PC to receiver audio question

[GlocksRock]

My new Dell has integraged audio, with a S/PDIF output. But the digital output is 1/8" not the standard rca type connection. Is there a way I can connect the pc to my receiver's digital coax using the 1/8" s/pdif output.

 

[Davemcc]

There is a small 1/8" mono to single rca adapter that you can use. It cost me about 2 bucks or something at Best Buy.

 

[Adam]

Dave's got you covered. I just wanted to say that you can get those adapters elsewhere, too. I got mine at Radio Shack.

 

[GlocksRock]

so this is what I need right?

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062459&cp=2032058&pg=2&f=Taxonomy/RSK/2032058&retainProdsInSession=1&categoryId=2032058&kwCatId=2032058&kw=rca+adapter&numProdsPerPage=100&parentPage=search

 

[Davemcc]

That's the one.

On a side note, I've never been able to get my laptop PC S/PDIF port to work. HP has had my computer returned twice to get this to work. They have it now, since about 3 weeks ago. We spent hours on the phone with HP tech support, reloaded drivers, etc and still nothing. I don't think the HP tech phoneline people even know what S/PDIF is. I hope to get the computer back next week and it darn well better be plug and play.

 

[GlocksRock]

my dell laptop has integrated HD audio as welll, and the output is also suppossed to be S/PDIF as well, i'll have to try that out as well. I just bought a new soundcard with normal digital coax input and output, but if I can get the s/pdif on the integraged audio to work, I'll just sell the card, since I'm not sure how well it will work with the drivers I found for Vista 64 bit.

 

[GlocksRock]

I was looking on monoprice for the same part, and I came across this. http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=104&cp_id=10401&cs_id=1040109&p_id=680&seq=1&format=2&style=

The only real difference between this one and the one I linked from Radio Shack is that the monoprice adapter is stereo and the Radio Shack adapter is mono, does it make a difference which one I use, or would they both work?

 

[avaserfi]

Hey, I am not sure if the stereo will work with this or not since I have no experience with the situation, but I think it depends on the location of the connection in your computer and if it touches the right part on the stereo piece (someone please correct me if I am wrong). Either way I found a cheaper mono version of the plug here:

http://store.pchcables.com/rcajato3mopl.html

I haven't had experience with the store but they have a 5 star google rating after 34 reviews.

 

[GlocksRock]

Thanks for the link. I think I am going to just buy locally so I can have it today. I just want to make sure I get the right one so I don't have to go out of my way later on to swap parts.

 

[farscaper]

Another option, is to use a USB to S/PDIF interface from your computer to stereo. It was about $60 Cdn. Its works great. I had some humming and static issues using internal cards.

 

[Adam]

The only real difference between this one and the one I linked from Radio Shack is that the monoprice adapter is stereo and the Radio Shack adapter is mono, does it make a difference which one I use, or would they both work?

At least with my computer, it DOES make a difference. I bought a stereo adapter first, and it didn't work. Then I bought a mono adapter, and voila.

 

[GlocksRock]

Sounds good to me, I'll just grab the mono one and report back with my finding.

 

[GlocksRock]

Just got the part and tried it out... so far no luck. Should I be able to pass all audio from the PC, digital, and non digital through the S/PDIF output? The computer is telling me the device is working properly, but I hear no sound, and I assigned the coax input to the proper device input on the receiver, and I know the pc is working right. I only had a few mins. to mess with it, but I'll try more when I get home from work.

 

[MDS]

Just got the part and tried it out... so far no luck. Should I be able to pass all audio from the PC, digital, and non digital through the S/PDIF output?

No you cannot send analog signals out the s/pdif port but if you are playing something on the computer, it already IS digital. As long as the sound card is configured to use the digital out, all should be well.

Instead of buying just an adapter, you could buy one single cable with the 1/8" mono mini on one end and RCA connector on the other, like this: http://www.ramelectronics.net/html/RCA-mini-spdif.html

 

[GlocksRock]

Yeah, but I already have an extra digital coax cable, so the adapter is cheaper.

So since I can't pass analog signal through the s/pdif port, and I can only have one speaker output set as default, can I somehow tell the pc to output analog to the regular speaker output, and digital signal to the s/pdif port?

 

[OttoMatic]

That depends on your particular soundcard. I really wanted to use a digital card I had (SB Live!) because it also had a MIDI port on it, which I would use to talk to my Behringer BFD. I also require analog out at the same time because my preamp needs it to run Zone 2, which we use all the time).

The SB Live! will NOT output S/PDIF and analog at the same time. I contacted tech support, and they said "no". I use a relatively inexpensive (maybe Chaintech, not sure) digital card with optical out that will also output analog at the same time. Works fine.

I keep the SB Live! in place strictly for its MIDI port.

You may have to click here or there in the driver or sound card software to get the S/PDIF going, but it should work. FWIW, I used that mono adapter and a "regular" coax cable with the SB Live! just fine (except that it won't output analog at the same time).

 

[GlocksRock]

For now, I'm just using the Dell integraged 7.1 audio, as the driver shows s/pdif output, but I'm not so sure it's what I need. I did get this sound card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829111001&Tpk=diamond+xs71 since it has digital coax but I'm not sure if it will output both digital and analog at the same time. But I will not be using the drivers that it comes with, instead I'll be using the drivers that are reccomended in the newegg reviews since it allows digital passthrough via the s/pdif port whereas the drivers it comes with suppossedly only allows for PCM via s/pdif out.

 

[ontherocks]

On a side note, I've never been able to get my laptop PC S/PDIF port to work.

Does you laptop have a optical/coaxial jack?? If not how many and what 3.5mm jacks do you have?? I am trying to compare with my laptop which supposedly has SPDIF support but has only two 3.5mm jacks (headphone & mic-in) and I tried connecting my A/V receiver via a coax to both these but failed to get an output.

The only real difference between this one and the one I linked from Radio Shack is that the monoprice adapter is stereo and the Radio Shack adapter is mono, does it make a difference which one I use, or would they both work?

I bought this adapter from monoprice and they sent me a mono-to-RCA, I guess its wrong in their website.

At least with my computer, it DOES make a difference. I bought a stereo adapter first, and it didn't work. Then I bought a mono adapter, and voila.

Thats really strange.....SPDIF output is through the end most pin and the body metal.....so whether you use mono-to-RCA or Stereo-to-singleRCA shouldn't make any difference. (BTW stereo-to-doubleRCA makes sense but manufacturing a Stereo-to-singleRCA is meaningless since the middle pin is just dummy.......I don't understand why anyone would even make them)

 

[ontherocks]

Just got the part and tried it out... so far no luck. Should I be able to pass all audio from the PC, digital, and non digital through the S/PDIF output? The computer is telling me the device is working properly, but I hear no sound, and I assigned the coax input to the proper device input on the receiver, and I know the pc is working right. I only had a few mins. to mess with it, but I'll try more when I get home from work.

If you would use the A/V receiver for all your audio playback you don't need any analog output at all. You can play everything through digital output (mono, stereo, 5.1 DTS/DD......everything)
If you want to connect small speakers directly to your Lappy only then you need analog output.

To get digital output to work you will have to enable it in both in the audio controller of the soundcard as well in the audio output settings of the media player software. For example if you use PowerDVD then you would have to select SPDIF output in the audio settings of PowerDVD as well as select digital/SPDIF output in the audio controller of the soundcard by double clicking in the speaker icon in the taskbar.

 

[Davemcc]

Does you laptop have a optical/coaxial jack?? If not how many and what 3.5mm jacks do you have?? I am trying to compare with my laptop which supposedly has SPDIF support but has only two 3.5mm jacks (headphone & mic-in) and I tried connecting my A/V receiver via a coax to both these but failed to get an output.

My laptop has 3 3.5mm jacks (mic in, headphone, headphone/s/pdif). HP has notified us that they are replacing our computer. They can't get the s/pdif to work either.