T42 Sound Problem

[zeus95]

When I plug a pair of headphones all the way into the audio out port of a T42 (MODEL #2373-5TU), I only get sound coming out of one side of it. When I pull it out a little bit, though, I get sound through both speakers, although the sound is of terrible quality. If I plug the same headphones all the way into a T40 (2373-72U), the sound coming out is normal. What could be wrong with the T42? Thanks.

[GomJabbar]

The problem is most likely with the jack itself. If you can get to the jack from the inside of the laptop, you can make sure the contacts are clean, and bend them slightly to make more forceful contact with the plug. There is also a chance that one of the wires to the jack has a poor connection. Check these and repair if necessary.

[Flightvector]

I think GomJabbar is right about the jack. The way the headphone jack works is the reason that pushing in too much can cause a single side to cut off. If you look at the jack, you will notice that there are 2 distinct rings on it. One channel uses the contacts on a different section of the jack than the other, the split indicated by these rings. One of the contacts may have some issue.

Which headphones are these, and does this happen just the same with different headphones? If so, that would be concerning; there can be minor differences between different jacks, but this horrible sound quality is not usual. What does it sound like to your best description, and are you sure that both sides are garbled? Try playing with L/R balance to figure this out for sure. If you do get perfect sound, if only in one ear, and then get garbled sound in that same ear after shifting the jack, I would rule out the soundcard for causing any of your issues.