K7S5A PRO Onboard Audio vs. Sound Card...

[Hork]

Not sure if this should be here or in the cases and cooling section.... But I'll ask specifically about the K7S5A to make it fit here. :-D

I have a case with front USB and audio (headphone/microphone) jacks. I've been able to hook up the USB and audio connectors to the K7S5A PRO mobo correctly and get onboard sound working with the front connectors.

Now... the front audio connectors from the case have a series of connectors that each attach to a single pin in the group of pins on the mobo -- not a modular plug.

So, if I put a sound card (Phillips Seismic Edge) in instead of using the onboard sound, can I still use the case connections for the front audio jacks? If so, how?

I'm cornfused and appreciate your help! Thanks!

Hork

 

[Cerb]

Check and see if the sound card has those pins. I don't know if any do. If they do, yes, you can. Chances are most will not, though.

 

[Peter]

The answer quite obviously is No. The onboard sound headers are wired to the onboard sound hardware - how should a PCI sound card be able to hijack these?
You'd need to find a sound card that has its own set of internal "front audio" connectors.

 

[Hork]

Thanks for your answers.

So, let me get this straight...

Front panel connectors on cases are useless unless...

1) You're planning on using onboard sound on the mobo (and take the associated hit for games), or

2) the case connectors are the kind that go through the case and plug into the sound card output with the appropriate jack, or

3) The sound card you buy has it's own set of pins that can be used with the front audio connectors in the case. Does anyone know of such a sound card? Since I'm still using a Phillips Siesmic Edge, I'm obviously not on the cutting edge of soundcard technology. :-D

 

[Peter]

Right. Besides, you can't be sure that your PCI sound card needs less CPU power than your onboard solution. Onboard sound might have its own brain just as well as a PCI card may do lots of things via software.

PCI cards for sure eat more system bandwidth, simply because PCI is the slower bus than the direct chipset connection of the onboard sound.