can you hook a computer up to a receiver for surround sound?

[mitchdawg22]

I have a kenwood soverign reciver with surround sound speakers, and a computer. I would like to hook my cmputer up to my reciver to gain surround sound from it as well as my TV. Is there a audio card that allows me to hook my computer up to my receiver, and have surround sound?

thanks

[Paladine]

I am curious about this too!

[Kristoff]

Creative Labs Audigy Platinum

http://www.americas.creative.com/products/category.asp?category=463&maincategory=461

Bon apetite!

[The Soundman]

I have a kenwood soverign reciver with surround sound speakers

If you're lucky and the reciver you have has pre-amp outs and connections to go directly into your power amp, you can have a real bunch of fun with the Platinum card or any sound card that has 5.1 channel output. What model number is the reciver you have and approximatly how old is it?

[sa_shadow]

Creative Labs Audigy Platinum

http://www.americas.creative.com/products/category.asp?category=463&maincategory=461

Bon apetite!

Or any other 5.1 cad for that matter. You can get that one if you have a liberal budget. I have a really generic 5.1 card, but i still get great sound, especially with my surround headphones (6 speakers, count them)

[viperman224]

i don't have surrond sound but i have an optimus karoke (sp?) machine it's a discontinued model. I have a sound blaster 128 bit pci sound board I also have a cable with a portable cd-player head phone plug at one and 2 others i have no idea what they are called. I put it the head phone like plug in my line out on my sound board and attatch the other on the 2 input jacks on the optimus and switch it to aux. thats how i have my sound hooked up. i am not sure if it's the same on surrond sound but i imagine its close if not exact. There is a sound blaster sound card with a dolby digital surrond sound plug built into it though. they run about 40$ on ebay deppending who you buy from. Brand new they are pretty expensive.

[Tekmaven]

You're best bet is to get something with digital out. Digital out is the best way to take audio from a PC to a audio reciver - and you will get full surround sound on it. This is because the actual audio card isn't doing anything to the signal - its just sending out the digital information which it recieves.

[fsn812]

This may help.

I have a speaker/sub setup that is meant for RCA. I was using it for my DVD player/Television. I went to Radio Shack and bought size converters, and a converter for merging two lines into one, so it could be plugged into my SB16 (yes. sad old card. I know). It works fine, without any issue.

It gets the job done but I imagine if I wanted 'top quality' sound the most appropriate way would be to purchase a new sound card and speakers designed for that environment. However, if you are interested in a setup that will get the job done like mine, try going to Radio Shack and using the same setup for your receiver, it may work it may not, but beware my method is sloppy so you have been warned ;-)

[josh4rim]

Depending on your reciever you may be able to set it up to a certian mode (i.e. arena, church, concert) which is all processwed in your reciever settings. you can plug stereo out from your basic sound card and let your stereo convert it. It will not be prologic or digital surround but will work nicely.

[)BIG"B"Affleck]

Correct RadioShack (Free 24-hour tech support 1800-THE-SHACK) has the answer & several video cards can do this. I play Socom seals I & II on suround sound via 12" JBL subs right in my ear for that realistic approach. I do the same through the video card with MOHAA. I think creative makes a external deives for this aswell. Via RCA ect...

[TallCool1]

...i still get great sound, especially with my surround headphones (6 speakers, count them)

What brand and model of headphones are these, may I ask?

[cargenius42]

well, what i did was just buy a simple converter cable from radio shack. on one end is a simple headphone plugin jack, and on the other are audio jacks to plug into a surround sound unit. I did this in my room and the surroundsound is AWSOME.

[Catweazle]

Thanks for resurrecting this, cargenius. I missed it earlier, and reading it has given me a good giggle!

If that receiver/stereo/whatever has an inbuilt surround sound amp, then ANY stereo soundcard can be used with a suitable cable. A better card will produce better sound, of course, but Prologic only needs a stereo source ;)

[DuncanIdaho]

Catweazle's right, as usual. I run a 600 watt Pioneer Home Theater system connected to my SB Live, with the optional Digital IO daughtercard. PC games, so far, seem to use Prologic, and for Prologic, if your amp has it's own decoder, than all you need is a stereo output.

If you want real Dolby Digital 5.1 sound, (so far, no PC games other than Doom 3 I know of support true Dolby Digital 5.1 sound in full), then you want digital IO, (SB Live 5.1, or Audigy or the like). Really, unless you're watching DVD's on your PC, (like I do), then you don't really need 5.1 on the PC. That will change, though. It's only a matter of time before games supporting full, true Dolby 5.1 will appear for the PC. (Playstation 2 and Xbox both have it, why it's taking so long to hit the PC I'll never know).

[ehfr]

I've noticed it seems a bit trickier to get true surround sound on your AV receiver with an Audigy 2 ZS soundcard. Even though it has digital output via a 1/8" plug, the signal that comes out needs to be decoded by a proprietary Creative Labs device. So when I plug that signal straight into my coax input on my AV Receiver, i get L/R front and that's it.

It's very dissappointing. Someone mentioned a work around via soldering straight into the card but I don't know if that gives you a true 5.1 surround digital feed or not. Anyone try this?