• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Most of Gigabyte's Intel Z690 Motherboards Only Features Two Audio Jacks

TheLostSwede

News Editor
Joined
Nov 11, 2004
Messages
16,001 (2.26/day)
Location
Sweden
System Name Overlord Mk MLI
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard Gigabyte X670E Aorus Master
Cooling Noctua NH-D15 SE with offsets
Memory 32GB Team T-Create Expert DDR5 6000 MHz @ CL30-34-34-68
Video Card(s) Gainward GeForce RTX 4080 Phantom GS
Storage 1TB Solidigm P44 Pro, 2 TB Corsair MP600 Pro, 2TB Kingston KC3000
Display(s) Acer XV272K LVbmiipruzx 4K@160Hz
Case Fractal Design Torrent Compact
Audio Device(s) Corsair Virtuoso SE
Power Supply be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 850 W
Mouse Logitech G502 Lightspeed
Keyboard Corsair K70 Max
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores https://valid.x86.fr/5za05v
Although we're going to try and cover all the newly launched Intel Z690 based motherboards more thoroughly before the retail availability date, we had a quick look already on what's on offer and we were struck by something rather odd when it comes to Gigabyte, most of their new boards only have two 3.5 mm audio jacks around the back. This is not limited to their cheaper SKUs, but is found through the entire product stack.

We're not entirely sure what's going on here and will check with Gigabyte once someone is awake that we can talk to about it, but we're fairly certain that this is going to cause a bit of a backlash from their customers. This was actually something we kind of saw in the leaked image of one of the Aero boards, as it didn't look like it had any audio jacks at all, but that wasn't the case. Instead, it seems to have something to do with Gigabyte's move away from the Realtek ALC1220 Intel HD audio based codecs that the company have been using for the past few generations of boards.




We first spotted this on the Z690I Aorus Ultra, a Mini-ITX board and didn't think too much of it, as Mini-ITX boards often have more limited audio ports. However, it turns out that everything from the fairly entry level Z690 Gaming X all the way up to the Z690 Aorus Xtreme has had their ports cut back, although there are models in between that still feature some variant of the ALC1220 audio codec. Most of the boards appear to feature the ALC4080, something we've already seen on some ASUS motherboards, although ASUS offers a full complement of ports on their boards. It should be noted that the ALC408x is a USB audio codec and as such doesn't appear to be Intel HD audio compliant, if it matters.



Some boards only have two 3.5 mm jacks as mentioned, whereas others also have an optical S/PDIF jack, but this can apparently not be used at the same time as the 3.5 mm jack and we're not sure if this requires you to unplug the 3.5 mm jack to use the S/PDIF interface. At least all of these boards sport a front panel audio header, but there are a couple of boards that make this whole change even more confusing. The first one is the Aero G, which in addition to the ALC4080 features an old and quite frankly poor quality ALC897 Intel HD codec for the front panel audio header. We really don't understand why, as this is a huge downgrade even from the ALC1220.



Finally we have the Z690 Aorus Xtreme, which does away with Realtek altogether, in favour of an ESS ES9280AC USB DAC and a pair of ESS ES9080 DAC's on top of that, all of which sits on a daughter card at the rear I/O. However, this board doesn't appear to have any kind of front audio connector. We'd also expect more than a couple of 3.5 mm audio jacks and an optical S/PDIF out with a setup like this, but apparently that's all we get. What's more, the Z690 Aorus Xtreme comes with an additional "ESSential" USB DAC that could be used for front audio, but which seems kind of wasted considering the high-end audio that the board already sports. We really don't follow Gigabyte's logic here and although it's nice to see some better quality audio solutions being used, we have a feeling a lot of people will want more than two audio jacks on their motherboard. We should also mention that none of Gigabyte's competitors offer a similar cut-back on audio jacks.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site
 
Joined
Aug 22, 2019
Messages
161 (0.10/day)
System Name Mjolnir
Processor 9900KS bare die
Motherboard Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Master
Cooling Optimus Signature V2, Heatkiller IV 2080Ti block, dual 280mm radiators, dual 10W DDC pumps
Memory 32GB G.Skill 3200C14
Video Card(s) Nvidia 2080Ti Founders Edition
Storage 3x M.2 NVMe
Display(s) Alienware 34" Ultrawide 120Hz 3440x1440
Case Fractal R6
Audio Device(s) Outlaw RR2150 stereo receiver driving DIY kits, Sennheiser HD6XX headphones
Power Supply Seasonic Prime 1000W
At least the Aorus Master still has the full set of gold plated outputs.

I suppose I get it on the rest of the lineup though. Seems like analog surround sound has pretty much and sadly died in the PC realm, with many using stereo or headphones. Many are going for outboard USB DACs as well. If you're going to use your PC as part of a home theater setup, you can route multichannel or stereo audio through the HDMI ports instead.

I love the Sabre output on my Z390 Master, but I really don't get multiple Sabres on a motherboard like the Extreme is spec'ing out.
 

Emerald_x86

New Member
Joined
Jul 12, 2021
Messages
2 (0.00/day)
As long as they include optical out for surround, I don’t see an issue with this.
 

TheLostSwede

News Editor
Joined
Nov 11, 2004
Messages
16,001 (2.26/day)
Location
Sweden
System Name Overlord Mk MLI
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard Gigabyte X670E Aorus Master
Cooling Noctua NH-D15 SE with offsets
Memory 32GB Team T-Create Expert DDR5 6000 MHz @ CL30-34-34-68
Video Card(s) Gainward GeForce RTX 4080 Phantom GS
Storage 1TB Solidigm P44 Pro, 2 TB Corsair MP600 Pro, 2TB Kingston KC3000
Display(s) Acer XV272K LVbmiipruzx 4K@160Hz
Case Fractal Design Torrent Compact
Audio Device(s) Corsair Virtuoso SE
Power Supply be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 850 W
Mouse Logitech G502 Lightspeed
Keyboard Corsair K70 Max
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores https://valid.x86.fr/5za05v
At least the Aorus Master still has the full set of gold plated outputs.

I suppose I get it on the rest of the lineup though. Seems like analog surround sound has pretty much and sadly died in the PC realm, with many using stereo or headphones. Many are going for outboard USB DACs as well. If you're going to use your PC as part of a home theater setup, you can route multichannel or stereo audio through the HDMI ports instead.

I love the Sabre output on my Z390 Master, but I really don't get multiple Sabres on a motherboard like the Extreme is spec'ing out.
But why only offer a line out and a mic in connection? Some people don't use the front audio ports on their case, although I guess almost all cases have those these days.
And what's the point of using a USB DAC to add just two ports at the back? Why not bundle an external DAC instead then? I mean, Gigabyte makes one and I'm sure they could make a more affordable one for these boards if they think it's a better way for people to use audio.
Supposedly the ALC4080 can do 32-bit/384KHz audio compared to 24-bit/192KHz for the ALC1220 variants, not that I think anyone can hear the difference.

I have an ESS codec on my board as well, although only for the front connectors, but you can really tell the difference compared to the ALC1220, as the audio is a lot more "powerful" for a lack of a better word. That said, I have a wireless headset now and use neither... :rolleyes:

As long as they include optical out for surround, I don’t see an issue with this.
As you can see, a lot of boards, including the Aero G, doesn't have an S/PDIF port.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Aug 22, 2019
Messages
161 (0.10/day)
System Name Mjolnir
Processor 9900KS bare die
Motherboard Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Master
Cooling Optimus Signature V2, Heatkiller IV 2080Ti block, dual 280mm radiators, dual 10W DDC pumps
Memory 32GB G.Skill 3200C14
Video Card(s) Nvidia 2080Ti Founders Edition
Storage 3x M.2 NVMe
Display(s) Alienware 34" Ultrawide 120Hz 3440x1440
Case Fractal R6
Audio Device(s) Outlaw RR2150 stereo receiver driving DIY kits, Sennheiser HD6XX headphones
Power Supply Seasonic Prime 1000W
Line out and mic in is all one would need for a gaming headset. External USB DACs can be a matter of taste, too.

Very strange decisions on some of the other boards though.

It's rather too bad, because onboard audio is really good these days. One of the things I hunt for in a new mainboard is a Sabre DAC with gold plated outputs. Makes me happy. Even the newer Realtek chips by themselves are really good, too.
 
D

Deleted member 24505

Guest
Is it a cheapskate move? afaik the 1200 codec is supposed to be pretty good isn't it.
 

TheLostSwede

News Editor
Joined
Nov 11, 2004
Messages
16,001 (2.26/day)
Location
Sweden
System Name Overlord Mk MLI
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard Gigabyte X670E Aorus Master
Cooling Noctua NH-D15 SE with offsets
Memory 32GB Team T-Create Expert DDR5 6000 MHz @ CL30-34-34-68
Video Card(s) Gainward GeForce RTX 4080 Phantom GS
Storage 1TB Solidigm P44 Pro, 2 TB Corsair MP600 Pro, 2TB Kingston KC3000
Display(s) Acer XV272K LVbmiipruzx 4K@160Hz
Case Fractal Design Torrent Compact
Audio Device(s) Corsair Virtuoso SE
Power Supply be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 850 W
Mouse Logitech G502 Lightspeed
Keyboard Corsair K70 Max
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores https://valid.x86.fr/5za05v
Line out and mic in is all one would need for a gaming headset. External USB DACs can be a matter of taste, too.

Very strange decisions on some of the other boards though.

It's rather too bad, because onboard audio is really good these days. One of the things I hunt for in a new mainboard is a Sabre DAC with gold plated outputs. Makes me happy. Even the newer Realtek chips by themselves are really good, too.
Yeah, onboard audio has in general been pretty decent for the past couple of years at least, huge improvement over what it used to be.
This seems like an odd step in a direction that no-one really asked for.
 
Joined
Aug 2, 2012
Messages
1,760 (0.41/day)
Location
Netherlands
System Name TheDeeGee's PC
Processor Intel Core i7-11700
Motherboard ASRock Z590 Steel Legend
Cooling Noctua NH-D15
Memory Crucial Ballistix 3200/C16 4x8GB
Video Card(s) Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti 12GB
Storage Crucial P5 Plus 2TB / Crucial P3 Plus 2TB / Crucial P3 Plus 4TB
Display(s) EIZO CX240
Case Fractal Design Define 7
Audio Device(s) Creative Sound Blaster ZXR, AKG K601 Headphones
Power Supply Seasonic Fanless TX-700
Mouse Logitech G500s
Keyboard Keychron Q6
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-Bit
Benchmark Scores None, as long as my games runs smooth.
Onboard is still terrible anyways.

Tried it for fun recently on my new motherboard, it sounded to flat and shallow compared to my nearly 10 year old Sound Blaster ZxR with replacable OpAmps, that card will last me another 10 years.
 

TheLostSwede

News Editor
Joined
Nov 11, 2004
Messages
16,001 (2.26/day)
Location
Sweden
System Name Overlord Mk MLI
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard Gigabyte X670E Aorus Master
Cooling Noctua NH-D15 SE with offsets
Memory 32GB Team T-Create Expert DDR5 6000 MHz @ CL30-34-34-68
Video Card(s) Gainward GeForce RTX 4080 Phantom GS
Storage 1TB Solidigm P44 Pro, 2 TB Corsair MP600 Pro, 2TB Kingston KC3000
Display(s) Acer XV272K LVbmiipruzx 4K@160Hz
Case Fractal Design Torrent Compact
Audio Device(s) Corsair Virtuoso SE
Power Supply be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 850 W
Mouse Logitech G502 Lightspeed
Keyboard Corsair K70 Max
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores https://valid.x86.fr/5za05v
Is it a cheapskate move? afaik the 1200 codec is supposed to be pretty good isn't it.
I don't really think so, as I can't imagine the physical audio jacks cost much and Asus has clearly implemented a couple of different ALC408x USB codecs will a full set of ports on their boards, so as I said, I don't know why Gigabyte has gone down this route.

Onboard is still terrible anyways.

Tried it for fun recently on my new motherboard, it sounded to flat and shallow compared to my nearly 10 year old Sound Blaster ZxR with replacable OpAmps, that card will last me another 10 years.
Creative making Windows 11 drivers for it? My experience with Creative is lack of support and buggy drivers, but I haven't had one of their products since the X-Fi Elite Pro.
 
Joined
May 18, 2009
Messages
2,733 (0.50/day)
Location
MN
System Name Personal / HTPC
Processor Ryzen 5900x / i5-4460
Motherboard Asrock x570 Phantom Gaming 4 /ASRock Z87 Extreme4
Cooling Corsair H100i / stock HSF
Memory 32GB DDR4 3200 / 8GB DDR3 1600
Video Card(s) EVGA XC3 Ultra RTX 3080Ti / EVGA RTX 3060 XC
Storage 500GB Samsung Pro 970, 250 GB SSD, 1TB & 500GB Western Digital / 2x 4TB & 1x 8TB WD Red
Display(s) Dell - S3220DGF 32" LED Curved QHD FreeSync Monitor / 50" LCD TV
Case CoolerMaster HAF XB Evo / CM HAF XB Evo
Power Supply 850W SeaSonic X Series / 750W SeaSonic X Series
Mouse Logitech G502
Keyboard Black Microsoft Natural Elite Keyboard
Software Windows 10 Pro 64 / Windows 10 Home 64
New place I'm moving into actually has an office for me to put my computer desk and I'm rather stoked about it since it's away from the living room area and bedrooms. I'll actually be able use my 5.1 speakers over my headset. It would be a no go for me if my MB didn't have proper audio jacks for my speakers.
 

excessiveobserver

New Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2020
Messages
24 (0.02/day)
Why is anyone surprised? They did the same thing on their B550 boards and removed the USB-C header connector.

Gigabyte sucks at tech support, but they even suck harder at cost-cutting.
 

TheLostSwede

News Editor
Joined
Nov 11, 2004
Messages
16,001 (2.26/day)
Location
Sweden
System Name Overlord Mk MLI
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard Gigabyte X670E Aorus Master
Cooling Noctua NH-D15 SE with offsets
Memory 32GB Team T-Create Expert DDR5 6000 MHz @ CL30-34-34-68
Video Card(s) Gainward GeForce RTX 4080 Phantom GS
Storage 1TB Solidigm P44 Pro, 2 TB Corsair MP600 Pro, 2TB Kingston KC3000
Display(s) Acer XV272K LVbmiipruzx 4K@160Hz
Case Fractal Design Torrent Compact
Audio Device(s) Corsair Virtuoso SE
Power Supply be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 850 W
Mouse Logitech G502 Lightspeed
Keyboard Corsair K70 Max
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores https://valid.x86.fr/5za05v
Why is anyone surprised? They did the same thing on their B550 boards and removed the USB-C header connector.

Gigabyte sucks at tech support, but they even suck harder at cost-cutting.
This isn't likely to be a cost related thing, especially as they're adding $20 DACs on the high-end board that still only has two audio jacks.
 
Joined
Feb 20, 2019
Messages
7,194 (3.86/day)
System Name Bragging Rights
Processor Atom Z3735F 1.33GHz
Motherboard It has no markings but it's green
Cooling No, it's a 2.2W processor
Memory 2GB DDR3L-1333
Video Card(s) Gen7 Intel HD (4EU @ 311MHz)
Storage 32GB eMMC and 128GB Sandisk Extreme U3
Display(s) 10" IPS 1280x800 60Hz
Case Veddha T2
Audio Device(s) Apparently, yes
Power Supply Samsung 18W 5V fast-charger
Mouse MX Anywhere 2
Keyboard Logitech MX Keys (not Cherry MX at all)
VR HMD Samsung Oddyssey, not that I'd plug it into this though....
Software W10 21H1, barely
Benchmark Scores I once clocked a Celeron-300A to 564MHz on an Abit BE6 and it scored over 9000.
I haven't used analogue audio surround sound in two decades, and if someone needs surround these days it's almost certainly going to be digital.

I think the market for cheap analogue 5.1 and 7.1 systems has dwindled because they used to be everywhere and now the focus is either on headphones, high-end stereo, or a proper HDMI receiver paired to a home theatre system.

In saying that, downgrading the codec is a big no. Audio codecs are not the expensive parts of a motherboard and if someone actually wants to use motherboard audio it really shouldn't suck.
 
D

Deleted member 24505

Guest
I haven't used analogue audio surround sound in two decades, and if someone needs surround these days it's almost certainly going to be digital.

I think the market for cheap analogue 5.1 and 7.1 systems has dwindled because they used to be everywhere and now the focus is either on headphones, high-end stereo, or a proper HDMI receiver paired to a home theatre system.

In saying that, downgrading the codec is a big no. Audio codecs are not the expensive parts of a motherboard and if someone actually wants to use motherboard audio it really shouldn't suck.

I get that. 5.1 ana speaker setups suck the phat one, too much cable mess. Dig out is deffo the way to go, so headphone and mic jacks only kinda make sense.
 

TheLostSwede

News Editor
Joined
Nov 11, 2004
Messages
16,001 (2.26/day)
Location
Sweden
System Name Overlord Mk MLI
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard Gigabyte X670E Aorus Master
Cooling Noctua NH-D15 SE with offsets
Memory 32GB Team T-Create Expert DDR5 6000 MHz @ CL30-34-34-68
Video Card(s) Gainward GeForce RTX 4080 Phantom GS
Storage 1TB Solidigm P44 Pro, 2 TB Corsair MP600 Pro, 2TB Kingston KC3000
Display(s) Acer XV272K LVbmiipruzx 4K@160Hz
Case Fractal Design Torrent Compact
Audio Device(s) Corsair Virtuoso SE
Power Supply be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 850 W
Mouse Logitech G502 Lightspeed
Keyboard Corsair K70 Max
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores https://valid.x86.fr/5za05v
I haven't used analogue audio surround sound in two decades, and if someone needs surround these days it's almost certainly going to be digital.

I think the market for cheap analogue 5.1 and 7.1 systems has dwindled because they used to be everywhere and now the focus is either on headphones, high-end stereo, or a proper HDMI receiver paired to a home theatre system.

In saying that, downgrading the codec is a big no. Audio codecs are not the expensive parts of a motherboard and if someone actually wants to use motherboard audio it really shouldn't suck.
It's about more than analogue surround sound though, as a mic input and a line input isn't the same for example.
Likewise, a line out and a headphone jack aren't the same, as headphone jacks and mic jacks are amplified, line jacks are not.
Obviously the typical Intel HD Audio standard is dead if you're going to use your PC for more modern audio codecs for movies, as a traditional S/PDIF can't support enough channels, nor most of the fancier multi-channel codecs and I think you're right with regards to analogue speakers, as there aren't much outside of 2.1-channel PC speakers these days.
I've had a few 5.1-channel setups over the years, but it was really the wiring that got to me, it's almost impossible to do it neatly. Also some analogue speakers had the centre and subwoofer reversed vs. how the audio jacks put out the sound, which was a really interesting issue, as the speaker wires wouldn't be swapped on that set.

I'm not sure this is a downgrade in quality, since as I mentioned above, you get 32-bit/384KHz support over 24-bit/192KHz support on the ALC1220.

I get that. 5.1 ana speaker setups suck the phat one, too much cable mess. Dig out is deffo the way to go, so headphone and mic jacks only kinda make sense.
See above. It really comes down to what you're using the audio for.
 
Joined
Dec 28, 2012
Messages
3,475 (0.85/day)
System Name Skunkworks
Processor 5800x3d
Motherboard x570 unify
Cooling Noctua NH-U12A
Memory 32GB 3600 mhz
Video Card(s) asrock 6800xt challenger D
Storage Sabarent rocket 4.0 2TB, MX 500 2TB
Display(s) Asus 1440p144 27"
Case Old arse cooler master 932
Power Supply Corsair 1200w platinum
Mouse *squeak*
Keyboard Some old office thing
Software openSUSE tumbleweed/Mint 21.2
They may as well completely remove high end audio and strike the DAC from the board altogether. If you're gonna GIMP, do it all the way and lower the price of the mobo.

Oh wait, we cant do that. Gotta charge even more for elss features.
 
Joined
Oct 10, 2018
Messages
943 (0.47/day)
Weird move by gigabyte, but they have been weirdly ran company for the last year or so... they moved some production to taiwan recently from mainland china, maybe they have supply issues? Does not make sense but once again, nothing about gigabyte decisions lately makes sense...
 
Joined
Nov 11, 2010
Messages
311 (0.06/day)
System Name Uzuki Toune
Processor AMD RYZEN 7 7700X (ASUS PBO 90C Mode)
Motherboard Asus ROG Strix X670E-E Gaming WIFI
Cooling Thermalright Frostspirit 140 White V3 ARGB
Memory 32GB DDR6000 CL36 Kingston (EXPO)(16GBx2)
Video Card(s) Zotac GTX 1050TI
Storage 2TB Kingston KC3000 + 1TB Crucial P2 + 480GB Samsung Evo 850 + 480GB Kingston A400
Display(s) Dell U2723QE + Philips 221V8 (Portrait)
Case NZXT H510
Audio Device(s) Auzen X-FI Forte + Onboard Realtek 4080 -> Creative Gigaworks T40II
Power Supply EVGA G+ 650W
Mouse Logitech MX Master 3 (Work) & G103 (Play)
Keyboard iRocks K71M
Software Windows 11 Professional
The website for the Aorus Xtreme does mention the reason behind using USB DAC instead of the standard front panel jack. Those cables in the pc cases that connect to the front panel audio are too inconsistent, either poor grounding or poor shielding, or even a combination of both. I've had my fair share of poor front panel audio from the cases I've owned so far, and for those who say they don't experience such things, well lucky you. For the rest, this is a viable out of the box solution for those people who do not know much about picking out USB DACs from the multitude of choices available nowadays and just wanna use the defaults that come in the box.
 

Mussels

Freshwater Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 6, 2004
Messages
58,413 (8.21/day)
Location
Oystralia
System Name Rainbow Sparkles (Power efficient, <350W gaming load)
Processor Ryzen R7 5800x3D (Undervolted, 4.45GHz all core)
Motherboard Asus x570-F (BIOS Modded)
Cooling Alphacool Apex UV - Alphacool Eisblock XPX Aurora + EK Quantum ARGB 3090 w/ active backplate
Memory 2x32GB DDR4 3600 Corsair Vengeance RGB @3866 C18-22-22-22-42 TRFC704 (1.4V Hynix MJR - SoC 1.15V)
Video Card(s) Galax RTX 3090 SG 24GB: Underclocked to 1700Mhz 0.750v (375W down to 250W))
Storage 2TB WD SN850 NVME + 1TB Sasmsung 970 Pro NVME + 1TB Intel 6000P NVME USB 3.2
Display(s) Phillips 32 32M1N5800A (4k144), LG 32" (4K60) | Gigabyte G32QC (2k165) | Phillips 328m6fjrmb (2K144)
Case Fractal Design R6
Audio Device(s) Logitech G560 | Corsair Void pro RGB |Blue Yeti mic
Power Supply Fractal Ion+ 2 860W (Platinum) (This thing is God-tier. Silent and TINY)
Mouse Logitech G Pro wireless + Steelseries Prisma XL
Keyboard Razer Huntsman TE ( Sexy white keycaps)
VR HMD Oculus Rift S + Quest 2
Software Windows 11 pro x64 (Yes, it's genuinely a good OS) OpenRGB - ditch the branded bloatware!
Benchmark Scores Nyooom.
I get the feeling that with HDMI taking over, 5.1 analog is going to fall off in the coming years
 
Joined
Jun 8, 2020
Messages
3 (0.00/day)
These motherboards suck for people who have true surround sound headphones like mine they have 10 speakers in them five in each ear cup with five 3.5mm plugs
I really hope this isn't the new direction I know too many people who prefer analog over digital
 
D

Deleted member 24505

Guest
I get the feeling that with HDMI taking over, 5.1 analog is going to fall off in the coming years

I seem to notice a few surround amps now don't have the 5.1 ana connectors now, only hdmi or coax/opti in for surround stuff
 
Joined
Feb 15, 2020
Messages
28 (0.02/day)
Processor AMD Ryzen 9 5950X
Motherboard ASRock B550 Phantom Gaming ITX/ax
Cooling Arctic Liquid Freezer II 420 rev.5 + Conductonaut
Memory 2x16GiB G.SKILL TridentZ DDR4-3200 CL14
Video Card(s) Sapphire RX 6900XT TOXIC Limited Edition
Storage Sabrent Rocket 4.0 1TB, addlink S70 1TB
Audio Device(s) Creative SoundBlasterX G5
Power Supply Seasonic Prime Ultra Titanium 850W
but this can apparently not be used at the same time as the 3.5 mm jack and we're not sure if this requires you to unplug the 3.5 mm jack to use the S/PDIF interface
definetly not a hardware limitation, pretty sure u can just do pin config override in the OS and have them work as independent sinks
 
Joined
Feb 20, 2019
Messages
7,194 (3.86/day)
System Name Bragging Rights
Processor Atom Z3735F 1.33GHz
Motherboard It has no markings but it's green
Cooling No, it's a 2.2W processor
Memory 2GB DDR3L-1333
Video Card(s) Gen7 Intel HD (4EU @ 311MHz)
Storage 32GB eMMC and 128GB Sandisk Extreme U3
Display(s) 10" IPS 1280x800 60Hz
Case Veddha T2
Audio Device(s) Apparently, yes
Power Supply Samsung 18W 5V fast-charger
Mouse MX Anywhere 2
Keyboard Logitech MX Keys (not Cherry MX at all)
VR HMD Samsung Oddyssey, not that I'd plug it into this though....
Software W10 21H1, barely
Benchmark Scores I once clocked a Celeron-300A to 564MHz on an Abit BE6 and it scored over 9000.
It's about more than analogue surround sound though, as a mic input and a line input isn't the same for example.
Likewise, a line out and a headphone jack aren't the same, as headphone jacks and mic jacks are amplified, line jacks are not.
Oh wow, I hadn't even considered people using unamplified line in/line out. For motherboard audio isn't that just asking for EMI noises in the background? I know isolated traces and higher-end capacitors can help but IME they're still in the same metal box as all the other stuff generating EMI interference that manifests as squeals, whines, and other irritations that even a very cheap USB DAC (built into a cheap headset, or mic) can reduce or eliminate entirely.

I seem to notice a few surround amps now don't have the 5.1 ana connectors now, only hdmi or coax/opti in for surround stuff
HDCP could be one reason, the other being that a HDMI surround receiver likely has a good audiophile-grade DAC (usually better than what's on a motherboard or TV) so why bring in a noisy analogue signal from outside when you can do a clean digital conversion right there in the amp?
 
D

Deleted member 24505

Guest
Oh wow, I hadn't even considered people using unamplified line in/line out. For motherboard audio isn't that just asking for EMI noises in the background? I know isolated traces and higher-end capacitors can help but IME they're still in the same metal box as all the other stuff generating EMI interference that manifests as squeals, whines, and other irritations that even a very cheap USB DAC (built into a cheap headset, or mic) can reduce or eliminate entirely.


HDCP could be one reason, the other being that a HDMI surround receiver likely has a good audiophile-grade DAC (usually better than what's on a motherboard or TV) so why bring in a noisy analogue signal from outside when you can do a clean digital conversion right there in the amp?

The only thing ana is any good for now, and that is a turntable
 
Top