e do you have line
input or are you using an input intended for a phongraph or microphone?

I have an IBM T23 ThinkPad. I have converted some of our CDs to mp3 and
written the mp3's to DVD so I can conveniently take some music with me
when away from home. At home, I can readily connect both our CD player
and the computer to line inputs on the stereo and do A-B comparisons.
They are pretty favourable. Now I'll admit that at 70 I can't hear
23KHz like I could at 25 but I still can hear and dislike any
appreciable distortion.

Ted

 

[Kevin]

Joerg wrote:

Hello Graham,

snip
Foreign radio stations would be a source but they use a hodge podge of
standards. They don't seem to understand what MP3 could do for them.
Even the BBC doesn't. They have their own little player and when I load
it nothing happens.

Regards, Joerg

The BBC use Real Audio, not any protocol of their own making. They

usually use 44kbps data rate - it sounds fine even for classical music,
if I want to record it I use Total Recorder to make a WAV or high bit
rate MP3 file.

The BBC did experiment with the open-source OGG Vorbis but that seems
to have stopped.

Their web site wraps up the Real Audio player into a pop-up window but
you can use the standard Real Audio interface if you want - just
extract the URL from the Web pages - it works fine with both Firefox
and Internet Explorer.

Although MP3 is the most widely known protocol the radio stations
usually use Real Audio or Microsoft WMA encoding as they work better at
the lower bit rates (8-44kbps) - I don't know of any other encoding
methods for normal radio stations (other than MP3 for some of them).

kevin

 

[Ted Edwards]

machonexyz42@hotmail.com wrote:

MP3 ain't CD quality, but its as good/or better than most radio to me.

Have you tried Ogg Vorbis?

Ted

 

[Rich Grise]

On Thu, 21 Jul 2005 21:13:30 +0000, Joerg wrote:

Hello Graham,

Some ppl also like to be able to fit 50-100 tracks on a CD-ROM.

That is what I want to try out some day. The stereo we bought a few years
back can play MP3 CDs but I have never tried it. I don't want to pay for
songs again that I already have paid for on CD. Downloading from
clandestine sites is something I find unethical. Maybe there are sites
that have some free tunes just to try that out.

Foreign radio stations would be a source but they use a hodge podge of
standards. They don't seem to understand what MP3 could do for them. Even
the BBC doesn't. They have their own little player and when I load it
nothing happens.

I guess I'm just one of the lucky ones. I live within hearing distance
of two - count 'em, two - classical music stations. I have a radio. I
can push the "on" button, and hear nice music, and if station A is
playing opera, which I hated before there was even such of a thing as
rap to hate, I can switch to station B, which usually has something
nice.

This[1] is a terribly handy thing for the destitute.

Cheers!
Rich
[1] Commercial broadcast FM radio, albeit station B is on some
college campus.

 

[Mark Zenier]

In article <_dUDe.19555$NU2.6748@newssvr13.news.prodigy.com>,
Joerg <notthisjoergsch@removethispacbell.net> wrote:

Hello Graham,

Some ppl also like to be able to fit 50-100 tracks on a CD-ROM.

That is what I want to try out some day. The stereo we bought a few
years back can play MP3 CDs but I have never tried it. I don't want to
pay for songs again that I already have paid for on CD. Downloading from
clandestine sites is something I find unethical. Maybe there are sites
that have some free tunes just to try that out.

Foreign radio stations would be a source but they use a hodge podge of
standards. They don't seem to understand what MP3 could do for them.
Even the BBC doesn't. They have their own little player and when I load
it nothing happens.

You're out of date. Just in the last few months, most of the shortwave
stations I listen to have set up Podcast web pages for MP3 download in
addition to their RealAudio and Windows Media streaming. Australia's
Radio National (which provides a lot of Radio Australia's programming)
has a bunch of their stuff online. (Adding a number of programs just
last week). Radio Netherlands provides just about everything as MP3
and even some Ogg Vorbis (the open source codec). And the Beeb has
a trial of several of the World Service's and some of their domestic
network's programs.

Rights negotiation seems to be a hassle. Some programs have to
edit out the stuff that they didn't get permission to put online.

Mark Zenier mzenier@eskimo.com Washington State resident

 

[keith]

On Thu, 21 Jul 2005 21:13:30 +0000, Joerg wrote:

Hello Graham,

Some ppl also like to be able to fit 50-100 tracks on a CD-ROM.

That is what I want to try out some day. The stereo we bought a few
years back can play MP3 CDs but I have never tried it. I don't want to
pay for songs again that I already have paid for on CD. Downloading from
clandestine sites is something I find unethical. Maybe there are sites
that have some free tunes just to try that out.

It's no different than downloading software from such sites, IMO.

Foreign radio stations would be a source but they use a hodge podge of
standards. They don't seem to understand what MP3 could do for them.
Even the BBC doesn't. They have their own little player and when I load
it nothing happens.

I download music from XM radio to CD. Most of the channels I listen to
don't walk all over the intros, making them recording friendly. The
quality isn't CD, rather more like FM. This doesn't matter much for the
'40s music, because of the recording technology. ...or the 90's, for
that matter. ;-)

--
Keith

 

[Ted Edwards]

Joerg wrote:

That is what I want to try out some day. The stereo we bought a few
years back can play MP3 CDs but I have never tried it. I don't want to
pay for songs again that I already have paid for on CD.

You don't have to. Despite what the record companies would like you to
believe, If you bought the CD, I believe the fair use provisions of
copyright law would see nothing wrong with copying your CDs to MP3s and
burning them to CDs or DVDs as long as you are not selling them or
giving them away. I do this so that I can play them on my laptop when
away from home.

Ted

 

[Pooh Bear]

Ted Edwards wrote:

Joerg wrote:
That is what I want to try out some day. The stereo we bought a few
years back can play MP3 CDs but I have never tried it. I don't want to
pay for songs again that I already have paid for on CD.

You don't have to. Despite what the record companies would like you to
believe, If you bought the CD, I believe the fair use provisions of
copyright law would see nothing wrong with copying your CDs to MP3s and
burning them to CDs or DVDs as long as you are not selling them or
giving them away. I do this so that I can play them on my laptop when
away from home.

For my part I duplicate my CDs for car use. I have no intention of exposing
the originals to possible damage in that environment.

Graham

 

[keith]

On Sun, 24 Jul 2005 03:09:11 +0100, Pooh Bear wrote:

Ted Edwards wrote:

Joerg wrote:
That is what I want to try out some day. The stereo we bought a few
years back can play MP3 CDs but I have never tried it. I don't want to
pay for songs again that I already have paid for on CD.

You don't have to. Despite what the record companies would like you to
believe, If you bought the CD, I believe the fair use provisions of
copyright law would see nothing wrong with copying your CDs to MP3s and
burning them to CDs or DVDs as long as you are not selling them or
giving them away. I do this so that I can play them on my laptop when
away from home.

For my part I duplicate my CDs for car use. I have no intention of exposing
the originals to possible damage in that environment.

I've done the same for several years. I keep the original in their cases
and take the coppies in a CD case in the car. I'm now copying the movies
I might want to watch more than once from HBO/Cinemax/whatever to DVD.
The "BetaMax decision" allows me to sleep well at night. I wish I could
copy my purchased DVDs too, but they've blocked that. ...until I figure
out how on the PC.

--
Keith

 

[Don Bowey]

On 7/23/05 8:30 PM, in article pan.2005.07.24.03.30.42.803701@att.bizzzz,
"keith" <krw@att.bizzzz> wrote:

On Sun, 24 Jul 2005 03:09:11 +0100, Pooh Bear wrote:


Ted Edwards wrote:

Joerg wrote:
That is what I want to try out some day. The stereo we bought a few
years back can play MP3 CDs but I have never tried it. I don't want to
pay for songs again that I already have paid for on CD.

You don't have to. Despite what the record companies would like you to
believe, If you bought the CD, I believe the fair use provisions of
copyright law would see nothing wrong with copying your CDs to MP3s and
burning them to CDs or DVDs as long as you are not selling them or
giving them away. I do this so that I can play them on my laptop when
away from home.

For my part I duplicate my CDs for car use. I have no intention of exposing
the originals to possible damage in that environment.

I've done the same for several years. I keep the original in their cases
and take the coppies in a CD case in the car. I'm now copying the movies
I might want to watch more than once from HBO/Cinemax/whatever to DVD.
The "BetaMax decision" allows me to sleep well at night. I wish I could
copy my purchased DVDs too, but they've blocked that. ...until I figure
out how on the PC.

It is very simple to rip your own DVDs. I do mine to make a copy that has
no previews of coming attractions, etc. When I put the ripped DVD copy in
the machine it starts with the movie I paid to see.

Don

 

[Lasse Langwadt Christense]

Ted Edwards <Ted_Espamless@telus.net> wrote in message news:<xCCEe.131628$HI.40279@edtnps84>...

Joerg wrote:
That is what I want to try out some day. The stereo we bought a few
years back can play MP3 CDs but I have never tried it. I don't want to
pay for songs again that I already have paid for on CD.

You don't have to. Despite what the record companies would like you to
believe, If you bought the CD, I believe the fair use provisions of
copyright law would see nothing wrong with copying your CDs to MP3s and
burning them to CDs or DVDs as long as you are not selling them or
giving them away. I do this so that I can play them on my laptop when
away from home.

Ted

But when the record companies realised the couldn't get around fair use, they
started adding copy protection and just be sure got a law that made breaking
such a protection a very serious crime ....

-Lasse

 

[keith]

On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 21:15:44 -0700, Don Bowey wrote:

On 7/23/05 8:30 PM, in article pan.2005.07.24.03.30.42.803701@att.bizzzz,
"keith" <krw@att.bizzzz> wrote:

On Sun, 24 Jul 2005 03:09:11 +0100, Pooh Bear wrote:


Ted Edwards wrote:

Joerg wrote:
That is what I want to try out some day. The stereo we bought a few
years back can play MP3 CDs but I have never tried it. I don't want to
pay for songs again that I already have paid for on CD.

You don't have to. Despite what the record companies would like you to
believe, If you bought the CD, I believe the fair use provisions of
copyright law would see nothing wrong with copying your CDs to MP3s and
burning them to CDs or DVDs as long as you are not selling them or
giving them away. I do this so that I can play them on my laptop when
away from home.

For my part I duplicate my CDs for car use. I have no intention of exposing
the originals to possible damage in that environment.

I've done the same for several years. I keep the original in their cases
and take the coppies in a CD case in the car. I'm now copying the movies
I might want to watch more than once from HBO/Cinemax/whatever to DVD.
The "BetaMax decision" allows me to sleep well at night. I wish I could
copy my purchased DVDs too, but they've blocked that. ...until I figure
out how on the PC.

It is very simple to rip your own DVDs. I do mine to make a copy that has
no previews of coming attractions, etc. When I put the ripped DVD copy in
the machine it starts with the movie I paid to see.

What software do you use? I really need something that works under Linux
though. My Windoze system is too far out of date (K6-III/400) to bother
puting DVD drives in it.

--
Keith

 

[Don Bowey]

On 7/24/05 8:15 AM, in article pan.2005.07.24.15.15.47.299126@att.bizzzz,
"keith" <krw@att.bizzzz> wrote:

On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 21:15:44 -0700, Don Bowey wrote:

On 7/23/05 8:30 PM, in article pan.2005.07.24.03.30.42.803701@att.bizzzz,
"keith" <krw@att.bizzzz> wrote:

On Sun, 24 Jul 2005 03:09:11 +0100, Pooh Bear wrote:


Ted Edwards wrote:

Joerg wrote:
That is what I want to try out some day. The stereo we bought a few
years back can play MP3 CDs but I have never tried it. I don't want to
pay for songs again that I already have paid for on CD.

You don't have to. Despite what the record companies would like you to
believe, If you bought the CD, I believe the fair use provisions of
copyright law would see nothing wrong with copying your CDs to MP3s and
burning them to CDs or DVDs as long as you are not selling them or
giving them away. I do this so that I can play them on my laptop when
away from home.

For my part I duplicate my CDs for car use. I have no intention of exposing
the originals to possible damage in that environment.

I've done the same for several years. I keep the original in their cases
and take the coppies in a CD case in the car. I'm now copying the movies
I might want to watch more than once from HBO/Cinemax/whatever to DVD.
The "BetaMax decision" allows me to sleep well at night. I wish I could
copy my purchased DVDs too, but they've blocked that. ...until I figure
out how on the PC.

It is very simple to rip your own DVDs. I do mine to make a copy that has
no previews of coming attractions, etc. When I put the ripped DVD copy in
the machine it starts with the movie I paid to see.

What software do you use? I really need something that works under Linux
though. My Windoze system is too far out of date (K6-III/400) to bother
puting DVD drives in it.

I use MacTheRipper, which is freeware, with my Mac computers.

If you google "rip dvd" and "free rip dvd" you will find many for PC
operating systems.

Don

 

[JeffM]

Downloading from clandestine sites is something I find unethical.
Maybe there are sites that have some free tunes just to try that out.
Joerg

Yup.

..
..
:It's no different than downloading software from such sites, IMO.
: Keith Williams
:
Well, yes and no. (Think: Debian, OpenOffice.org, Mozilla... vs. M$)
**You're** talking about the buggy whip manufacturers of the music
business.

Here is a company whose business model isn't mired in the 1920s:
http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:E5P0M-1ZsxkJ:magnatune.com/+Artists-keep-half-of-every-purchase+Listen-to-*-complete-MP3-albums+for-as-little-as-$5

They allow you to preview their artists' efforts in their entirety.
(Try before you buy--just as any good record shop would.)
This site gets back to the original concept of Copyright[1]
(before the RIAA/MPAA perverted it beyond recognition).
..
..
[1]tiding a creative type over until he can complete his next work
--not an excuse to be perpetually lazy and unproductive