Sound Blaster Digital I /o Module | List Price: $19.27
Discount Price: $14.55
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Brand: Creative Labs
Binding: Electronics
Warranty: 1 year warranty
Features: - Features
- - Dedicated optical and coaxial digital outputs
- - Convenient optical and coaxial digital inputs
- - Works with the following Sound Blaster cards
- -- Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite Pro
Maybe Worth It, but Be Warned [Posted on 2008-06-28]
This product did NOT do what I had hoped it would. However, I can't write it off completely since I was not using it for its original purpose. Follow me, if you will...
Setup: Laptop, Creative Sound Blaster external 24-bit USB break out box, Labtec 4.1 speaker system, Creative Digital I/O device, Xbox 360.
Before I purchased this device, I had been running the audio of my laptop through the Creative Labs USB Sound Blaster MP3+ External Sound Card Sound System Sound Blaster external USB device (please note, the link is to a product that is similar, but not precisely the same model), and out through the Labtec 4.1 speaker system. The external device worked just fine, and didn't have any major problems (with an older driver I couldn't get the device to use any profile other than 'headphones' instead of 4 speakers).
I had hooked my Xbox 360 to a LCD computer monitor via a VGA adapter cable, and ran my audio through the 1/8" jack to the Line In jack on the back of the external USB device. Everything was fine. I had audio from the Xbox coming through the speakers I used for my laptop (granted, no EAX abilities were available, but at least there was sound).
I ordered the Sound Blaster Digital I/O Module hoping that I would be able to use a TOSLink cable to get digital sound from the Xbox. Not the case.
I updated my drivers. I ran the TOSLink from the AV cable of the Xbox to the I/O Module and that was run to Line In 1/8" jack in the back of the external USB device. Turned on the Xbox hoping to have some surround sound love from the I/O module.
Nothing. No sound. No interference noise. Nothing at all.
I tried setting the Xbox to Digital Stereo, Digital Surround, and even the Digital WMA setting for the audio. Still nothing.
After some research and a letter to Creative, I was dismayed to find out that the Sound Blaster Digital I/O module does NOT support digital sound.
What???
Creative's solution was to set the Xbox to Digital Stereo output, and plug the 1/8" jack into the Line In port of the external Sound Blaster device. According to them, even though it wouldn't produce true surround sound, I should be able to use the TOSLink to get sound from the Xbox.
Sorry. That's not the case. I've tried every possible combination that I can think of, and I can't get any sound at all from the Xbox via the I/O device.
It's not an issue of the I/O device not being compatible with the other Creative device that I have. I double checked before making the purchase that it would work with the external device that had. I just can't. Make. It. Work.
So I'm back to using a cheapo Radio Shack 1/8" jack running into the external USB sound card to get audio from the Xbox. So, if by chance, you're trying to use the I/O device to get digital sound output, don't buy this product. It is not capable of carrying a Dolby Digital sound through it.
I honestly don't know why they even make this doohickey, other than to lure in gadget geeks like me.
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NOT for dolby system! [Posted on 2008-08-13]
Creative labs X-FI series does NOT support dolby 5.1 on the digital out and their cards will NOT decode 5.1 on the digital IN.
Why did I get this again?
If all you need is a stereo in/out then this works fine.
Who would buy a X-FI to do stereo.
See my review of the Fatal1ty sound card for more detail.
Documentation? We don't need none of *that* apparently!
I am quickly losing faith in Creative Labs....
This product is going back
Not for optical S/PDIF !!!! [Posted on 2008-08-31]
This product may be great.. but it does not connect to optical S/PDIF connections. So for instance it will do absolutely nothing for the Creative X-Fi extreme ausio notebook..
Providing only PCM (stereo) output [Posted on 2008-09-24]
I am breaking my head on how to get Dolby/DTS/5.1 output from this module. Looks like we can not. It just converts the analog stereo to digital stereo. I tried all the settings in my onkyo reciever including direct channel. But, when i tried the test sounds (from the sound blaster control software), only the front left and right speakers play. The rest remains mute. You get the output when you enable the "Digital output only" from the sound control panel. But, the output is just PCM.
Pay Attention to Speaker Settings [Posted on 2008-11-28]
This was posted a year ago, but is the RESOLUTION to using this module. No where is this documented via Soundblaster site, but I too after wasting hours of time getting this module to work, read this comment and problem resolved. Good Job to original poster.
************COPY*********
The bottom line to get the Digital I/O module working is to use Control Panel->Sound. Find your speakers and click Properties. On the Custom tab click Digital Only. The analog speakers will be disabled but the Digital I/O will work.
BTW: If you want to record PC audio connect the coaxial input to the coaxial output and make sure you turn up the input gain to 100%. You can use any sound recorder (including the free one that comes with Vista) to make high quality digital recordings.
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