Only sound from front speakers in a 5.1 system.

[Ahimsa]

Hi!

I have no clue what I'm doing. Every electroninc equipment in my room has landed her through donations and gifts from friends and relatives.

My computer has a sound card with 6 ports (mic, line in, front, back, side spk, CTR bass). (http/techreport.com/r.x/xonar-dg-xense/money.jpg) And VIA HD Audio installed.

I have a old 5.1 sound system (Eastern, Dolby Surround Pro-Logic) connected in to the soundcard through a "3,5mm to analog audio"-cable. (http/2.bp.blogspot.com/-rf86ppg9DkQ/TZnlqQeDyAI/AAAAAAAAAEQ/dbI6JLFYvPE/s1600/CC399-25_LR.jpg)

But I only get sound from the two front speakers, left and right. I realize the sound card might be configured for each different type of speaker connected to each special port through a 3.5mm cable. It's like connecting the 5.1 system to the output for head phones in the frontpanel. I only get stereo. But is there some way to get all 5.1 channels in the sound card directed to one of the ports and connect my 5.1 system in to just that port?

Hope make some sense out of what I'm writing and take a few minutes of their life and waste them on helping little incompetent me! =D

 

[ssddx]

connecting a 5.1 system via ONLY one 3.5mm cable to the headphone port is only going to get you 2.1 sound.

what you need to do is convert from the pc 3.5mm ports (front, center, rear) to one of the inputs on your 5.1 system.

once you do this you can get 5.1 sound but realize that not everything is 5.1. windows sounds, most music and most internet sounds are only stereo. games and movies will be surround sound (with some exceptions of course).

 

[Ahimsa]

Yeah, I've noticed, both that only certain programs and file-formats gives sound in 5.1 and that those two ports only gives nothing but stereo sound.

So, to convert them do I need a special cable, an adapter or Davey Jones Locker?

The crazy thing is, before I reinstalled everything on my computer, due to a hard drive crash, I got 5.1 sound when I watched movies and played games. Now I have the same hardware setup(except the hard drive), but I don't get the 5.1 sound and I can't figure out what I'm doing diferent now.

This makes me certain there is some way to force all channels through one 3.5mm port, by changing some setting somewhere in the sound card or windows or something. Am I way wrong? Did I only imagine it?

 

[ssddx]

you failed to provide information on what types of inputs your ht system has.

read:

http/www.tomshardware.com/forum/236295-28-connecting-sound-card-home-theater-system

a single 3.5mm port (headphone jack) will not support 5.1. your receiver can have a mode where it will repeat the front audio on the rear speakers but this is not 5.1.