Hi, there -
I'm looking for a way to get quality sound out of a PC (Dell Vostro 1500 notebook computer). I have a good receiver/amp, cables and speakers. The challenge appears to be getting a quality signal from the PC into the receiver.
FYI, my AAC (iTunes) file bit rate is 256kb (VBR), which I know is not the highest, but I'd think should still sound pretty good, right?
I have tried several possible solutions:
1. Plugging a conversion cable into the 3.5mm port on the PC, and at the other end, directly into the CD or Aux RCA jack input of the receiver.
2. Using a USB sound card (I tried the SIIG USB Soundwave 7.1, which plugs into a USB port, and receives a 3.5mm jack), which using the same conversion cable as above, runs into the receiver RCA input ports.
3. Using the SIIG USB Soundwave 7.1 Digital, which is a somewhat more sophisticated box which takes input via USB, and output via the same 3.5mm-RCA conversion cable as above.
None of these options properly drove the speakers. Only when I used a standard CD player connected directly to the receiver RCA input ports (i.e. not using the computer as audio source) did the speakers "open up" and sound as they should.
The other symptom is that in order to get a certain volume of sound, the three options listed above, when pulling audio from the PC, required the receiver be turned up higher than when the receiver was being driven by the CD player.
Given this, what ideas do you have for pulling higher power and higher quality audio output from a PC?
Thank you.
