when you have an old surround sound system, you need an old surround sound card
Written: Sep 29 '03 (Updated Sep 29 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: configures all five ports to different sound setups
Cons: no S/PDIF input
The Bottom Line: If you need a slightly obsolete card for a slightly obsolete surround sound system, this is perfect, and the price just makes it that much better!
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| collegegrrl's Full Review: AOpen Cobra AW850 Sound Card |
When I discovered the joys of a subwoofer, combined with my love for electronic music, a friend at school offered me his old 5.1-channel surround sound system for $50. The receiver box that came with the system provided audio input for both 2-channel stereo and 5.1-channel surround sound, so for a long time I simply used an RCA-to-3.5mm cord to plug the system into my computer's onboard sound chip. However, I decided it would be extremely cool to be able to watch DVDs in true DTS surround sound, so I started looking around.
Although I enjoy spending money on computer parts and peripherals, dropping $60 on a Sound Blaster 5.1 card wasn't too appealing. I borrowed my friend's Audigy to see how my system might hook up, and it was interesting.
I have no optical or digital sound cable, the way that 5.1 computer and home theatre systems today are wired. Instead, the sound runs to the speakers through six individual RCA jacks. This posed a slight problem, since surround sound cards have L/R, Rear L/R and Center/Sub ports, all of the 3.5mm size. I found adapters at Radio Shack, to split a 3.5 stereo channel into two separate RCA channels, but the adapters were bulky and didn't fit into the jacks on the card without bending slightly.
Enter the A-Open Cobra AW850. Installation is simple; plug into a free PCI slot on your motherboard, turn on your computer, and install the drivers from the included CD-ROM. However, the coolness lies in the configuration software.
There are two parts to the software - a basic stereo mixer that allows you to change the volume of the master, CD audio, wave audio, and the other ports (mic, aux in, midi). The second part, which configures the actual card, allows you to specify what kind of system is plugged into your card. There are three options : 2 channel, 4 channel, and 5.1 channel. When set on 5.1 channel mode, the card actually outputs sound through the L/R, Mic, and Aux In ports on the card, which allows plenty of space for the adapters i need for my system.
The downside to this card is that there is no S/PDIF in, which can cause compatibility issues with certain audio CD ripping programs. However, RCA's MusicMatch Jukebox was fully compatible and works just fine.
Additionally, this card is completely compatible with Windows XP Professional, so I have a feeling it will also work with all Windows 9x operating systems.
All I needed was a card with analog sound and 5.1-channel capability, and for $20 I found exactly what I needed. The bottom line? This card may very well be nothing like what you specifically need, but depending on what kind of speaker system you have, this could be the answer to all your problems. It certainly was for me!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 20
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Epinions.com ID:
collegegrrl
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Location: Indianapolis, IN
Reviews written: 22
Trusted by: 3 members
About Me:
I'm a tech head. So sue me.
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