Anyone using an Audiobahn ADD51T for 5.1?

**DrDeriv** · 03-22-2005, 07:23 AM

...perhaps with an EPIA M-II? I've tested the Audiobahn with my home DVD player's SPDIF output and it immediately senses a digital input. However, when I hook it up the way I'm really gonna use it, to an EPIA M-II, I get nothing. M-II is configured correctly with all the right boxes checked, etc. So to save time, I'm just looking for someone with the same setup to verify it is possible to get it to work (eventually).

Thanks.

**dave2** · 03-22-2005, 07:37 AM

Are you sure your epia is actually using the optical port? My asus can turn off the laser, and you can see it glowing red when it's on. Check to make sure its even on. If so, I don't know. I think I read somewhere that there are 2 different formats of optical signal, and you might have the computer outputting the wrong one.
Dave

**coachreed** · 03-22-2005, 07:45 AM

Optical? Is there an optical on any of these boards? Which one? I have have a port for digital coax (video)... but no toslink... I'd LOVE to have toslink... anyone care to elaborate?

**Nic** · 03-22-2005, 08:04 AM

no they arent optical, have you got anything you can plug the output into to test it, like a home stereo. i remember in the m10000 manual the diagram for the jumpers on the board regarding spdif/video were the wrong way round, i dont know about the m2 though. i also remember something about the voltage varying from zero to positive rather than negative to positive, which some spdif inputs didnt like, or something

**DrDeriv** · 03-22-2005, 08:21 AM

It is indeed SPDIF (digital coax) rather than toslink (optical). I have the jumper set right...I cofirmed it's composite video when in the non-SPDIF position by temporarily hooking up to a monitor. I don't have an easily available home piece to plug the M-II into, but that's a good idea and will eventually need to be done I suppose. The idea of the inverted signal (or whatever) is exactly the kind of stuff I'm looking for by asking if anyone has these two pieces hooked up. Thanks.

Anyone else? Anyone actually have these two pieces talking?

**dave2** · 03-22-2005, 03:26 PM

My bad, it was really late when I read that... lol. The asus pundit has toslink optical in and out, which is what I have, and I related the situation to that.

**DrDeriv** · 03-24-2005, 08:48 PM

OK, problem solved! Apparently, the ADD51T doesn't like the voltages put out by the M-II. So I used the SPDIF coax to optical converter from svideo.com (link below) and it works perfectly. Strange because before I installed the adapter, I plugged the M-II digital coax output into a piece of home audio equipment and it recognized the signal no problem. The ADD51T must be very fussy about what constitutes on vs. off when using coax, whereas home audio pieces are more flexible. However, with light pulses I guess it's hard to argue what's on and what's off.

Despite what the often quoted article at http://www.mini-itx.com/hardware/ac3 says, you do not need AC3filter. I just upgraded my OEM version of PowerDVD and DTS worked immediately.

Thanks for all the help and suggestions from those who posted. Hopefully this info will help others in the future. This is definitely cool stuff!!!

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SPDIF Coaxial to Toslink Optical Digital Converter: http://www.svideo.com/coaxtoslink1.html

Rather than doing it yourself, if you'd like a system using these technologies installed for you, just go to http://www.syndicateauto.com