Need advice on getting into the sound game...HT speakers for PC gaming?

[H]adouken

[H]ard|Gawd
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Dec 31, 2008
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I'm trying to figure out, if I have 6 identical bookshelf speakers (2 in front of me, 4 on the rooms corners) connected to receiver terminals via speaker wire, what is required to connect the receiver to a computer for full surround sound? As in, I can tell what clearly direction a bullet comes from.

I tried using "RCA to 3.5mm" to connect the receiver into my motherboards green port but the 2 corner rear speakers were super low volumes...like impossible to hear from more than 3 inches away.

I'm about to buy: 7.1 sound card, 6 new high quality bookshelf speakers, a new receiver. Recommendations greatly appreciated, as I have no idea which ones to go with (no knowledge of sound, or what the heck a driver is, lol).
 
SPDIF from soundcard to receiver is the best route depending on your soundcard and receiver, but it shouldn't affect volume.

It might be your rears are lower wattage than the rest of your receiver's outputs. That is common because usually you don't use identical speakers for your rears and your mains. The mains usually require more power while the rears are usually more efficient and/or just require less power. AKA the front mains are usually tower speakers and the rears are usually smaller bookshelves.

I also don't know what the heck driver you're talking about. Software driver? Speaker driver? Driver driver?
 
Well I hear people talking about the size of drivers, like 6" or 4" or so. Not sure if I need that extra stuff.

At the moment I have no soundcard, so would motherboard SPDIF work or would it be low quality? I guess I shouldve figured RCA is only 2 channels, silly me.

Is this setup correct for full surround sound:

Soundcard SPDIF Out or Digital Coaxial out -> Receiver SPDIF in or Digital Coaxial In -> Speakers/Sub

If so I'v been doing this wrong...way wrong. Now I just need to buy 6 bookshelf speakers (once again no idea how to tell whats quality), a sub, and a decent soundcard. Would a better receiver deliver better quality? I have a very old Yamaha HTR-5230.
 
if you're doing digital (ie. optical or coaxial) the soundcard will not matter since all the processing will be done by the receiver. and yes that looks like the correct setup to get surround
 
If ever you'll get a new receiver, I'd recommend one with multichannel inputs. This will give you the chance to compare for yourself SPDIF vs. multichannel analog outs.

1. Soundcard SPDIF Out or Digital Coaxial out -> Receiver SPDIF in or Digital Coaxial In -> Speakers/Sub
2. Soundcard Multichannel Out --> Receiver Multichannel Inputs --> Speakers / Sub Out
 
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