S/PDIF Advice/Help

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Big P

Weaksauce
Joined
Aug 2, 2004
Messages
72
Hey guys,

I got a HDTV over the holidays and want to hook it up to my PC so I can watch my HD movies on it. I'm looking into buying the cables and such for it and was looking for some help/advice :)

My equipment:
Audigy2 ZS
Samsung LE40R82B
DVI->HDMI cable

So, right now I have video but no audio, and am trying to find out what the best solution to this would be. My sound card supports Optical S/PDIF but I'm not certain if my TV does. Some googling of my model number above seemed to come up short. But I had a look at the back of it and noticed an "AUDIO" port:



I'm not sure what kind of connection that is, so I was hoping someone here would be able to advise me on what cables/converters I might need.

Thanks!
 
kelim said:
3.5mm stereo?
Click to expand...
I'm not sure if this is relevant or not but I have the same soundcard hooked up to speakers for the PC. So I figured for the tv's audio I'd need to use S/PDIF? Also at some point in the future I'll probably use a standalone sound system for the tv, so having 5.1 would be nice.

I've since found a list of connections here:

Code: 
1 x HDMI (19 pin HDMI Type A) - side
2 x HDMI (19 pin HDMI Type A) - rear
2 x SCART (21 PIN SCART) - rear
1 x component video input (RCA phono x 3) - rear
1 x VGA input (15 PIN HD D-Sub (HD-15)) - rear
1 x audio line-in (mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm) - rear
1 x headphones (mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm) - side
1 x composite video/audio input (RCA phono x 3) - side
1 x S-Video input (4 PIN mini-DIN) - side
2 x audio line-in (RCA phono x 2) - rear
1 x digital audio output (optical) (TOS Link) - rear

It says here it has an optical audio connector, is that the "AUDIO" port from my picture above? If so what cable should I look into getting? Or am I misunderstanding something?

Cheers :)
 
Great :) This just leaves soundcard. Here's a picture of it:

Audigy 2 ZS:


The optical connector is the one on the far left from what I can tell. What sort of cable would connect this with my TV?

Thanks again.
 
Wow, terrible advice all around. That audio port is 3.5mm stereo, not TOSlink. And his card doesn't have TOSlink, it has coaxial digital audio. He'd need a converter anyway.
 
Big P said:
I'm not sure if this is relevant or not but I have the same soundcard hooked up to speakers for the PC. So I figured for the tv's audio I'd need to use S/PDIF? Also at some point in the future I'll probably use a standalone sound system for the tv, so having 5.1 would be nice.

I've since found a list of connections here:

Code: 
1 x HDMI (19 pin HDMI Type A) - side
2 x HDMI (19 pin HDMI Type A) - rear
2 x SCART (21 PIN SCART) - rear
1 x component video input (RCA phono x 3) - rear
1 x VGA input (15 PIN HD D-Sub (HD-15)) - rear
1 x audio line-in (mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm) - rear
1 x headphones (mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm) - side
1 x composite video/audio input (RCA phono x 3) - side
1 x S-Video input (4 PIN mini-DIN) - side
2 x audio line-in (RCA phono x 2) - rear
1 x digital audio output (optical) (TOS Link) - rear

It says here it has an optical audio connector, is that the "AUDIO" port from my picture above? If so what cable should I look into getting? Or am I misunderstanding something?

Cheers :)
Click to expand...

It looks like the optical port is audio out only
quote:
"1 x digital audio output (optical) (TOS Link) - rear"
 
dandragonrage said:
Wow, terrible advice all around. That audio port is 3.5mm stereo, not TOSlink. And his card doesn't have TOSlink, it has coaxial digital audio. He'd need a converter anyway.
Click to expand...

Ah, thanks for clearing that up. I'm sorry I haven't done anything more than basic audio stuff up to now so this is all new to me.

So, if that audio is 3.5mm in on the tv, what kind of cable/convertor would I need for the coaxial digital audio? I'm assuming the 3.5mm is two channel stereo? So if I want to at some point in the future upgrade to a standalone surround speaker system for the tv, I wouldnt use the convertor, just a regular coaxial audio cable?

Cheers,
 
PC -- TV
3.5mm headphone; male on both ends
(this will only be stereo/2ch sound)

PC -- A/V Receiver
Card (optical out) 3.5mm headphone > mono coaxial > coaxial (input on AV receiver)
(this would be 5.1/7.1 surround sound)
 
vischo said:
PC -- TV
3.5mm headphone; male on both ends
(this will only be stereo/2ch sound)
Click to expand...

The PC is already hooked up to a speaker system, so would I not have to use the optical out on the card ? (rather than swapping cables around all the time). I'd also like to keep the audio on the PC separate to the audio on the tv, hence using something like spdif for movies. Though that isn't necessarily important, just a benefit of using two devices.

PC -- A/V Receiver
Card (optical out) 3.5mm headphone > mono coaxial > coaxial (input on AV receiver)
(this would be 5.1/7.1 surround sound)
Click to expand...

Thanks :)
 
It depends on the ports available on your amp, how its currently connected and what you want to achieve.
Why do you think you need to use the optical connection?
Do you game with surround sound from your hifi?
 
Nenu said:
It depends on the ports available on your amp, how its currently connected and what you want to achieve.
Why do you think you need to use the optical connection?
Do you game with surround sound from your hifi?
Click to expand...

Well, my sound system is a fairly mediocre 7.1 creative set which is hooked up to the Audigy for games and such. That is why I was assuming the only way to connect the tv as well would be with the optical connection (especially if this allowed me to play a game on the pc and still have audio going to the tv). Like I've said before I'm very new to this so if I'm looking over something obvious please tell me.

Also if this could be solved by getting a newer sound card, I'm open to suggestions. Unfortunately I use Linux and sound card support is dire at best from what I've seen. That's why I bought an Audigy a while back for its emu10k1 support.

Thanks again,
 
From the specs you posted, the TV looks like it only takes a single analogue 3.5mm stereo jack socket or 2xRCA for sound input.

There are no Coaxial or TOSLink inputs on the TV so it wont accept digital sound unless it can come in from the HDMI ports.
To use that you will need a graphics card that has sound onboard and HDMI out, but the specs make no mention of it so it doesnt look like your TV supports it anyway.

It will work fine using the 3.5mm analogue socket.
For this you need a Stereo 3.5mm to RCA (Phono) lead.
Make sure you get one long enough.

Alternatively, use your 7.1 sound system :)
 
Hi, thanks for the reply! Sorry I couldnt get back to you sooner.

Am I right in assuming the RCA Phono cable is the correct cable for a coaxial spdif out on my audigy? And then the 3.5mm stereo is input is for the tv? If so, great then that's what I'll be gettings :)

Cheers,
 
Yeah, that's why I was told to use the 3.5mm input on the TV instead right? Would it be possible to link me to a cable since I'm having trouble finding the one you mention.

Cheers,
 
Post #15 says exactly what you need.
I havent bought a lead for so long I have no clue where to get them online.

I made a small error on one line which i think is where the confusion started.
The TV has 2xPhono/RCA connectors for analogue sound input.
Connect a 3.5mm jack stereo lead to your soundcard with its phono connections to the TV.
 
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