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I give up - how do you use the SPDIF??

post #1 of 15
2/3/04 at 11:08pm
Thread Starter 
So, I think I've tried just about everything. It's little odd because SPDIF digital audio is generally via RCA plug (coax) or optical. In this case it's on the same jack as the stereo 1/8" analog speaker outs, so I assume you have to use some sort of dongle. I've tried a stereo TRS plug splitting to 2 RCA's, and a mono 1/8" direct to 1 RCA and neither appear to produce SPDIF as I know it. The manual mentions the use of an external surround processor, but this is not SPDIF per se. Is it possible to run SPDIF directly out of the Area51m or not?

Thanks!
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post #2 of 15
2/4/04 at 3:16pm
Thread Starter 
So I take it no one is using digital-ready speakers w/ their laptops?
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post #3 of 15
2/10/04 at 7:11am
The same output is for 8mm headphone jacks and optical output. If you select 48khz or whatever in the Cmedia drivers and the redlight does not turn on, then it doesn't work and welcome to my world. Don't bother trying to ask the tech support from alienware cause they can not understand what you are talking about, or don't care about the issue. Basically you will need to call them and get it shipped back to get the soundcard replaced. I will be doing this as soon as I return from Iraq. Lemme know how it works out. When you talk to them make sure you say you used a TOSLINK cable cause they do not know what an optical cable is. Hope this helps.
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post #4 of 15
2/10/04 at 12:47pm
Thread Starter 
This is not good news. Sound on this machine in general has been a big let down between a) MIA digital b) quiet little speakers (as I'd have expected if reviews didn't consistently claim otherwise) and c) extremely noisy output on analog line outs.

Tech support at first told me that the output was optical. Then when I told them no light was visible, they changed their tune and sent me a link to an adaptor that converted 1/8" mono to RCA - implying that this is NOT an optical output, but rather a SPDIF coax. I've never seen SPDIF on a connection like that before, but either way it seems improbable for analog and digital to share a port. As far as I can tell the softare settings are doing nothing.

It would be great if anybody who's had success with this would speak up. My best guesses right now are:

a) The sound fidelity is crap where analog is concerned.
b) The SPDIF is coax on 1/8" (weird) but not the standard stereo SPDIF I am familiar with (and which is actually useful) but actually a proprietary surround format that all my gear just quietly ignores. Arggh!

Can anybody help?
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post #5 of 15
2/11/04 at 7:01pm
I agree with the sound quality not being that stellar coming out via the 1/8" port in analog mode. (Although I'm using 3 5' extension cords to get the sound to my reciever). I've got a role of stereo wire laying around so I'm going to try to build a cable to use the digital connection. I just bought the following pieces from radio shack (aka rat shack):
Mini Phone Plug: catalog #274-868
Phono (RCA-Type) Plug: catalog #274-383
The stereo wire is 16 guage so it's a bit too big to really fit nicely into these connecters, but it'll cramp itself in. Hopefully with this I'll be able to connect the S/PDIF output on the lappy to the digital coax in on the receiver. I'll keep you posted on if I have any luck or not.
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post #6 of 15
2/11/04 at 7:16pm
Thread Starter 
Yes, please do! I've used the same connections with no success, so I don't know if I have a driver installation problem, dead hardware, or what. Does your receiver expect stereo SPDIF or 5.1 surround. I think this distinction might also be at the heart of all the confusion.
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post #7 of 15
2/12/04 at 12:55pm
My receiver will accept a bunch of different formats via the SPDIF connections (stereo, Dolby Pro Logic II, Dolby Digital, DTS 5.1). I'm helping my girlfriend move right now so I might not get a chance to finish the wire till friday or saturday. (Hmmm girlfriend/laptop/girlfriend/laptop - the decision is hard)
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post #8 of 15
2/13/04 at 12:45pm
There is no need to try an digital Coax cable, the output is optical. You have bad hardware if your light will not come on. There are 5 new AW51M2's over here in Iraq with me (I talked alot of people into getting based on their reputation unfortunately) 3 of the have the red light on 2 do not. I have tried a digital Coax cable (8mm to rca) and that does not work either, I promise. Just trying to save you the time and parts trying to wire that up. BTW you can get a 8mm to rca at any radio shack fol a couple bucks to try out if you want.
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post #9 of 15
2/13/04 at 5:24pm
thanks for the heads up!
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post #10 of 15
2/13/04 at 6:01pm
Hi guys,
On my Sager 8887 you have to go in the bios to turn on SPDIF then the red light will come on. You will also see it in the volume settings then. I hope this helps.
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post #11 of 15
2/13/04 at 6:25pm
Thread Starter 
What a drag. I don't know what bugs me more, getting bad hardware, or getting explicitly misleading information from tech support (they sent me a link to the RCA-to-1/8" adaptor with a photo and everything.) OK, getting the bad hardware bugs me more, because if this thing worked in the first place I wouldn't have wasted my time e-mailing them. Oh well, optical is basically useless to me anyway, so I guess I'll just buy an outboard adaptor. Grrrr.
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post #12 of 15
2/14/04 at 12:25am
Well, I should have listened to you rotorhead - it didn't work. But as I was fiddling with it I found something that might cheer you up. It seems my red light only turns on when there is a jack in the 1/8" port! Now I hesitate to even mention this because I haven't fully verified it. I don't have an optical cable to see if this is what is really happening (I don't trust them because of the reflection induced jitter problem inherent in most of them). One of the many times that I was plugging my 1/8" copper plug in I noticed a little flash of red. If you hold the plug half way in sometimes the light turns on. So I'm going to pick up one of those overpriced optical cables to see if this is truly the case. This worries me because it seems that AW is sending out different hardware configurations on their laptops. (you mentioned other peoples AW lappies having the red light on all the time). Or I'm just missing a setting
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post #13 of 15
2/16/04 at 11:04am
Thread Starter 
Can't figure out the industry schizophrenia between coax and optical, myself. I thought the iniitial idea w/ optical was for installations where long stretches of lossless cable were required. And yet, all my pro/semi-pro musical equipment is coax, whereas the consumer products from Creative labs etc are coming out w/ optical ports on them. Its as if these mfrs are using the "leftover" optical components that are no longer en vogue. End result: an SPDIF port that I can't use without an optical/coax converter whose price compares with a better featured outboard SPDIF converter.

I'm sure there are plenty of people who got lucky with their purchasing decisions, and prefer the optical port, but its another case where - if there had been one standard instead of two - we'd all win.
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post #14 of 15
3/3/04 at 3:21am
ha
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post #15 of 15
3/3/04 at 3:50pm
Are you using a mini Toslink cable. From what I understand this is the type of cable you are suppose to use with this lappy
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