Thoughts on a decently inexpensive sound card for my HTPC

[Tbirdkid]

I have a few digital inputs i can use. 2 to be exact. So, preferably, i would like digital out. Currently i use the audio from my hdmi connection, but since my onkyo wont drop the sound across my speakers, i need to get a card to input the sound. I can use the aux, but well, lets just say, its not that great.

Thanks in advance!

Oh, forgot to mention, it can be pcie or pci.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

I have a few digital inputs i can use. 2 to be exact. So, preferably, i would like digital out. Currently i use the audio from my hdmi connection, but since my onkyo wont drop the sound across my speakers, i need to get a card to input the sound. I can use the aux, but well, lets just say, its not that great.

Thanks in advance!

Oh, forgot to mention, it can be pcie or pci.

Which on-board sound chipset are you currently using? What Onkyo receiver do you have? What HTPC software are you using?

I'm wondering because I had to fiddle with a few settings to finally get the sound working properly via HDMI with my Onkyo receiver (TX-SR705). It wasn't the receiver's fault either. The problems were all in Windows and Media Center. Assuming you are using Windows it could be some settings you need to tweak and you may not need a new sound card.

 

[Tbirdkid]

not sure on chipset. i thought it was a specific mobo, but im wrong. its an msi but not exactly sure which one. im at work...

The onkyo is the TX-SR505.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

What graphics chipset are you using for the HDMI port?

Let me know about the graphics and sound chipsets when you get home and maybe we can get you fixed up.

 

[electroju]

Just plug the digital output from your sound card to the coaxial digital input of your AV receiver. Using HDMI for digital audio is not a requirement for digital audio. It is a luxury item. You may need a 3.5 mm mono to coaxial digital cable like the following.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...d=10401&cs_id=1040109&p_id=680&seq=1&format=2

Then you will need 75-ohm RCA cable. The length of the cable should not be any longer than 6 feet or 183 centimeters.

A good inexpensive sound card is ASUS Xonar D1 or DX. This is a good sound card for analog output. Using it for digital audio is a waste of money and you will have the same issues.

 

[poofyhairguy]

You are doing it wrong. Modern GPUs have sound card built it. Get a Nvidia 220/240GT and BLAM sudden HDMI audio...

 

[Tbirdkid]

electroju thats what i have, but for some reason, my digital audio wont work. mine is an actual cable though that is a 3.5mm to component/digital. maybe i didnt play with it enough....

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

electroju thats what i have, but for some reason, my digital audio wont work. mine is an actual cable though that is a 3.5mm to component/digital. maybe i didnt play with it enough....

Did you designate the digital output as the default device for the Sound properties in Control Panel and designate the sound input in the Setup for receiver as well? If you want to use the digital cable you need to do both.

Honestly though, your HDMI should work just fine if it's configured properly in Windows. No sense in using two cables when one will do.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

You are doing it wrong. Modern GPUs have sound card built it. Get a Nvidia 220/240GT and BLAM sudden HDMI audio...

Unfortunately it's not as simple as that. The NVIDIA HD Audio often defaults to stereo so you have to configure it to 5.1 or 7.1 in the Sound properties in Windows. If using Media Center the speaker config also must be designated in the Settings, and you want to ensure that Auto Volume is disabled or else it can screw with the HDMI output.

 

[Tbirdkid]

the motherboard is a msi 785gtm-e45. i am using the hdmi video on this board, and its carrying the audio. it does it fine to the tv, which goes thru my receiver. however, my receiver doesnt pull the audio. its that way with my other devices too. like my verizon box. without my optical audio cable, i cant get surround sound.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

the motherboard is a msi 785gtm-e45. i am using the hdmi video on this board, and its carrying the audio. it does it fine to the tv, which goes thru my receiver. however, my receiver doesnt pull the audio. its that way with my other devices too. like my verizon box. without my optical audio cable, i cant get surround sound.

Are you saying you get no sound at all, or can't get 5.1 sound?

Also, have you gone into the Setup for the receiver and designated HDMI for the inputs for those devices? It needs to be set in 2 places under Input/Output Assign - HDMI Input and Digital Input.

 

[alcoholbob]

You are doing it wrong. Modern GPUs have sound card built it. Get a Nvidia 220/240GT and BLAM sudden HDMI audio...

The HDMI section on the Onkyo 505 is just an hdmi switch, not an hdmi repeater--no active circuitry.

the motherboard is a msi 785gtm-e45. i am using the hdmi video on this board, and its carrying the audio. it does it fine to the tv, which goes thru my receiver. however, my receiver doesnt pull the audio. its that way with my other devices too. like my verizon box. without my optical audio cable, i cant get surround sound.

Look at your receiver's manual. No hdmi audio.

 

[Tbirdkid]

Astrallite, that is what i have been trying to say. Thats why i have to use another connection. As for the audio, i have no sound out of the receiver. None from the pc. I have set the receiver up correctly as I have other devices. The problem is that i cant get my digital 3.5mm jack to play sounds either.

Im sure i have set that up incorrectly, but truly, im not sure exactly how to do it. I set the audio up on the receiver to be coax 1, and i plugged the 3.5mm cord into the black jack on the back of the pc. (ive also tried the rest of them). For some reason, it never plays audio out of the receiver. So, i am thinking i need to get a sound card to replace the onboard sound which will either be optical, or coaxial.

 

[sdifox]

The HDMI section on the Onkyo 505 is just an hdmi switch, not an hdmi repeater--no active circuitry.



Look at your receiver's manual. No hdmi audio.

lulz, how did they get the HDMI approval for this?

 

[sdifox]

Astrallite, that is what i have been trying to say. Thats why i have to use another connection. As for the audio, i have no sound out of the receiver. None from the pc. I have set the receiver up correctly as I have other devices. The problem is that i cant get my digital 3.5mm jack to play sounds either.

Im sure i have set that up incorrectly, but truly, im not sure exactly how to do it. I set the audio up on the receiver to be coax 1, and i plugged the 3.5mm cord into the black jack on the back of the pc. (ive also tried the rest of them). For some reason, it never plays audio out of the receiver. So, i am thinking i need to get a sound card to replace the onboard sound which will either be optical, or coaxial.

Is there an Orange jack? That is usually the coax digital out.
Then check your sound setting, there is a way to enable digital out, you may need new sound card driver.

 

[Tbirdkid]

There isnt a coaxial jack, but there is an orange 3.5mm jack. I tried all of them. Im thinking there is some software, but in all honesty, the sound on this motherboard probably isnt the best. So, either way, i want another sound card.

 

[sdifox]

There isnt a coaxial jack, but there is an orange 3.5mm jack. I tried all of them. Im thinking there is some software, but in all honesty, the sound on this motherboard probably isnt the best. So, either way, i want another sound card.

The only reason to not use the onboard sound card is if you are going to play computer games with DDLive. Other than that, an extra sound card is not going to do much.

the orange minijack is the optical out, you just need a minijack to rca cable.

BTW, the sound card you are going to buy is not going to output digital either until you configure your windows sound output properly.

 

[Tbirdkid]

the cable i have is this:

http://www.amazon.com/3-5mm-Stereo-M.../dp/B0002KR1OG

only difference is that my rca jack on the end, is a single, not a double connector

 

[sdifox]

the cable i have is this:

http://www.amazon.com/3-5mm-Stereo-M.../dp/B0002KR1OG

only difference is that my rca jack on the end, is a single, not a double connector

so the cable should be fine. It's your windows sound setup.

You on win7 right? There should be a section to enable digital out.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Astrallite, that is what i have been trying to say. Thats why i have to use another connection. As for the audio, i have no sound out of the receiver. None from the pc. I have set the receiver up correctly as I have other devices. The problem is that i cant get my digital 3.5mm jack to play sounds either.

Im sure i have set that up incorrectly, but truly, im not sure exactly how to do it. I set the audio up on the receiver to be coax 1, and i plugged the 3.5mm cord into the black jack on the back of the pc. (ive also tried the rest of them). For some reason, it never plays audio out of the receiver. So, i am thinking i need to get a sound card to replace the onboard sound which will either be optical, or coaxial.

If you are getting HDMI on your TV but not through the stereo it's likely that you don't have the receiver configured properly. In the receiver settings there's a section called Hardware Setup. One of the choices in that section is HDMI. Select that and check the setting for HDMI Out. If it is set to ON the receiver will pass the HDMI through to your TV and there will be no sound for the speakers. When set to OFF the HDMI sound is played through the receiver. Since that describes how your system is acting I'm willing to bet that is the problem.

 

[Tbirdkid]

yes, there is, but i still dont get any sound out of it. Its got to be a windows sound issue, drivers, or something. I am going to work on it this evening. I will let you guys know. Thanks!

 

[Tbirdkid]

if i turn the hdmi off i wont get video at all.

 

[Tbirdkid]

the problem is that the receiver is just an hdmi passthru. thats why i have to use the component, or the aux output from my vz box, or my computer or my dvd player to get audio out of the receiver.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

the problem is that the receiver is just an hdmi passthru. thats why i have to use the component, or the aux output from my vz box, or my computer or my dvd player to get audio out of the receiver.

That sucks that the 505 only does audio passthrough, unlike the 605, 705, etc. It's stupid of Onkyo to cripple a receiver like that.

When you've connected the coax cable have you tried setting the S/PDIF sound device in Windows as the default? You also have to designate the S/PDIF for each input on the receiver as well.

 

[alcoholbob]

lulz, how did they get the HDMI approval for this?

Most receivers under a certain price point are just hdmi switches. Yamaha, Onkyo, Denon, and HK all have entry-level receivers that don't pull audio.

Under specs manufacturers will post "HDMI Repeater: Yes/No" which will tell you if the receiver will pull audio from hdmi. Alternatively, if it is listed with Dolby TrueHD or DTS-Master, it means it will pull hdmi audio.

The only exception is entry-level Pioneer receivers, which seem to pull hdmi audio without HD audio support--although they do list their receivers with "hdmi repeater" ability.