hdmi with sound...

[jdf_warrior]

I was reading a thread yesterday on ocf, don't have the link handy, but it was a discussion of an ATI cards ability to send video and sound across an hdmi output. There was also mention of this being possible when using a dvi->hdmi converter. Is that really possible? And if so is that possible on Nvidia cards as well? I am wanting to set up another HTPC before long and would like to just run one HDMI cable out to the tv.

Also, would a motherboard such as this one here (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131237),
do it as well? This is the motherboard I was actually looking at using.

[RaV3N]

Yea Nvidia new cards and ATI's both have it.

[jdf_warrior]

Does it have to be enabled or anything?
Or if I plug up a DVI->HDMI cable to my computer will it just automatically send sound through as well?

[EmAn]

You may have to set it as your default audio device.

[Maverick0984]

The Nvidia cards require an adapter since the native outputs are still only DVI, I've never seen the adapter though, not sure what it looks like, and very unsure how it is done exactly since DVI has no ability to carry sound AFAIK.

I see on the spec that it is SPDIF, just not sure how it all works out physically with the connections.

[jdf_warrior]

I didnt think you could do sound over DVI either, thats why when i read the other thread i was kinda confused. According to some other stuff I've read, it does seem like setting it as default audio device works for ATI cards. Not sure how its done with NV cards yet. Anyone know what series NV card you have to have to do this?

[Maverick0984]

I didnt think you could do sound over DVI either, thats why when i read the other thread i was kinda confused. According to some other stuff I've read, it does seem like setting it as default audio device works for ATI cards. Not sure how its done with NV cards yet. Anyone know what series NV card you have to have to do this?

The spec sheet for the 260/280 claim to be able to do it, not sure what earlier cards can.

I'm more or less just curious how it is orchestrated. Hopefully someone will chime in.

[RaV3N]

Yea you dont need an adapter for the 260's and 280's. I dont know how it sounds cause im not using audio through it , but what i hear is it sounds great.

[jdf_warrior]

This is only an asusmption and may sound stupid as well, but is a dual link dvi cable required to run resolutions around 1920x1080 or so? If not, if you can use a single link, could the other 6 pins in a dual link be used to transmit audio and then within the dvi to hdmi converter, have those changed to audio for hdmi? (if that makes sense) or could it use the 4 analog pins of a dvi-i connection to transmit the audio? Basically take a single link dvi cable and use it for the video, and the card uses the other 6 or 4 pins, to transmit audio, and within the converter, it knows to use those pins for audio?

[RaV3N]

This is only an asusmption and may sound stupid as well, but is a dual link dvi cable required to run resolutions around 1920x1080 or so? If not, if you can use a single link, could the other 6 pins in a dual link be used to transmit audio and then within the dvi to hdmi converter, have those changed to audio for hdmi? (if that makes sense) or could it use the 4 analog pins of a dvi-i connection to transmit the audio? Basically take a single link dvi cable and use it for the video, and the card uses the other 6 or 4 pins, to transmit audio, and within the converter, it knows to use those pins for audio?

No you dont need two DVI cord for 1080. Higher resolutions can be reached on one also. And the audio through one cord and not through the other thing wont work, its not designed to independently send sound only through one and video the other. That would require specific software and drivers that dont exsist.

[Maverick0984]

Yea you dont need an adapter for the 260's and 280's. I dont know how it sounds cause im not using audio through it , but what i hear is it sounds great.

Well digital sound doesn't require high quality opamps or anything it's just whatever codec or method they choose to transport the digital stream, hence the ability to do it on a graphics card.

This doesn't address the question though. The card outputs DVI and not HDMI. An adapter is necessary to get it to HDMI. The connectors are in no way related and DVI cannot carry audio. Something down the line has to be fed SPDIF into some sort of contraption which then "splices," for lack of a better term, the DVI+audio into HDMI. I just want to know what it looks like...or where the conversion is done.

Every picture I have seen gives these cards the traditional Nvidia 2 DVI outputs, and no HDMI.

I'm not saying it isn't possible, Nvidia clearly says they support it. I just want to understand how the accomplish it.

[RaV3N]

Well digital sound doesn't require high quality opamps or anything it's just whatever codec or method they choose to transport the digital stream, hence the ability to do it on a graphics card.

This doesn't address the question though. The card outputs DVI and not HDMI. An adapter is necessary to get it to HDMI. The connectors are in no way related and DVI cannot carry audio. Something down the line has to be fed SPDIF into some sort of contraption which then "splices," for lack of a better term, the DVI+audio into HDMI. I just want to know what it looks like...or where the conversion is done.

Every picture I have seen gives these cards the traditional Nvidia 2 DVI outputs, and no HDMI.

I'm not saying it isn't possible, Nvidia clearly says they support it. I just want to understand how the accomplish it.

All you need is a DVI to HDMI adapter or DVI to HDMI cord. Somewhere in the videocard through one of the DVI pins audio is transmitted. Digital is digital, dvi and hdmi are the same singal. So its isnt a problem for audio to go through DVI as long as the hardware has the functionality and has HDMI at the other end. So for example if they decided to use DVI as the mainstream HD output they would just make devices that send sound though DVI to DVI. It would still work like HDMI to HDMI but HDMI just ended up being the mainstream digital output so we need adapters :).

[jdf_warrior]

RaV3N: I think you misunderstood what I was saying in my last post. There are two (dont know the appropriate term) types of DVI. Single link and dual link. Looking at pin diagrams, they both have a layout for 24+4 pins. The original 24, will all be present in a dual link DVI connection. In a single link DVI connection, pins 4,5,12,13,20, and 21 are missing. The additional 4 pins to the left are used for analog, for use with a DVI-I or DVI-A cable. These 4 are missing in DVI-D as it is digital only.

My question was.. to my understanding, to reach some higher resolutions, you must use a dual link dvi cable (all 24 primary pins). What is the cut off for requiring dual link. If 1920x1080 will run on single link (missing the 6 center pins), can those 6 missing pins be used to transmit the audio? Obviously, there would need to be a special converter that would allow for accepting audio on those pins and converting that through to an hdmi output, which may be why Nvidia was gracious enough to give it to you. If it isnt the 6 middle pins, could the audio possibly be transmitted through the 4 pins that were originally intended for analog (vga) transmisisons. Theoretically, a pin is a pin, the change between digital and analog is only a change of the source pushing the info to the pin. So, possibly, if you set audio device to the video card (or however its done), it knows to change and push digital audio through those 4 pins. Could that be possible?

If it says its done through HDMI, I think its dont strictly through the HDMI some how, I dont think there is an auxiliary audio input on a converter somewhere. Its done through the DVI port, SOMEHOW. At least, thats how it seems.

[RaV3N]

RaV3N: I think you misunderstood what I was saying in my last post. There are two (dont know the appropriate term) types of DVI. Single link and dual link. Looking at pin diagrams, they both have a layout for 24+4 pins. The original 24, will all be present in a dual link DVI connection. In a single link DVI connection, pins 4,5,12,13,20, and 21 are missing. The additional 4 pins to the left are used for analog, for use with a DVI-I or DVI-A cable. These 4 are missing in DVI-D as it is digital only.

My question was.. to my understanding, to reach some higher resolutions, you must use a dual link dvi cable (all 24 primary pins). What is the cut off for requiring dual link. If 1920x1080 will run on single link (missing the 6 center pins), can those 6 missing pins be used to transmit the audio? Obviously, there would need to be a special converter that would allow for accepting audio on those pins and converting that through to an hdmi output, which may be why Nvidia was gracious enough to give it to you. If it isnt the 6 middle pins, could the audio possibly be transmitted through the 4 pins that were originally intended for analog (vga) transmisisons. Theoretically, a pin is a pin, the change between digital and analog is only a change of the source pushing the info to the pin. So, possibly, if you set audio device to the video card (or however its done), it knows to change and push digital audio through those 4 pins. Could that be possible?

If it says its done through HDMI, I think its dont strictly through the HDMI some how, I dont think there is an auxiliary audio input on a converter somewhere. Its done through the DVI port, SOMEHOW. At least, thats how it seems.
Oh I c. In that case i dont know :confused: Someone chime in.