Hey. Today i had a spark of brilliance (well i think it was). I though 2 things that would be really cool, but im not sure how to do them (they might not be possible, but i think both should work somehow). The first: Hookup more keyboard to my PC for better gaming with friends. The Second: Combine 2.0 speakers and 2.1 speakers to make a custom 4.1 speaker combo! Id really like to know if its possible and how to do it.

many thx in advance.

about the keyboard thing i dont see the point do you mean that you want to hookup another keyboard or add peices on for an existing keyboard. The only real problem that I see is you might have to develop your own hardware for the audio(you would have to put more audio input spaces into your computer), then fabricate a new keyboard. From my knowledge of computers this sounds like something impossible.

the point of the kb thing is to play some sports and racing game on the same pc withough buying a gamepad. suks about the sound thing too

You might have some problems with the multiple keyboards. There used to be a switch years ago for hooking up multiple keyboards to one machine, but I haven't seen one in ages.

On your sound question, there is a way to get 4 channel surround sound, and if you have a subwoofer hooked up with the front pair, you will also get booming bass. (It wouldn't be officially 4.1, since there is no real 4.1 standard, but it could be called that if you want). Here's the way: Some Sound Blaster cards have a front and rear output. You can hook one stereo (or amplified speaker system) to front, put those speakers in front, and hook the other stereo (or amplified speaker system) into the REAR jack. Viola, instant 4 channel surround sound, (in your case, +1 subwoofer).

Your only problem will be: Do you have a Creative Labs soundcard that has these Front/Rear outputs? I know many SB Live cards had them. Mine does. Hope this info helps.

unfortunatley i havent got a good enough sound card ill try to find on of those switch things for the keyboards! Has anyone actually tried a 9-pin kb and a usb kb on the same machine though ( i would, but both my kbs are 9-pin, if the technique works im might get some new peripherals)

cheers

I've never tried that, and it is possible, perhaps, to hook more than one USB keyboard up, if I had a pair of USB keyboards, I'd try it out, however I don't. Sorry about that.

On the sound: One thing you could do is find out which of Creative's soundcards will have the jacks you need, (front/rear), then search Ebay for one of these cards. They should sell very cheaply, since they aren't the newest card, and you'll get what you want without spending a fortune.

Okay, just got back from a quick search at Creative Labs website, been poking through manuals for their soundcards for you. Here's what you need:

Sound Blaster Live!, (all versions I could find manuals for on their website show a rear speaker output, which is what you need. This would be the ideal card for you, since it is still pretty much up to current standards, even though it's been around 5 years since they came out. You can still buy these new, so finding one shouldn't be a problem. I found them for just over 25$ on Pricewatch.com).

You could probably save a few buck by picking up an Sound Blaster PCI 512, or PCI 128, even, since they both have the rear jack you want, but I couldn't advise that, since the price difference, (at least on Pricewatch), is nominal.

Hope this helps. I think it'd be well worth the 25$ or so to do what you want to do. It'd be cheaper than buying a set of real surround speakers and a new 5.1 capable sound card, for sure.

sure would mate. ...just not too sure if it would work that well :s

I guess. I know a friend of mine's been running like that for over 3 years now, (though he has no subwoofer, he does have two different recievers and 4 speakers), and his sound is excellent. But then, he does have two nice recievers, and 4 nice speakers. I have no clue what you're running there.

Anyway, good luck with it anyway you go. Take care.

2.1 are yamaha satellite YST-MS201

2.0 are some packard bell 1's that arent too bad!

and yeah, im gonna give it a go, cheers

That should give pretty good sound, and it'll rival Dolby 5.1 in most cases. For gaming, it'll be pretty awesome.

Have fun! Drop me a line to tell me how you like it when you're done.