Discussion Multiple stereo output to one stereo input

[Ujjwal Kumar Das]

Hi,

I am trying to combine multiple stereo sources into one stereo output. Specifically, I have digital tabla and a keyboard both with 3.5mm aux output. I am trying to get audio from these two sources into the external speaker which has one 3.5mm aux in.

I know the ideal solution is to pass through these audio into a proper two channel audio mixer which generally have 1/4 inch TRS inputs rather than aux. Apart from that, is there any shortcut solution for this?

Thanks in advance.

Ujjwal Kumar Das

 

[thecoolnessrune]

Unless your shortcut is swapping cables around, the only reliable way to get both of these sources working simultaneously is to use a mixer. You have to have something to isolate the grounds, otherwise if you just connect everything to each other with a Y adapter, you short your two inputs together. You'll get lower input signal levels, higher distortion, and it may not work at all. In worst cases on poorly protected equipment, you'll damage it.

If you want cable spaghetti, you can use adapters and break your equipment into mono left and right signals, since those instruments don't need stereo anyways. Get a 3.5mm --> RCA Stereo breakout cable. Get 2 3.5mm --> Mono adapters. Connect the mono adapters to your equipment, and use an RCA cable to connect each instrument to either the left or right channel. If it's a single external speaker, your speaker will be fusing these signals back together anyways. If it's a stereo speaker setup, you'll get 1 instrument from one speaker, and the 2nd instrument from the other speaker.

If you don't have all these adapters handy, then in the time it takes to aquire them, you're not far off simply getting a Behringer MX400 micromixer and some TRS adapters.