RCA jack on back of case

[DBuchholz]

Hi everyone,

I recently build a new computer and the back of my case has a RCA jack. I have multiple questions on this topic. I am hoping that this is is for audio. I want to use my Phillips stereo for my audio on my computer. The stereo looks like this

http://www.electronicsnation.com/en/products/flypage/prod_id/FWC798

I have it hooked up through the stereo jack on the back but I would prefer to use this RCA jack.
One of my friends told me that the RCA jack on the case is for audio but he heard that it only works with a system that has Dolby Digital Surround 5.1. Is this true? A link to the case is provided below:

http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=11-147-006&depa=0

Thanks in advance for any response.

 

[ImpetusEra]

It's either a coxial digital output for audio or it's a regular RCA video output for connection to a tv. I'd say if it's black then it's digital audio. If yellow it's video. You'll need a digital input on your stereo for it to work otherwise use the standard headphone jack which you can get an adapter for to convert it to left and right RCA jacks.

 

[norty303]

Is it part of the motherboard or part of one of the cards you installed? Tell us the components you used and we'll be able to tell you what it is

 

[DBuchholz]

It is indeed part of the motherboard. The RCA jack is yellow. A reference to the motherboard is

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-131-462&depa=0

This should help if you look at the pics. If this works I am hoping a 6 Inch RCA Y Adaptor RCA Male to RCA Female x 2 will do the trick for the connecting.

 

[wooglin]

Sorry, that would be a composite video output, definitely not audio.

 

[norty303]

But as there's no onboard video it couldn't be.

It's actually an SP/DIF socket.

You'll find it marked as 26 on page 1.3 of the manual. Maybe you should read it to familiarise yourself with the board, especially if you built the machine yourself, to ensure you haven't missed any critical steps in the setup

 

[norty303]

Sorry, that would be a composite video output, definitely not audio.

That's what i would've said but the board doesn't have onboard video.

Actually if it's the one to the right of the PS2 connectors, just under the parallel port then its an SP/DIF connector. It's on page 1-3 of the motherboard manual.

Just one question, if you're building this yourself, why didn't you just look in the manual?

 

[wooglin]

SP/DIF will not work into your standard TV or Stereo, unless it has an inbuilt DAC (digital to audio converter).

 

[ceh4702]

I would want to hear a stereo in person befor I purchased it. Go to the manufacturer of the streo and get better information on the stereo to see if it has a digital audio input capability and what kind of cable or jack it has for that.

If you do not like my post feel free to point out your opinion or my errors.

 

[ImpetusEra]

Well, that's the first time I've ever seen a yellow RCA jack that wasn't video. You don't need 5.1 DTS specifically for the digital output to work though the device does need to be able to handle the digital stream. That stereo doesn't mention anything about digital inputs either. If it's really $395 I wouldn't buy it either. It shows the product weight as 48.4 lbs. With that much speaker the weight should be higher as better quality speakers have heavier magnets. I have a shelf system from yesteryear with only two speakers and that weighs 84 lbs combined. I'd spend a little more money and get a component system which would be separate pieces. You probably already have a dvd player and those can act as a cd player too so they're be no need to purchase a regular cd player. Personally I haven't used a cassette tape in two years so I have no need for a tape deck, maybe you do though and used ones are very cheap. To bring it all together and put power to the speakers you need a receiver. If you look at the back of a shelf system and the back of a receiver it's easy to spot the toy between these two. A receiver will have multiples of s-video, coaxial and optical digital inputs along with regular analog inputs and outputs. You can get a nice dolby digital DTS 5.1 surround receiver on ebay for under $100 easy. I'm partial to Pioneer but whatever floats your boat will do fine. The last step is speakers. Obviously a $2500 pair of Infiniti's sound cool but not a realistic price. The current Sony SS line with the yellow speaker cones is a pretty decent purchase for the price. It might cost another $100 in the long run but then you'll have a system that can adapt where the shelf system is all one big unit with speakers that can't be easily replaced if one blows out.

 

[norty303]

as better quality speakers have heavier magnets

Not necessarily. With the new 'neo' magnets speakers can be significantly lighter than they used to be whilst retaining all of the characteristics of more traditional magnet assemblies.

For example I've just bought some 15" bass drivers for my PA system which weigh in at 11kg a piece. I've got some other 'neo' 15" drivers which weigh in at 5kg for the same power rating. To put that in perspective, that's lighter than some of my 100w compression drivers (big tweeter)

However in this case you are probably right... ;-) (but times, they are a changin')

 

[franklin97355]

As it says in the specs it's a SPDIF output. Wooglin says it's not standard video. (I don't know such things)

 

[wooglin]

SPDIF has nothing to do with video. It is strictly a digital audio stream which gets outputted to either the digital input of a home theater receiver/amp, or some other kind of outboard D/A converter.

Lots of outputs on new mobo's these days. I have an ASUS P4R800V which has VGA, composite and SVHS video outputs, as well as SPDIF and Optical digital audio outputs.

Do I need or use anything other than the VGA and headphone jack? No. My home stereo setup does not have an onboard DAC, and it's too much of a pain to string extra cabling to output the sound and video to the TV.