Desktop audio setup with pass through headphone mic?

Hardware
1

I’m sick of the little in line 4 prong to usb dac that my headphones have and want to upgrade my audio setup. Atm my computer uses a Bose bluetooth speaker which is less than ideal since I always have to turn it on when i startup my computer…

Ideally I want to have a thingy that will send audio to speakers and will allow me to divert audio to headphone when they are plugged in BUT also passes back headphone mic to the computer via a 4 prong 3.5mm jack. Oh and not looking like a mess it a plus :slight_smile:

I was looking at the Schiit MAGNI 3 and MODI 2 Uber combo but it looks like it wouldn’t give my computer mic audio. Then I looked at the Bose Companion 50 which I have had good experiences with but again it looks like there is no mic information going back to the computer… Any advice?

2

Just to make sure I understood you correctly: 1 input (mic), 2 outputs (speakers & headphones)

Focusrite has the Scarlett 2i2 wich does 2 inputs and 2 outputs. Audiojacks are 6.3mm jacks or XLR though (might need some adapters), interface to computer is USB 2.0 reducing cable clutter.

1 Like
3

The Mayflower Arc might be a solution for you too.

Alternatively the Sennheiser GSX (with a 3.5mm to RCA adapter).

4

audio from computer to a box which sends audio to speakers or headphones (when connected) but also allows mic input from the headphones to the computer. The headphones have the 4 pin connector that you can shove into a phones 3.5mm jack

5

You may have to split that up to make it compatible with standard audio equipment.

1 Like
6

I recently got the SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless headset. The base station/DAC plugs in via USB and it has a 3.5mm line out that I run to my desktop amp that powers a set of Infinity speakers and sub. It swaps the output over automatically when the headset is powered on. It also has bluetooth so you can also connect your phone and run pc audio and phone audio through the headset simultaneously. The headset is much more comfortable than the previous Siberia 800 design. The sound quality and volume output are also much improved.

I still use Mayflower Objective2 DAC & Amp when I want to listen to my FLAC collection since I have several different types headphones but the Arctis Pros work great as a general purpose headset and you don’t won’t to deal with a bunch of cables. The draw back is that they are not cheap.

7

https://passthroughpo.st/wp-admin/post.php?post=1154&action=edit

guide to setting up a hardware solution on a small budget