I would suggest trying going straight into the mixing desk/audio interface 1st...
if that clips then try attenuation on the way out...
if you still have noise then try an isolated output module
you will almost definitely need some form of amplification on the way in though
"some of the best base-level info to remember can be found in Jim's sigfile" @Lugia
Utility modules are the dull polish that makes the shiny modules actually shine!!!
sound sources < sound modifiers < modulation sources < utilities