Using PC for sound input?

totokan · Post by **totokan** » Sun Sep 14, 2008 4:29 pm

Ok, I'm completed lost on how to phrase this so that google will give me sensical results, so why not ask here. I have 5.1 speakers set up connected to my computer, and I want some way to connect optical audio out to my computer, use the computer as a decoder, and output sound to my speakers. Basically, I want Sound Source(Dolby Digital)-> Computer -> Speakers, but i think it's more complicated than that...

tom61 · Post by **tom61** » Sun Sep 14, 2008 9:03 pm

Indeed it is. You need SPDIF in, and I've not encountered any that have optical in. One of my old soundcards professed to take SPDIF in, but only through the RCA jack.

totokan · Post by **totokan** » Mon Sep 15, 2008 3:53 am

Well, after the fact, i realized that the sound output of the device goes through a normal 1/8" audio jack, so I'd think using that would be easier, or would i still need SPDIF in?

tom61 · Post by **tom61** » Mon Sep 15, 2008 2:54 pm

totokan wrote:Well, after the fact, i realized that the sound output of the device goes through a normal 1/8" audio jack, so I'd think using that would be easier, or would i still need SPDIF in?

You'd only end up with Stereo, as I don't think most drivers will be able to pull the dolby data from that. I'm not an expert by any means, and usually stick to stereo myself.

totokan · Post by **totokan** » Mon Sep 15, 2008 6:05 pm

So then what would i have to do to get surround sound through my computer? The simplest example i can try is to connect my Xbox 360 with dolby digital 5.1 (as opposed to my DVR or DVD player) to my pc, but how would I go about doing that so as to use the pc as a decoder of sorts? The soundcard is a Creative X-Fi, so I know it can do Dolby Digital...

nitro2k01 · Post by **nitro2k01** » Tue Sep 16, 2008 5:08 am

Do you have the front panel for your card? The one that fits into 5 1/4" drive bay. (Same as CD-ROM drives, that is) There are optical ins and outs on that.
Once you've connected that, you can launch some audio editing program to see if you can record sound from all 6 channels.
If all is good, the next step is to somehow route the audio to the outputs. I was about to recommend you the kxAudio driver, but I checked the compatibility for it and X-Fi is not on the list.

totokan · Post by **totokan** » Wed Sep 17, 2008 3:19 pm

I don't have a front-port audio extender, so now I'm just trying to figure out what I would need to use my computer as a decoder. Basically, I want to use my analog 5.1 speakers, through my computer, with my Dolby Digital sound source, in this example, my Xbox 360 outputting on a normal audio jack.