DVI - HDMI, but what about audio?

[Sniperslayer]

K, i'm starting to worry myself that i just wasted 35$ ordering a DVI-HDMI cable to hook up my computer to my receiver

thinking it over now, yes that will be fine using the DVI-HDMI for the video, but how am i going to get audio from the computer through the receiver?

usually when i hook my computer up to my TV i use DVI-DVI then a seperate 2 pronged component cable as the audio

but is it possible to use a seperate audio input when using HDMI for video??

 

[Adam]

I'm an HDMI dummy, so I can't say for sure. However, I checked the owner's manual for the 661, and two things stood out to me. First, it specifically mentions using a conversion cable (like you ordered) for connecting a DVI jack to an HDMI input. Second, it has a setting for "Support Audio" for HDMI (see page 77 of the manual) that allows you to either decode the HMDI audio or pass it through.

I'd say first try just connecting the separate audio from your PC and seeing if it works. If it doesn't, I'd say set the "Support Audio" to "Other" to have it pass the audio, and see if it will then use the other audio connection from your PC.

 

[bass addict]

but is it possible to use a seperate audio input when using HDMI for video??

Yes. You'll use the HDMI to DVI connection for video, and an analog or digital output for audio.

 

[Sniperslayer]

yea but i'm just concerned with the receiver and wether or not it will be able to do that, but i guess from Adam's post it can

 

[mike c]

yea but i'm just concerned with the receiver and wether or not it will be able to do that, but i guess from Adam's post it can

it can, there's some options in the receiver to choose which audio source you are going to use ... e.g. HDMI audio, analog audio.

don't worry, I ordered an HDMI-DVI cable myself some time back and immediately regretted it because I already had a VGA cable connected to the TV ... the HDMI-DVI cable is just so much clearer, so that in itself is worth it!

 

[furrycute]

HDMI may include an audio stream, but DVI does not an audio stream.

 

[jimfitz]

K, i'm starting to worry myself that i just wasted 35$ ordering a DVI-HDMI cable to hook up my computer to my receiver

thinking it over now, yes that will be fine using the DVI-HDMI for the video, but how am i going to get audio from the computer through the receiver?

usually when i hook my computer up to my TV i use DVI-DVI then a seperate 2 pronged component cable as the audio

but is it possible to use a seperate audio input when using HDMI for video??

Basically, I think you wasted $35 because the DVI/HDMI is not going to do anything the DVI/DVI wasn't already doing. You'll still get your audio using the audio cables you already have or you could use coax or optical if your computer has either of these.

 

[Sniperslayer]

Basically, I think you wasted $35 because the DVI/HDMI is not going to do anything the DVI/DVI wasn't already doing. You'll still get your audio using the audio cables you already have or you could use coax or optical if your computer has either of these.

yes, but my receiver does not have a DVI input, so to run off my projector it would need to run through my receiver, I could have went with S-video or HDMI

 

[j_garcia]

I use HDMI to DVI for my PS3 and optical to the receiver for audio. Works fine, though I know I am missing out on some features of the newest formats.

 

[jimfitz]

yes, but my receiver does not have a DVI input, so to run off my projector it would need to run through my receiver, I could have went with S-video or HDMI

OK, in that case, the DVI/HDMI makes sense.

 

[Sniperslayer]

so would it be in my best interest to use opitcal or the standard headphone jack style output on my computer?

 

[Adam]

so would it be in my best interest to use opitcal or the standard headphone jack style output on my computer?

Soundwise, I'd say that you'd want to go with the optical output. If you do that, you may need to set up the digital output in more than one piece of software. You almost certainly need to set up your soundcard to output the digital stream.

Logistically, which is better depends on your situation. With my soundcard, I cannot pass both analog and digital at the same time. I have both speakers and surround headphones hooked up. The headphones use the analog plugs, so I've gone analog all around just because I don't want to have to keep toggling digital/analog in my soundcard's software. Also, if you have the analog cables and don't have an optical cable, you can certainly go analog until you pick up an optical cable.

 

[j_garcia]

You don't want to use the headphone jack to try to drive an amp, the output voltage is too low in most cases.

 

[Sniperslayer]

The Optical i'll be using just comes out of my motherboard, not out of a soundcard as i'm only using onboard audio at the moment

right now i'm currently using the analog [head phone jack style] plug hooked up to an older pioneer receiver as my computer sound system, and it seems to work fairly well

for quality since i'm going to be playing lots of music videos etc. through my computer, i'd really like quality, but i'm kinda sketchin out on how hard it will be to switch between analog and opitcal since the onboard settings are kinda sketch :S

would you guys definatly recomend opitcal over analog? or will the differenance be small?

maybe i'll consult my motherboard manual as to turning on opitcal..

edit* and just to clarify i know what i'm looking at, and to show u guys how it is

this is how my output is now:

from there these go to the receiver:

and this is the optical out correct? :

 

[Adam]

I'd say just try both (if that's not too much hassle) and see if you think the optical is worth it. So much of it will depend on you PC. My onboard audio in my HP about four years ago was nowhere near as good as that from the Audigy 2ZS soundcard that I put in. It was a dramatic change. However, that doesn't mean that your onboard audio will suck. The best advice that I could give you is to try it out and see (well, listen).