I have a 21" iMac that still has the TRS audio input. I use it to record analog audio, which I feed into Amadeus and then send to my 27" iMac via Bluetooth. It is a decidedly cumbersome and time-consuming process.

Does anyone have experience with any devices that would allow audio to be transferred directly from the analog device using a TRS or TRRS connector to a USB input?

I have two USB audio inputs for my iMac: an external CD/DVD burner and a Cambridge Audio DacMagic 100 DAC. I use the DAC for output to an amplifier and speakers, but I guess I could plug a tuner or other device to the amp and play it via the dac. There are cheaper DACs, that's for sure.

That DacMagic is quite an impressive device but it has the audio going the wrong way for me. I should have explained better. My challenge is that, like many other iMac users, I cannot send analog audio into the 27" iMac via a 1/8" plug-in on the back of the machine because Apple stopped providing that kind of input. I'm forced to send it into a 21" machine (which has an 1/8" plug-in) for digitization and then re-send the product to the 27" via Bluetooth.

Therefore, what I'd like to do is: Plug my analog output (on a 1/8" plug) into a device that would digitize the signal. That device would have an output acceptable to an input on the 27" iMac, like a USB.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/TROND-External-Adapter-Integrated-Microphone/dp/B07L56C28R?ref_=ast_sto_dp

This sort of thing?

Thanks for looking around but I don't think this one addresses my issue.. This device talks about "(integrated audio OUT & mic IN" when I want to send audio into the machine. This device appears to be for gamers who have a bad audio card in their machine.

Or, perhaps this sort. Your suggestion got me thinking, maybe I should drop the obsession with being attached by a wire. Perhaps going in via Bluetooth is just as good, and less messy. And, who knows? As a bonus, if I can locate a female to female adapter, I can probably make my old AKG K240 headset mobile.

Thanks for the nudge.

Ha! All this tech out there we didn't know we needed!

Well, the device arrived quickly enough. Now all I need is to be able to get it to work. The extremely spare instructions are not at all helpful but, with something as simple as choosing between transmit or receive and automaticity with Bluetooth connecting, it should be a cakewalk. After an hour of attempts I finally thought that my iMac may have an issue with receiving Bluetooth signals, so I checked with a wireless keyboard. It connected in a flash.

Rats.

I looked at the reviews for this product and in some of them there is a problem with connecting.

There was also a suggestion to press and hold the Bluetooth connection button for 7 seconds to reset it, then try again.

Since I first saw your post, I've been on a mission to find out if there's a replacement for the venerable Griffin iMic (which isn't supported past Sierra), and I fiiinally found
Behringer UCA202/
BEHRINGER 2 in/2 Out USB Audio Interface with Digital Output, 2 x RCA Phono
which LOOKS TO ME like it's what you're looking for.

There may be other solutions, but I've spent so much time finding this one that I'm beat from searching.

I can attest to that. I never did get it to transmit to the iMac and I once got it to receive from the iMac. Other than that, a lot of trying this, trying that.....to no avail. I have since got my money back.

Hot damn...that looks perfect. I've already put one in my cart....and I've got the adapters to go from the RCA to 1/8" TRS. Perfect. And the USB connection is icing on the cake. No, wait, more icing....it's six bucks cheaper that the Bluetooth unit that doesn't work.
Well, if we ever meet I'll buy you a beer or two. Thanks very much.

This was one of the most exhausting Google searches I've ever embarked on. Google has, indeed, got all the answers, but ONLY if you ask it the precise right questions.

Thanks for the beer offer, but if I visit my daughter in Tacoma - much closer to Okanagan Valley than Brooklyn - to split the distance difference we'll be stuck meeting in Idaho, and I wouldn't set foot in Idaho for the last beer on Earth.

That got me thinking... I suspect that you may need some sort of preamp functionality to go from RCA to TRS, so you may need to cable up to your preamp or, as the case may be, stereo rather than directly to your turntable. (That's how the iMic worked, anyhow.)

I just looked again and realized that the UCA 202 has got RCA ports, so now I'm not sure what's up. I guess I read your response backwards.

The Griffin had 1/8" ports.

Griffin iMic

I bought a Griffin iMic in 2009. It was an excellent product. I used it to transfer 300 90-minutes audio tape cassettes to mp3 files. I loaned it to my brother-in-law and never saw it again.

I have no more audio tapes to convert, not even a cassette player to play them on, so no need any more. Still, I'd like to know what he did with it...

Side bar: two audio software products I can recommend: Audio Hijack and Amadeus Pro

I got a ton of use out of my iMic. It was a great product.

I started out with Griffin's proprietary Final Vinyl software, but was much happier after I switched to the Audio Hijack (Pro, at the time)/Fission combo. I looked at Amadeus, but it seemed like it would have been redundant.

I've still got vinyl that I never imported, and now that I've learned that it's easily done with the UCA 202 I can feel even worse about not having done/doing it. (My Dual 1249 still runs after ~50 years, and its built in strobe indicates that the [once replaced] drive belt is still functional, but I think my cartridge has disintegrated after all those years. Can such a thing happen?)

I had that turntable at one time! As to the cartridge, the stylus should not wear out from age, just from use. But, the glues that hold the parts together might be susceptible to age-related deterioration (just a guess).

I use Audio Hijack to record the source, usually tunes from the internet. Then I open the file in Amadeus Pro and chop it into tracks. You can save the new files in any number of formats, any kind of quality.

I like to record Wally Whyton's Country Music Hour (now Bob Harris) from the BBC. Chop out the tracks that I like and create hi-res mp3 files for the car. If the announcer talks over the end of the track, you can chop it at the voiceover, then create a gradual fade out for, say, five seconds. I find Amadeus really useful. I think if you want to edit tracks in Audio Hijack, you have to buy their Fission app.

The stylus is either sapphire or diamond, neither of which is susceptible to deterioration, but, as you've said, the guts of the cartridge itself are a-whole-nother matter.

I went for the AHP/Fission package because AHP has got the wonderful feature that allows recording from multiple sources at the same time. I can record a stream on Safari, another on Firefox, a piece from Amazon music, the conversation in my room, et al, all at once.

I'm with you on country music for driving!

The device has arrived and it works like a 'hot damn'. It is currently transferring audio from a voice recorder directly into my 27" iMac, which does not have an audio input. It is vastly superior to the first device I tried - the bluetooth 1Mii Wireless Transponder. Three cheers for wired connections.

YAAAY!

There’s an interesting thing that happens with the sound inputs and outputs. Normally my computer’s Sound Prefs Input screen shows:

Internal Microphone Built-in
USB AUDIO CODEC USB

However with the Behringer device plugged in, there is a second CODEC, auto-selected with 'audio' in lower case.

USB Audio CODEC USB

Correspondingly, Sound Prefs Output shows:

Internal Speakers Built-in
USB Audio CODEC USB
USB AUDIO CODEC USB

I didn’t touch any of the above, figuring the iMac and the device probably know what they’re doing, so I let them be. My Amadeus prefs were different than normal with the lnput showing something new and quite different - “System Default” in bold lettering, auto-selected.

To record an on-line meeting, my signal path was iPad headset out (TRS connector) - to Behringer input (RCA phono plugs) - to iMac USB (on the back of the Mac, not a hub) - and everything appeared as expected in Amadeus Pro. I could monitor either by the iMac speakers or a headset output on the device. No need for extra software, new drivers, nada. It just worked.

After the session, my computer’s Input and Output screens in Sound Prefs reverted to normal settings.

One hint for anyone else who wants to get this device (which I heartily endorse) and who uses similar routing as me, you will not have input level controls in Amadeus. You will have the Amadeus VU meters showing what is incoming, but the controls will be locked. Your input level control will be the headset volume control on the originating machine.

Extras: For those with broader needs than mine (e.g. musicians) the Behringer device has additional outputs for other distribution….RCA phono and Optical. Nice.