Advanced question: Looping sound from PC to Mac Mini M1.

[NikoBeaR]

Here's a question about the M1 I haven't seen asked or answered:

I've been using my Mac Mini 2012 religiously for 8 years and it's time for an upgrade. 1 definite setback for me is that there's no line in port.
This is my current setup:
PC sound > Mac Mini Line In jack> Rogue Amoeba Loopback > Boom 3D (enhances) > Mac Mini Headphone jack > headphones

The way I have it setup now is that I use an amazing app called Rogue Amoeba Loopback to take the PC sound from my line and 'loop' both channels back to my Line out through "Boom 3D" which enhances the sound, and the sound is passed to my headphone jack.

This way I'm able to use my Sennheiser headphones for both Mac & PC at the same time without switching audio between each (which wouldn't work for my use case).

Since the new Mac Mini only has headphone out, is there any way to accomplish this on the Mac Mini M1 without a giant mixer? I looked at various adapters on Amazon like these, but they're not Line In friendly.

CableCreation USB Audio Adapter External Sound Card with 3.5mm Headphone and Microphone Jack Compatible with Windows, Mac, macOS, Linux, PS4, PS5, Plug and Play, Aluminum Black

Say goodbye to tangled wires and enjoy hassle-free audio connectivity with our USB to 3.5mm jack audio adapter - perfect for laptops, smartphones, and other devices Improving audio quality on laptops and desktops Connecting headsets with separate microphone and headphone jacks Clear sound quality...

smile.amazon.com

Plugable USB Audio Adapter with 3.5mm Speaker-Headphone and Microphone Jack, Add an External Stereo Sound Card to Any PC, Compatible with Windows, Mac, and Linux - Driverless

The Plugable external sound card (USB-AUDIO) is an easy way to instantly gain a headphone and a microphone jack to your existing USB audio class enabled system - easy headphone jack to USB connection. Featuring a clean, compact black design, this USB audio adapter installs without needing to load...

www.amazon.com

PS: I know Loopback isn't compatible with M1 yet but will be soon...

 

[NikoBeaR]

Darn, it's not looking good for this. I haven't seen anyone have similar use cases. The only thing I found from Apple support forums is the Griffin iMic which is discontinued and close to $100 (!).

Since the Mac Mini M1 has no "input" ports, I don't see how I can send the sound from the PC. It looks like the only way to do this is to have the PC accept the Mac's sound and use an app like Virtual Audio Cable to route the sound. I love the Loopback app since it just worked

EDIT: I have an old Behringer UB802 mixer that might be the only hardware solution to this. Plug both Mac & PC into it and the headphones to the mixer.