when useing optical, does the sound card matter?

[the_village_treky]

im planning on getting a set of z-680's, and plan to use optical out. now, i have a fortissimo 3 7.1, and while its a good budget card, it cant realy match up to the 680 useing its 1/8th's, since only 4 of the 6 channels are processed in the hardware. now, if all my stuff is going to be decoded on the speakers(ie dts dolby digital ect), what is decoded on my card, and will this faux hw processing on the center and sug channels come through, even on the optical set up(in programs such as winamp, and non dolby/dts games useing EAX ect). if this is true, im tempted to get another card, but all the good new cars are A: WAY out of my price range after the speakers and B: dont have optica(creative, im looking at you!)...


also, i know this should probably go in computer sound, but i want to know this before i get the speakers(monday probably), and that forum seems to be VERY slow...

 

[jpmkm]

I don't know exactly how you plan to use your speakers, but you won't get anything other than stereo sound with the digital out, unless you have a pre-encoded digital stream, like on a dvd.

 

[the_village_treky]

realy? why is that? will games only be in stereo?

anyway, i plan on.. well, listening to music, and playing games, with the ocasional dvd here and there... and i dont want to use my fortissimo b/c the center and base channels suck(since its software decoded)(i was hopeing that i could just use it like a pass through, and let the z-680's do all the heavy lifting)... should i go with something like the Chaintech AV-710 so i can use the 1/8's? i am VERY new to this(pc audio), so if you can, make it sound like you are talking to a 3 year old

 

[Frosty_axe]

I don't know exactly how you plan to use your speakers, but you won't get anything other than stereo sound with the digital out, unless you have a pre-encoded digital stream, like on a dvd.

You can run non sterio sources over all the speekers, you just need hardware capable of the up-mix. Granted, it wont be in true "surround" but at least your giveing your full system a workout. Off the top of my head I know that creative calls this feature in their audigy line "CMSS" but i'm not sure what the other brands are useign for names.

 

[the_village_treky]

also, the 680's have prologic 2, wich i hear is half desent... anywhay, will games be in 5.1, and what will process it, the speakers(or controle pannel) or the sound card?(im hopeing for the sound card just to pass the info through, and have the speakers handle it all, since, as i said, my fortissimo 3 does the most important(center and sub) channels in software, so they suck)... aslong as games work in 5.1, ill be fine keeping my card, but if they dont, i guess ill have to go with the chaintech offering

 

[the_village_treky]

bump

i bought my card yesterday btw

Mod Edit -

..also, i know this should probably go in computer sound, but i want to know this before i get the speakers(monday probably), and that forum seems to be VERY slow...

Please don't cross post threads across forums; one thread in the most appropriate forum, please. Here's a link to your identical thread in Computer Audio:

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=836958 - Thanks - B.B.S.