Are front audio pin-outs only available when using onboard sound?

[Chumster]

I'm not sure if my question is motherboard manufacturer specific, but I was wondering if front audio headers can be used even when not using the onboard sound. I'm dissapointed with my motherboard's (Asus K8V SE Deluxe) sound, but enjoy the convenience of the front jacks.

If they will pass through any sound, then I'll grab a cheap Live! or Audigy. Appreciate the help!

Chum

 

[Odeen]

Some soundcards have "OEM-only" use headers. My Audigy2 ZS has a white 10x1 pin block, as does the Turtle Beach Santa Cruz.

Dell, etc use that pin block to connect front audio ports. However, the layout is completely different, as is the pin pitch. Read this: http://forums.devhardware.com/t15584/s.html.

Note: None of the other soundcards I've ever owned have this pin block. The cards that verifiedly don't have it:
Power Blaster 8-bit SB clone
Sound Blaster Pro
Sound Blaster AWE32
Sound Blaster Live! (non-5.1) model CT4620
Hercules Game Theater XP (has outputs on the external rack)
Audigy2 Platinum (ditto)

I have not owned a Live! 5.1 or a non-Platinum Audigy or Audigy2, so the only two cards I can verify the presence of the pins on are the Audigy2 ZS and the TBSC

I also have NOT found the proper pin header for the block. Requested a bunch of samples from Molex, and so far - nada.

 

[Chumster]

I was actually talking about the headers that are on the motherboard itself. They work if I use the onboard sound, but I'm not sure they will work if I plug in another sound card.

 

[Odeen]

You can leave onboard audio enabled, thus enabling the headers. However, you can only play sound through one sound device at a time, so if you're playing it on an external sound card, it won't go to the onboard audio.

Windows sound mapping has supported multiple sound adapters for a loooooong time now.

 

[Ethex]

I can't speak to the headers working with another soundcard but my SB Live runs my normal speakers and my onboard sound runs the tiny monitor speakers for when I don't need the big sound( the cord is just barely short of reaching the SB). They both play the same thing at the same time but I have never tried to send diferent things to the diferent outputs. I would guess that the headers inside would be enabled with the rest of the onboard sound as Odeen stated.

 

[Unforgiven]

Originally posted by: Ethex
I can't speak to the headers working with another soundcard but my SB Live runs my normal speakers and my onboard sound runs the tiny monitor speakers for when I don't need the big sound( the cord is just barely short of reaching the SB). They both play the same thing at the same time but I have never tried to send diferent things to the diferent outputs. I would guess that the headers inside would be enabled with the rest of the onboard sound as Odeen stated.

its possible to run both a pci sound card AND onboard sound without issues? ive never heard of this being done, but i run a sound blaster live value! card and have disabled onboard sound on my asus k8v se because of sound cracks and pops. if this is true, id sure like to try it, but i was always under the impression that you can use pci or onboard sound and not both....

 

[Ethex]

I have a Soyo Dragon K7 ? (I think) works well with the SB Live in the PCI slot furthest from the AGP

 

[Unforgiven]

thats awesome! i never knew that you could do that. i have a front panel for my headphones but ive never used it because i run a pci sound card due to poor onboard sound quality. learned something new :beer:

 

[Mr J]

Originally posted by: Odeen
I also have NOT found the proper pin header for the block. Requested a bunch of samples from Molex, and so far - nada.

I did a bit of research a while back.

I think this is the connector
http://www.jst-mfg.com/ProductGuideE/EPH-D.html

But I can't find anywhere to get one in Australia

 

[VirtualLarry]

Originally posted by: Unforgiven
its possible to run both a pci sound card AND onboard sound without issues? ive never heard of this being done, but i run a sound blaster live value! card and have disabled onboard sound on my asus k8v se because of sound cracks and pops. if this is true, id sure like to try it, but i was always under the impression that you can use pci or onboard sound and not both....

Yep, you can. An application only uses one or the other at one time, generally, but you can have two applications running, each using one of the sound devices. You can send the line-out of one of the devices to the line-in or aux-in of the other, and enable analog passthough, so you still only need one set of speakers connected. You can set the default/"preferred" sound device in the Multimedia/Sounds control panel.

Mobo front-panel sound connectors are only usable by the onboard sound though, which is why I recommend the line-out/line-in passthrough method.

 

[sbsyncro]

Yep, you can. An application only uses one or the other at one time, generally, but you can have two applications running, each using one of the sound devices. You can send the line-out of one of the devices to the line-in or aux-in of the other, and enable analog passthough, so you still only need one set of speakers connected. You can set the default/"preferred" sound device in the Multimedia/Sounds control panel.

Mobo front-panel sound connectors are only usable by the onboard sound though, which is why I recommend the line-out/line-in passthrough method.

So are you suggesting that one can connect the Mic input from the case into the "Aux In" on the SB Live card (for example) and then connect the headphone connector on the case to the output on the mobo? Or are you talking about something more complicated?

I've been staring at the tracings on my SB Live! card for about two hours now trying to figure out the pinouts to the 2x20 "Aud_EXT" header with no luck, and this may just be the dumb-dumb answer to my dilemma...