Switching between sources

Zeebedy

Zeebedy

Zeebedy

Soldato
Joined
28 Jan 2011
Posts
7,910
Hey guys,

im considering getting a cheap gaming pc again to coincide with my Mac mini..

I am setting up an amp to go with my Mac once I get my new screen tomorrow , and using a 3.5m to rca to connect the speakers..

now, I’m guessing I can do the same with the gaming pc? RCA to 3.5mm and put it to the amp on a different source and switch between them depending on what system I’m using at the time?


cheers.
 
I presume you mean an AV receiver with a package of surround speakers or a stereo amp with just a pair of speakers? If so, then sure.
 
You'd need a stereo integrated amp. But if you have video sources with HDMI, and playing video streams I'd recommend a AVR. Time alignment, bass management, HDMI in and out, DSP decoding etc.
 
You may need to be aware that if you use the HDMI out on the gaming PC, that it will try to use the sound thru that HDMI cable and output it to the screen.
In Windoze you right click on the little speaker icon (taskbar) and select Sounds>Playback then right click on the (onboard sound on the PC) and select 'Set as Default Device'
You can right click on your HDMI out and select 'Disable' too if you are not going to use the TV/Monitor for sounds at all.
The reason I mention this is, that Windows has an annoying tendency to keep switching back to the HDMI out for sound every time you unplug/replug-in your HDMI cable.
Disabling this stop it doing so. (Disable HDMI out in Sounds as above - Right click speaker icon>Left Click on Sounds>Right click on HMDI Output>Select 'Disable')
You can get fairly decent-ish 3D sounds from a pair of front stereo speakers via the 3.5mm socket on the PC's onboard sound (3.5mm to 2xPhono).
Happy to help further as I have spent the last 20 years trying to create the perfect 7.1 speaker, Amp Powered gaming PC and it is never as easy as it should be!
Kind regards
Glen
TLDR - Disable the sound output for HDMI / and/or enable the 3.5mm socket and set it to 'Default Device' - thus: Use HDMI for picture and 3.5mm to 2xphono cable for sound.
 
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"
Happy to help further as I have spent the last 20 years trying to create the perfect 7.1 speaker, Amp Powered gaming PC and it is never as easy as it should be!
Kind regards
Glen"

Optical/coaxial/HDMI from PC into a AVR. Job done- for music, movies

For gaming you'd want to use encoder from game surround to DTS/DD, or multi channel PCM.
 
hornetstinger said:
Optical/coaxial/HDMI from PC into a AVR. Job done- for music, movies
For gaming you'd want to use encoder from game surround to DTS/DD, or multi channel PCM.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the suggestions / advice. My issue really is I want 7.1 for both gaming and my digital 4k movies!
However unfortunately Optical and co-axial will not carry 7.1 sound and many of my movies are encoded with AAC 7.1 and playing the sound via optical and the picture via HDMA 2.1 results in only 5.1.
If I play sound via HDMI into my Sony 1040 amp then I lose my 4k@120hz and induce lag, if I ARC it back from the CX55 I get terrible random dropouts.
So, I went for HDMI 2.1 into CX55 and optical into amp for 5.1 thus; I either lose 7.1 or I lose 4k@120hz
The cheapest amps that do 4k@120hz are still very expensive just for that extra two channels, so I am waiting for a decent eARC capable amp to come up second hand and then I think my 7.1 channels will be all good from the PC.
:)
 
AVR's don't decode AAC. So even if you use HDMI, you won't get multi channel. You could try multi channel PCM? Or just send stereo and use DSP, not ideal but it's better than nothing.

You'll want to encode to the original DD/DTS/Lossless

You need a new AVR.

Or use one HDMI for audio, one for video
 
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