Cable problem - 3.5mm Plug to 2 RCA Phono Plugs Cable

[Ulysses]

Hi
Hope someone can shed some light on this.

I have dusted down my old tape deck and connected it to the pc to digitise my cassettes. The cable I used is rather basic and the 3.5 mm plug that fits into the line in on the pc is a loose fit so I decided to buy another cable but the 3.5 mm plug on the new cable is also a loose fit. I’ve tried them both also on the laptop line in and that is also a loose fit.

Is this a typical problem with this type of plug, or perhaps the problem is with laptop and pc line in sockets?

thanks

[synsei]

If you use the Line In sockets regularly on both your PC and lappy then it is entirely possible that the loose fit is due to wear and tear on these sockets. Motherboards are generally built with VFM in mind so component quality isn't always top draw.

[Ulysses]

Ah, that got me thinking. Both have had light usage, so I've tested the cable on an old pc and found that the 3.5mm plug fits more snugly.

Does seem like it's due to variable pc component quality. The motherboard on both my main pc, old pc and laptop is ASUS which is supposed to be one of the better MB on the market.

Seems like the only solution is to source a sound card, assuming of course that the line in socket on these is made to more precise tolerances.