On Feb 27, 4:06 pm, AZ Nomad <aznoma...@PremoveOBthisOX.COM> wrote:
> On Wed, 27 Feb 2008 13:07:31 -0600, John Carrier <j...@comcast.net> wrote:
> >"AZ Nomad" <aznoma...@PremoveOBthisOX.COM> wrote in message
> >news:slrnfs84af.c2u.aznomad.2@ip70-176-155-130.ph.ph.cox.net...
> >> On Tue, 26 Feb 2008 06:56:15 -0600, John Carrier <j...@comcast.net> wrote:
> >>>There's a dedicated I/O cable to convert the 3.5mm minijack output to coax
> >>>and/or toslink digital for your receiver.
>
> >> Not very dedicated. It's just a stereo miniplug to stereo RCA cable.
>
> >> The sound blasters typically output front and rear stereo s/pdif -- two
> >> s/pdif outputs, each with left and right data.
> >I'll be more specific. It's a digital I/O cable that connects to the
> >digital miniplug on the card, has a couple inch cable and then a housing
> >that has (IIRC) two coax and two toslink connectors. You can also get a
> >converter that takes a mono miniplug input from the card's digital output
> >and converts it to either a single coax or (depending on converter) a single
> >toslink output. The multi-output card has more flexibility.
> >R / John
> >> If you use a mono adapter, you've shorted the two together and won't
> >> get anything working. A stereo adapter will let you select the front
> >> left+right or the rear left+right.
>
> >> Get a different sound card if you want 5.1.
> >Soundblaster Live! and Audigy both offer 5.1 output through the digital
> >output. If I were seriously pursuing best possible 5.1 or 6.1 or 7.1
> >output, I'd agree, I'd get the newer Xtreme Music card or similar.
>
> Last time I checked (I admit that it was about 4 years ago), creative had
> separate models of the soundblaster live. Only the soundblaster live had a
> 5.1 output offered. Creative's computer speakers use the same weird dual
> stereo s/pdif for 4 channel sound.
OK, I got it working. Evidently the solution is to use a mono 3.5mm
jack into the sound card to RCA into the receiver digital coax plug.
I used a female RCA to 3.5mm male (mono) adapter and a good RCA male
to RCA male cable to do this. The receiver now sees my 5.1 DVD's
played on the computer as Dolby Digital and the sound is great. Plus,
it was only $10. Also, the settings in the MS sound control panel
applet have to have the "digital only" box checked and the application
(WinDVD 8.0) has to support it. If I watch the DVD in WMP or VLC, I
don't get it.
Downloaded movies still don't give it to me, but who knows how they
were ripped.
Thanks for all the advice.
-Jim