Speaker question!

[Jax Omen]

I'm getting a Logitech X-540 speaker system. Part of me wants surround sound.

The other part realizes that my girlfriend has crap for speakers (monitor-based speakers FTL). Would it be possible to hook the rear-channel speakers into the adapter and plug them into her computer, while I use the other speakers as a 3.1 setup?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...tech+X-540+5.1+Speaker

Or should we just get her her own cheap speaker system?

 

[Nohr]

The connections might fit but the sound card's output won't be powerful enough to run them on it's own. The subwoofer they're designed to plug in to has an amplifier built-in which is what powers the satellites and gives you adequate volume.

 

[Jax Omen]

Ah. Damn, ok.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Well it would work if you hooked the system up at a 5.1 system through the subwoofer. The subwoofer would play for both of you though.

You'd get 3.1 and 2.1 with the subwoofer shared between the two.

(This is if the computers are in the same room)

 

[Jax Omen]

Yeah, they're about 6 feet apart.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: Jax Omen
Yeah, they're about 6 feet apart.

Then it would work as long as you don't mind sharing the subwoofer.

Your computer will hook up with the
- Front Left / Front Right
- Center / Subwoofer
connections

You'll get 3.1 operation

Her computer will hook up with the
- Surround Left / Surround Right
connection

She'll get 2.1 operation


For the x-540 set, the subwoofer not only plays the signal from the "subwoofer" part of the 5.1 input, but plays the frequencies below the crossover point for the set. That means that the bass sent to each of the Front L/R, Surround L/R, and Center get redirected to the subwoofer.

So in this case the subwoofer will play the bass from the Front L/R and Center from your computer in addition to the .1 LFE info if it exists. You may or may not be able to select 3.1 as the speaker type for your computer. You might need to select 5.1 and just not hook up the surrounds.

With her computer, it will play the Front L/R signal out the Surround L/R speakers so she can use those as hers and it will play the bass off those signals with the subwoofer.

 

[Jax Omen]

But what would happen if both of our computers output a bunch of bass at once. Would it sound similar to the sound of two computers playing sounds separately, or would it distort the sound if it got two separate inputs?

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

I think you'd have to try it to get the real answer to this.

The speaker set has no idea that it's connected to 2 computers instead of one, so it would be equivalent to the same thing happening with two sets of sounds happening from one computer.

For example if you were playing some bass heavy music while in a game and there was a huge explosion behind you in the game.

Depending on the capabilities of the sub and how demanding the sources are it might sound decent trying to play two things at once or it may not.