How do aux cords work?
In: Technology
Sound is carried as an electrical signal through most simpler audio equipment. Sound is the movement of air many times per second which can be translated to electricity varying many times per second, and that electricity can be used to move a speaker, reproducing those vibrations and therefore reproduce the sound.
For an electrical signal you need a ground, neutral, or “reference” wire – an electrical signal can only make sense or be used when compared to some baseline voltage.
You have one ground then one more active wire to carry a sound signal. But most audio recordings and playback systems including headphones have 2 speakers, left and right. So there is one shared neutral and 2 active signal wires for left/right and that is how the 3 contacts on an aux plug and 3 wires in the cable carry sound for the left and right side.
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