Vista - no 5.1 audio option in speaker setup

I have a new computer, an Asus M2NPV-VM motherboard and Vista Home Premium.
I want to use the Altec Lansing ADA995 (5.1 audio) speakers from my Dell
computer. The motherboard seems to be capable of handling 5.1 audio but the
speaker setup window does not offer 5.1 audio in the "Audio Channels" window
-- just "Stereo." There is nowhere to configure 5.1 audio in the computer's
setup screen. Any suggestions?

Rick,

I'll bet that your issue is a audio driver problem. I don't know what audio
chipset or drivers you have installed, but try downloading and installing the
latest drivers from the Asus website. You may also try contacting Asus
Support for more detailed information about this problem. I'll guess your
problem is not a Vista issue. The proper drivers properly installed should
resolve the problem. Others may have additional information.
--
freddy


"Rick" wrote:

> I have a new computer, an Asus M2NPV-VM motherboard and Vista Home Premium.
> I want to use the Altec Lansing ADA995 (5.1 audio) speakers from my Dell
> computer. The motherboard seems to be capable of handling 5.1 audio but the
> speaker setup window does not offer 5.1 audio in the "Audio Channels" window
> -- just "Stereo." There is nowhere to configure 5.1 audio in the computer's
> setup screen. Any suggestions?

Rick,

I have had the same problem with Vista and my Creative Labs card. Turns out
Creative didn't release full drivers for my EAX hardware on the card. The
two-channel speakers are functional because the drivers Creative released for
Vista are just that, two-channel only. EAX is required to be enabled for the
7.1 surround on my card to work: In other words it sounds like you and I are
having the same type of trouble. Definately check out the Asus website to see
if they have full-blown Vista compatible drivers released (certified chipset
drivers). Other than that, it's a waiting game for us both. But at least you
didn't go out and buy new hardware and find this out the hard way ;-)

"Rick" wrote:

> I have a new computer, an Asus M2NPV-VM motherboard and Vista Home Premium.
> I want to use the Altec Lansing ADA995 (5.1 audio) speakers from my Dell
> computer. The motherboard seems to be capable of handling 5.1 audio but the
> speaker setup window does not offer 5.1 audio in the "Audio Channels" window
> -- just "Stereo." There is nowhere to configure 5.1 audio in the computer's
> setup screen. Any suggestions?

I discovered the same thing with my MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum mainboard with
onboard Realtek ac'97 sound, and Vista64 Ultimate when using SPDIF / digital
output . The best response I could get from Realtek was:

(quote)
Hi,

The Audio driver doesn't support "Dolby Digital" function for your
motherboard .
Because this is required by your motherboard manufacturer .
This function was supported by Dolby licence .
You can try to play sound with PowerDVD or WinDVD ( support Dolby
digital ) .

Best Regards
PC-Tech
(end quote)

I've given up and just dual boot to XP for playing Dolby 5.1, after a month
or so of beating my head against walls.

Good luck, let me know if you get anywhere.

Graeme


"Rick" <myaddressisgallipeau@cox.net> wrote in message
news:ECE837DB-C013-4FD3-9C2F-DA6EBBABFFAC@microsoft.com...
>I have a new computer, an Asus M2NPV-VM motherboard and Vista Home Premium.
> I want to use the Altec Lansing ADA995 (5.1 audio) speakers from my Dell
> computer. The motherboard seems to be capable of handling 5.1 audio but
> the
> speaker setup window does not offer 5.1 audio in the "Audio Channels"
> window
> -- just "Stereo." There is nowhere to configure 5.1 audio in the
> computer's
> setup screen. Any suggestions?

Thanks, Freddy. Nate and Grae, too.
The audio chipset is Soundmax ADI AD1986A 5.1-channel CODEC, Supports Jack
Sensing technology, S/PDIF out interface, High-Definition Audio.
I installed the latest Soundmax driver from the ASUS website, but still only
have the "Stereo" audio channel option. Weird.

"freddy" wrote:

> Rick,
>
> I'll bet that your issue is a audio driver problem. I don't know what audio
> chipset or drivers you have installed, but try downloading and installing the
> latest drivers from the Asus website. You may also try contacting Asus
> Support for more detailed information about this problem. I'll guess your
> problem is not a Vista issue. The proper drivers properly installed should
> resolve the problem. Others may have additional information.
> --
> freddy
>
>
> "Rick" wrote:
>
> > I have a new computer, an Asus M2NPV-VM motherboard and Vista Home Premium.
> > I want to use the Altec Lansing ADA995 (5.1 audio) speakers from my Dell
> > computer. The motherboard seems to be capable of handling 5.1 audio but the
> > speaker setup window does not offer 5.1 audio in the "Audio Channels" window
> > -- just "Stereo." There is nowhere to configure 5.1 audio in the computer's
> > setup screen. Any suggestions?

Rick,

Now that you've installed the proper drivers for your sound device, but you
still don't get the results you expect, it's time for troubleshooting: You
need to review any sound related settings (if any) in BIOS to ensure they are
properly set. You need to review whether your motherboard has a jumper
setting for sound. Some motherboards have this. You may need to review
documentation, such as for your motherboard, to make this determination.

In addition, review any and all settings in Control Panel related to sound
to ensure proper settings. Also, make sure all connections and switches are
properly connected and switched. Just some thoughts. You may have
additional ideas. I see no reason why you can't obtain the sound you expect,
unless there is still something incompatible with the sound drivers. You may
want to contact Asus support for information about that.
--
freddy


"Rick" wrote:

> Thanks, Freddy. Nate and Grae, too.
> The audio chipset is Soundmax ADI AD1986A 5.1-channel CODEC, Supports Jack
> Sensing technology, S/PDIF out interface, High-Definition Audio.
> I installed the latest Soundmax driver from the ASUS website, but still only
> have the "Stereo" audio channel option. Weird.
>
> "freddy" wrote:
>
> > Rick,
> >
> > I'll bet that your issue is a audio driver problem. I don't know what audio
> > chipset or drivers you have installed, but try downloading and installing the
> > latest drivers from the Asus website. You may also try contacting Asus
> > Support for more detailed information about this problem. I'll guess your
> > problem is not a Vista issue. The proper drivers properly installed should
> > resolve the problem. Others may have additional information.
> > --
> > freddy
> >
> >
> > "Rick" wrote:
> >
> > > I have a new computer, an Asus M2NPV-VM motherboard and Vista Home Premium.
> > > I want to use the Altec Lansing ADA995 (5.1 audio) speakers from my Dell
> > > computer. The motherboard seems to be capable of handling 5.1 audio but the
> > > speaker setup window does not offer 5.1 audio in the "Audio Channels" window
> > > -- just "Stereo." There is nowhere to configure 5.1 audio in the computer's
> > > setup screen. Any suggestions?