Best 5.1 Surround Sound Card for PowerMac PCI Express....

[JasonGough]

I'm trying to buy a surround sound card, but the M-Audio Revolution i was looking at is PCI-X, so i dont think it'l work which is a shame...

Any other suggestions of a good PCI Express 5.1 card?

I have a set of Creative Inspire 6.1 speakers. They are ok, but need somthing to decode the sound for them, hense my need for a surround sound card.

Might i be better getting a external digital decoder to connect to the optical output?

Any help or adive would be great!

Thanx!

 

[ReanimationLP]

I'm trying to buy a surround sound card, but the M-Audio Revolution i was looking at is PCI-X, so i dont think it'l work which is a shame...

Any other suggestions of a good PCI Express 5.1 card?

I have a set of Creative Inspire 6.1 speakers. They are ok, but need somthing to decode the sound for them, hense my need for a surround sound card.

Might i be better getting a external digital decoder to connect to the optical output?

Any help or adive would be great!

Thanx!

Isnt there a Dolby Digital 5.1 card built into the Powermac G5?

 

[dubbz]

I don't know of any PCI Express sound cards made so far.

A external solution might be your only option for now.

 

[Orlando Furioso]

I could be wrong, bud doesn't the audio optical out support 5.1? And as Dubbz suggested, an ext. solution is probably the way go go.

 

[JasonGough]

thanx for the help guys.

yeah, looks like some external thing will be needed.

thing is, i don't fully understand how the Mac itself deals with the sound and uses the optical out...

if i conect a decoder to the optical out, will the mac already be sending decoded data to it, or will the decoder sort everything out nicely for me?

Creative do one for £80 that will hook up to any creative surround speakers (which is what i have), anyone seen any other seperate decoder options?

 

[unixkid]

Don't waist your money on a card, it comes with everything built-in.

 

[vohdoun]

thanx for the help guys.

yeah, looks like some external thing will be needed.

thing is, i don't fully understand how the Mac itself deals with the sound and uses the optical out...

if i conect a decoder to the optical out, will the mac already be sending decoded data to it, or will the decoder sort everything out nicely for me?

Creative do one for £80 that will hook up to any creative surround speakers (which is what i have), anyone seen any other seperate decoder options?

http://www.creative.com/products/product.asp?category=4&subcategory=136&product=9468

Was that what you got? It looks pretty good for features.

 

[JasonGough]

Don't waist your money on a card, it comes with everything built-in.

I need somthing that will take the optical output from my powermac and covert it into 6 analogue outputs that my surround sound speaker kit can use.

i have 2 options it seems...

1) buy a new set of surround sound speakers with digital in

2) buy a digital decoder that coverts the signal into useable signal for my current speaker kit.

I don't think there will be much difference, but a seperate decoder is cheaper.

also, vohdoun, yeah you found the one i was looking at. lots of features, more than i need tho.

 

[macroberts]

5.1 logitech

Hi there i have just bouht a 5.1 logiec system for my power mac g4, and was wondering do i need a 5.1 sound card or is there another way around it, i just took some connectors and plugged eash of the threee male ends into a 3 splice connector..something like that. n e way please help. thanks