How To Set Up Surround Sound On Computer

PC Surround Audio Setup

There are at least several different methods for connecting an audio device to your computer, the analog connection is the virtually compatible method while HDMI or USB may be the highest-quality methods; using SPDIF can exist good for stereo playback, but becomes more than complicated when transmitting a surround sound signal. I will attempt to elaborate on all of these below.

Speaker / Headphone Configuration

When configuring your sound device in Windows, it'south important to take into consideration how many speakers you lot have connected and how big they are. If you lot are using headphones with discrete 5.1 speakers or virtual environs sound, I'll also mention that.

Right-click on the speaker icon in the system tray (bottom-right) or go to the Control Panel and click the "Sound" icon. You should go far at the listing of playback devices every bit shown below in the right image. Select your output device and click the "Configure" push (or correct-click on the device and choose "Configure Speakers").

Figure 1. Speaker icon right-click context menu.

Figure 2. Listing of playback devices.

After selecting to configure your speakers, you should now be at a window that lets you pick your speaker configuration. Do Not choice a configuration for more speakers than you have, this could result in missing sound.

Consider this:
• If you are using stereo headphones with CMSS-3D, Dolby Headphone, Xear, or any other surround sound simulation software, gear up your sound device to the maximum number of speakers that it supports. If you are using headphones with its ain detached five.1 speakers, then definitely select 5.1 as the configuration.
• Some games that use Dolby Atmos headphone technology propose setting the headphone to stereo and disabling whatsoever virtual surround engineering science that the headphone offers, this is correct. The game's audio middleware is doing the surround processing, for accurate results, set the headphone to stereo and disable any surround options in the headphone's software.
• If you have 7.1 speakers and want to go the best environment effect from a game that only supports up to five.ane speakers, you should select the v.ane surround choice that shows the environment speakers at ninety-degrees from your head. The Sound Blaster X-Fi does non appear to support this style.

Figure 3. Common speaker configuration options.

Figure four. 5.1 side surround speaker configuration.

If you selected the proper speaker configuration in the previous screen, yous should only be able to proceed past the next screen. Un-checking certain speakers essentially mutes them, applications still call back you lot have those speakers and will endeavour to output audio to them instead of moving audio to other speakers that aren't muted. Perhaps this section is made available for troubleshooting purposes.

Figure 5. Speaker toggle boxes.

Next, you will choose whether or not to redirect bass from the speakers to the subwoofer. If your speakers are small (cube speakers or small PC speakers) then you may want to uncheck the full-range box and let Windows redirect bass to the suboowfer (if applicable).

Consider this:
• If you have a two.1 speaker configuration, cheque the full-range box. A typical 2.one configuration performs its own bass redirection so information technology is all-time to let Windows send a full-range signal out to the device that will be acting as a cross-over.
• If you are connected to a domicile theater audio / video receiver via HDMI, setting all speakers to full-range may exist the best choice, specially if you used something like Audyssey to configure the speakers via the AV receiver. In the case of Audyssey, the AV receiver will exist processing the sound information technology receives from the computer, and so information technology would be wise to transport a total signal to the receiver.

Figure vi. Full-range speaker pick.

The paradigm higher up is the last step for configuring your speakers through Windows. If you are using headphone surroundings simulation (CMSS-3D, Dolby Headphone, Xear, etc) so you lot may want to refer to the documentation for your sound device on how to specifically configure that device for imitation surround output. Creative Labs provides this page every bit reference for how to configure CMSS-3D for headphones.

The analog connectedness is probably the most common way to connect speakers to a computer. If y'all have connected speakers or headphones to the green 3.5 mm jack on your reckoner, you lot have used an analog connection. Most computers will take a three.5 mm jack for analog connections.

Effigy 7. A stereo analog connection with a microphone input.

Effigy 8. An 8-channel (7.1) analog connection with a microphone input.

If you lot accept the stereo connexion shown in Figure 7, yous will be strictly limited to analog stereo, but if you accept the 8-channel or half dozen-channel connection shown in Figure 8, so you will take the power to use environment sound via an analog connexion.

Consider this:
• If you connect stereo headphones to a unmarried stereo 3.five mm connexion, you may be able to go virtual environment sound from games that have proper virtual surroundings audio processing such every bit Dolby Atmos for headphones.
• If yous accept a home theater receiver with direct analog inputs, y'all tin can purchase 3.5 mm to RCA cables from sites like Monoprice.
• Analog is the most compatible audio output method, if yous are experiencing issues with a game not playing audio or not playing audio in surround, try an analog connection.

An SPDIF (Sony/Philips Digital Interface Format) connection is typically either a coax (RCA) or an optical connection. On nigh PC audio devices, the digital coax will be orangish.

Figure 9. Coaxial and optical SPDIF connections.

SPDIF is capable of outputting either stereo PCM (uncompressed) audio or Dolby or DTS encoded (compressed) 5.one audio. I do not recommend using SPDIF unless that is your merely selection.

There are TWO methods for getting detached v.1 surround sound through SPDIF:
1. If a flick has a Dolby or DTS audio runway, it can exist streamed to a receiver in v.one through an SPDIF cable.
2. For games, your estimator volition need software that encodes the game's audio into Dolby or DTS 5.1 format; some computer sound devices include support for Dolby or DTS encoding, you will desire to look for either Dolby Digital Alive or DTS Connect in your sound device settings.

I don't think I demand to postal service a moving picture of what HDMI looks like.

I would say that the all-time feature of HDMI is its expanded audio capabilities and its ability to improve; information technology is the successor of SPDIF and it can conduct 7.1 PCM; no need for Dolby or DTS encoding. I take read that some games, namely those that use Audiokinetic Wwise, seem to have issues with HDMI audio connections, so this may be a reason to stick with analog or at least take the analog pick available when a game does not part correctly with HDMI.

HDMI typically needs to be activated by an HDCP-compliant device on the other cease (such as a TV or computer monitor) but you may be able to use an HDMI splitter (check eBay) to go HDMI to actuate without connecting a monitor to the other end.

USB is used for some uncomplicated PC speakers and for nearly 5.ane/7.i gaming headsets.

When you use a USB sound device, it is its own audio device. A USB audio device does not depend on your computer's audio device or whatsoever audio card you have installed and whatsoever changes you make to the onboard sound or sound card will non be reflected on the USB audio device. A USB audio device is essentially an external sound carte du jour. When you connect a USB audio device, you should notice that in the Windows audio devices you have a divide audio device named specifically for the USB device you accept connected. You will demand to configure this device independently of whatever other audio device yous accept installed in your estimator.

How To Set Up Surround Sound On Computer,

Source: http://satsun.org/audio/setup.html

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