13" line in/out audio port vs dedicated audio ports on 15"

[PAC88]

when you're recording, will the sound quality of the dual function line in audio port on the 13" be as good as the dedicated one on the 15"?

edit: the reason I'm wondering is because I want to convert old collections of vinyl records into digital copies at the highest quality possible and need to know if the 'line in' on the 13" will work good for that.

 

[jedivulcan]

The 13" MacBook Pro does NOT support an optical digital line in (at least from the specifications page) whereas the 15" MacBook Pro does.

The 15" MacBook Pro does support the newer Apple earbuds with microphone/controller though (at least the volume controls)... haven't tried the microphone.

I have both 13" and 15" models... I haven't had a problem with the 13" having one jack. I like having the 15" though because I can concurrently output to speakers while having an open input jack for recording.

 

[PAC88]

maybe I just need a 15" AG like I originally planned

The 13" MacBook Pro does NOT support an optical digital line in (at least from the specifications page) whereas the 15" MacBook Pro does.

wow, I had no idea the 15" can use fibre optic cables?? this is the first time I've heard that before. That means I might start using my mini discs again with the 15" through optical cables lol.. I thought all the MBP only used analog signals for the audio ports.. so that's just the 13" then.. interesting

does anyone know about sound quality though.. is the analog line in on the 13" as good as using analog in on the 15"? since it's a shared port on the 13", do you have to go into settings and change it back and forth from input/output?

thanks

 

[jedivulcan]

wow, I had no idea the 15" can use fibre optic cables?? this is the first time I've heard that before. That means I might start using my mini discs again with the 15" through optical cables lol.. I thought all the MBP only used analog signals for the audio ports.. so that's just the 13" then.. interesting

does anyone know about sound quality though.. is the analog line in on the 13" as good as using analog in on the 15"? since it's a shared port on the 13", do you have to go into settings and change it back and forth from input/output?

thanks

The 13" does support digital optical out too...

13" supports optical out and analog in/out

15" supports digital and analog in/out

As far as the 13" analog audio out quality. It's fine. Mac OS X automatically detects the newer iPod earbuds (with the controls/mic) and there's a custom setting for it. It simultaneously supports audio in and audio out + iTunes and Volume controls in that instance, which I thought was neat.. I did notice some noise... but I don't know if it's because I checked the "Sound Check" option in OS X or whether it's the earbuds or music bitrate... going to do a bit of comparative testing.

I've used optical out with my 15" and it's pretty good. You need a TOS-LINK to 1/8th mini-optical jack adapter so it fits in the port. You can't control the volume through OS X's volume buttons.