Hi Guys
I wanted to setup an lcd tv directly to a computer with hdmi and i also want to setup 5.1 channel speakers, now this leaves me with a problem as i have no amplifier or dvd player(i will use comp as dvd player) to plug the speakers into.
So how can i setup the speakers if i have no amplifier, will i have to run it directly from an additonal sound card or is there another way of doing it, i would prefer not to get an additional sound card if i didnt have to.

Thanks for the Help

Nev

What sort of sound card do you have, on-board or PCI or USB and how many sound outputs do you have from the back of your PC or USB device ?

What is your current setup regarding sound, assuming you will use the TV set as the monitor be it hdmi or dvi or VGA connection ?

Regards

SuatCINI

Have you read the motherboard manual to ascertain the type of Sound Chip, if it is onboard, you have ?

Manufacturer/Model is not Pentium that is a Brand Names for CPU's

Further to my post #1 above, I have a simple on-board AC'97 chipset. My M/B manual reads, Step 1: Connect the front channels to LINE OUT, the rear channels to LINE IN, and center/subwoofer channels to MIC IN. Step 2: Click Sound Effect icon in Control Panel, click Speaker Configuration, and then select UAJ function and select 6CH Speaker to complete 6 channel audio configuration. ( UAJ means Universal Audio Jack, meaning the 3.5 mm jacks at the back of the PC case function according to what is connected to them. So a microphone jack becomes a speaker jack if a speaker is connected to it a mic jack if a mic is connected. )

Hope the above ambiguous info helps. Also remember what is said above applies to my M/B.

Regards

SuatCINI

Thanks for the quick reply,
Great Point on the built in Sound Card, i just read my manual and it does in fact support surround sound( i thought it only supports a crappy 2 channel,)
Would i get a much better quality sound if i got an amplifier to run between the comp and speakers or is it a waste of money? I am using just a standard 5.1 surround setup with a subwoofer and 5 speakers.

Thanks

Yes, of course. If you buy an amplifier that has the capability of decoding dolby digital or DTS encoded sound signals, then you should also buy a PC component that has S/PDIF output. This PC component is something like a PCI card but is not a PCI card. It only connects to the sound output on your M/B and is fixed to the PC case. Then using a coaxial dolby digital audio cable, you can send bitstream signals to your DD/DTS amplifier.

This way your PC acts like a standalone DD/DTS DVD player. In the future, you add a blueray or HD DVD disk player/recorder to your PC, then you can get HD playback on your TV. I assume your PC has the power to process Hi-Def signals and your TV set and your graphics card have HDCP ( Hi-Def digital content protection ) capability.

Hope the above helps.

Regards

SuatCINI