HP SoundBlaster Live! User Manual

hp pavilion home pc

SoundBlaster Live!

5.1 Audio Card

The information in this document is subject to change without notice.

Hewlett-Packard

®

Company makes no warranty of any kind with
regard to this material, including, but not limited to, the implied
warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose.

HP shall not be liable for errors contained herein or for incidental or
consequential damages in connection with the furnishing,
performance, or use of this material.

HP assumes no responsibility for the use or reliability of its software
on equipment that is not furnished by HP.

This document contains proprietary information that is protected by
copyright. All rights are reserved. No part of this document may be
photocopied, reproduced, or translated to another language
without the prior written consent of HP.

Hewlett-Packard Company
Home Products Division
P.O. Box 4010
Cupertino, CA 95015-4010
USA

© Hewlett-Packard Company, 2001. All rights reserved.

Hewlett-Packard is a registered trademark of Hewlett-Packard
Company in the United States of America and other countries.

Other brand or product names are trademarks of their respective
holders.

SoundBlaster trademark information:

Creative Technology Ltd.
Copyright 1998–2001 by Creative Technology Ltd.
All rights reserved.
Ver s i o n 1 . 0
September 2001

SoundBlaster and Blaster are registered trademarks, and the
SoundBlaster Live! logo, the SoundBlaster PCI logo, EAX, Creative
Multi Speaker Surround, and Oozic are trademarks of Creative
Technology Ltd. in the United States and/or other countries.

SoundBlaster Live! 5.1 Audio Card iii

Introduction..........................................1

System Requirements .............................................2

Federal Communications Commission Statement....... 3

Installation ...........................................5

Installing the Audio Card ....................................... 5

What You Need ...............................................6

To Install the Audio Card.................................... 7

Installing the Software .........................................10

Using Your Audio Card .......................11

Audio Connectors ............................................... 11

Analog/Digital Out......................................... 12

Line In............................................................ 12

Microphone In................................................12

Line Out......................................................... 12

Rear Out........................................................ 13

MIDI/Joystick ................................................. 13

Telephone Answering Device............................ 13

CD Audio ...................................................... 13

AUX In .......................................................... 14

CD SPDIF....................................................... 14

Audio Extension ............................................. 14

Connecting Speaker Systems ............................... 15

Analog Speakers ............................................ 15

Digital Speakers ............................................. 15

Enabling Digital Sound.................................... 16

Selecting Speaker Setup Option ....................... 17

Getting More Information .................................... 19

SoundBlaster Live! User’s Guide ....................... 19

SoundBlaster Live! Technical Support................. 20

Table of Contents

iv HP Pavilion home PC

SoundBlaster Live! 5.1 Audio Card 1

Thank you for purchasing this SoundBlaster



Live! 5.1 Sound Card from Hewlett-Packard.

The audio card kit contains:

■

These instructions.

■

The SoundBlaster Live! audio card.

■

The driver installation CD with software that
is compatible with the Microsoft

®

Windows

®

Millennium Edition (Me) and Windows XP
operating systems.

Note:

This audio card can be installed only in
motherboards with a PCI add-in card slot.
All HP Pavilions have PCI slots.

The SoundBlaster Live! audio card and software
provides multidimensional sound and textured
acoustical environments for realistic three­dimensional (3D) sound. The audio card delivers
sound at the highest fidelity and with absolute
clarity. Using it with four or five speakers gives
you realistic 3D surround sound in supported
games, movies, CDs, MP3 music, and Internet
entertainment.

Introduction

2 HP Pavilion home PC

System Requirements

To use the SoundBlaster Live! audio card and the
included software programs, your computer
requires:

■

Genuine Intel® Pentium® class processor:
166 MHz for Windows Me;
233 MHz (minimum) to 300 MHz
(recommended) for Windows XP

Or

■

AMD K6 200 MHz for Windows Me;
AMD K6 233 MHz (minimum) to 300 MHz
(recommended) for Windows XP

■

Intel, AMD, or 100 percent compatible
motherboard chipset

■

Windows Me or Windows XP operating
system

■

16 MB RAM (minimum) to 32 MB RAM
(recommended) for Windows Me, or
64 MB RAM (minimum) to 128 MB RAM
(recommended) for Windows XP

■

80 MB of free hard disk space

■

Open PCI compliant slot

■

CD-ROM drive for program installation

During installation, SoundBlaster Live! estimates
the required hard disk space.

SoundBlaster Live! 5.1 Audio Card 3

Federal Communications
Commission Statement

This device complies with FCC Rules Part 15. Operation is
subject to the following two conditions:

■

This device may not cause harmful interference, and

■

This device must accept any interference received,
including interference that may cause undesired
operation.

Warning: This equipment has been tested
and found to comply with the limits for a
Class B di

g

ital device, pursuant to Part 1

5

of the FCC Rules. These limits are designe

d

to provide reasonable protection against
harmful interference in a residential
installation. This equipment generates,
uses, and can radiate radio frequency
energy and, if not installed and used in
accordance with the manufacturer’s
instructions, may cause harmful
interference to radio communications.
However, there is no guarantee that
interference will not occur in a particular
installation. If this equipment does cause
harmful interference to radio or televisio

n

reception, which can be determined by
turning the equipment off and on, the

user is encouraged to correct the
interference by one or more of the
following measures:

■

Reorient or relocate the receiving
antenna.

■

Increase the separation between the
equipment and the receiver.

■

Connect the equipment into an outlet
that is on a circuit different from the
receiver.

■

Consult the dealer or an experienced
radio/TV technician for help.

Warning: The use of shielded cables for
connection of the monitor to the audio
card is required to assure compliance
with FCC regulations. Changes or
modifications to this unit not expressly
approved by the party responsible for
com

p

liance could void the user’s authorit

y

to operate this equipment.

4 HP Pavilion home PC

SoundBlaster Live! 5.1 Audio Card 5

Installing the Audio Card

Before beginning, read and follow all safety
information and warnings provided in the
Upgrading and Servicing the PC guide included
with your HP Pavilion home PC.

To install the SoundBlaster Live! audio card, refer
to “Installing Add-In Cards” in the Upgrading
and Servicing the PC guide.

Warning: Electrostatic discharge (ESD)

can damage disk drives, add-in cards,
and other components. If an ESD station is
not available, wear a wrist strap attache

d

to a metal part of the computer. Place
cards on a conductive foam pad or inside
the card wrapper, if possible, but never
on the card wrapper.

Warning: The HP Pavilion is heavy; be

sure to use ergonomically correct lifting
procedures when moving the computer.

Note: If your PC has a motherboard that contains a

combination modem/audio card, the sound may
not work properly with the SoundBlaster Live!
audio card also installed. If you remove this
modem/audio card, you will need a new modem
to use the SoundBlaster Live! audio card.

Installation

6 HP Pavilion home PC

What You Need

■

SoundBlaster Live! audio card

■

Phillips screwdriver

■

Digital (2-pin) and/or analog (4-pin) CD
audio cable(s)

If you have one or more CD-ROM or DVD-ROM
drives, these cables may be included with your
PC. If not, you can purchase them at a local
retailer. You need one cable for each CD-ROM or
DVD-ROM drive included with your HP Pavilion.

Analog CD audio cable

Digital (SPDIF) CD audio cable

2-pin

4-pin

SoundBlaster Live! 5.1 Audio Card 7

To Install the Audio Card

1 Turn off the computer and all peripherals.
2 Disconnect the power cord and all other

attached cables from the computer.

Caution: The audio card can be damaged if

power is supplied to the PCI slot when the card
is inserted.

3 Open the computer. Refer to the instructions in

the “Installing Add-In Cards” section of the
Upgrading and Servicing the PC guide.

PCI slots

1

Screw for bracket/

audio card

4 Remove the bracket of an unused PCI slot if

you do not already have an audio card
installed, or remove the existing audio card.
Put the screw aside.

8 HP Pavilion home PC

AUD_EXT

CD_IN

TAD

AUX_IN

CD_SPDIF

JOYSTICK

2

1

5 Align the SoundBlaster Live! audio card with

the PCI slot, and press the card gently but
firmly into the slot. Do not force the audio card
into the slot. Make sure that the gold finger PCI
connector on the SoundBlaster Live! audio
card is aligned with the PCI bus connector on
the motherboard before you insert the card
into the PCI expansion slot. If it does not fit
properly, gently remove it and try again.

6 Secure the SoundBlaster Live! audio card with

the screw removed in step 4.

7 Connect the analog CD audio cable from the

analog audio connector on your CD-ROM or
DVD-ROM drive to the CD_IN connector on
the SoundBlaster Live! audio card. If you have
two drives that have analog audio capability,
you can connect the second analog CD audio
cable from the analog audio connector on
your second CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive to
the AUX_IN connector.

SoundBlaster Live! 5.1 Audio Card 9

Digital (SPDIF) CD

audio cable

Analog CD

audio cable

Second analog

CD audio

connector

TA D

CD_IN

AUX_IN

CD_SPDIF

8 For digital CD audio output that has an

MPC-to-MPC, 2-pin digital CD audio
connector (SPDIF), connect the digital (SPDIF)
CD audio cable from the digital audio
connector on your CD-ROM or DVD-ROM
drive to the CD_SPDIF connector on the
SoundBlaster Live! audio card.

9 Close the computer.

10 Connect the power cord and the cables to the

computer.

10 HP Pavilion home PC

Installing the Software

To use SoundBlaster Live! on the Windows Me
and Windows XP operating systems, install the
device drivers and software included on the
driver installation CD. Follow these steps to
install the driver software that came with your
SoundBlaster Live! audio card.

1 After you have installed the SoundBlaster Live!

audio card, turn on your computer. The
Windows Plug and Play feature automatically
detects the audio card and device drivers. If
the New Hardware Found dialog box
appears, click the Cancel button.

2 Insert the driver installation CD into the

CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive.

3 Click OK when the SoundBlaster Live! screen

appears. Follow the onscreen instructions to
install the driver software.

Note:

In the Speaker Preset Setup screen, select the

number of speakers you will be using to hear
proper sound from all speakers.

If this SoundBlaster Live! screen does not appear
automatically, open My Computer and right­click the CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive icon that
contains the driver installation CD, and then click
AutoPlay. Follow the onscreen instructions to
install the driver software.

For more information about the SoundBlaster
Live! software, refer to the onscreen
SoundBlaster Live! User’s Guide.

To access the SoundBlaster Live! User’s Guide:

1 Click Start.
2 Choose Programs in Windows Me, or

choose All Programs in Windows XP.

3 Choose Creative and SoundBlaster Live!

and then click User’s Guide.

SoundBlaster Live! 5.1 Audio Card 11

Audio Connectors

Your audio card connectors listed here allow you to attach the card to other devices.

Analog/Digital Out

Line In (LIN_IN)

Microphone In (MIC_IN)

Line Out (LIN_OUT1)

Rear Out (LIN_OUT2)

MIDI/Joystick

CD Audio

(CD_IN)

Telephone Answering

Device (TAD)

AUX In

(AUX_IN)

CD SPDIF

(CD_SPDIF)

Audio Extension

(AUD_EXT)

Caution: This is not
an IDE interface.
Do not connect it
to your IDE device.

Using Your Audio Card

12 HP Pavilion home PC

Analog/Digital Out

Analog/Digital Out (orange jack) uses
a 6-channel or compressed AC-3 SPDIF
output for connection to external digital
devices or to digital speaker systems. For
Windows Me systems, the default for the
Analog/Digital Output connector is analog
output. For Windows XP systems, the default
for the Analog/Digital Output connector is
digital. You must select the digital output in the
SoundBlaster software to produce digital output.
For instructions on how to do this, refer to the
SoundBlaster Live! User’s Guide.

In analog mode, the Analog/Digital Out
connector can be used for center and subwoofer
(LFE) channels for 5.1 analog speaker systems.
In digital mode, it connects to 5.1 digital
speakers.

Line In

Line In (LIN_IN) (blue jack) connects to an
external device such as a cassette or CD
player, or a synthesizer.

Microphone In

Microphone In (MIC_IN) (pink jack)
connects to an external microphone for
voice or live sound input. Microphones
may be used to record music, make voice
annotations, or turn your PC into a
speakerphone.

Line Out

Line Out (LIN_OUT1) (green jack)
connects to powered speakers or to
an external amplifier for audio output.
Line Out also supports headphones.

In analog mode, Line Out and Rear Out
connectors can be used simultaneously for 4.1
channel or quadraphonic speaker systems.

SoundBlaster Live! 5.1 Audio Card 13

Rear Out

Rear Out (LIN_OUT2) (black jack)
connects to powered speakers or to an
external amplifier for audio output.

In analog mode, Line Out and Rear Out
connectors can be used simultaneously for 4.1
channel or quadraphonic speaker systems.

MIDI/Joystick

MIDI (Musical Instrument Device
Interface)/Joystick (gold, 15-pin
connector) connects to a game
port joystick or to a MIDI device, such as a MIDI
keyboard. A MIDI device allows you to connect
external electronic musical instruments to your PC.

The joystick connector is a standard computer
game control adapter. You can connect any
analog joystick with a 15-pin D-shell connector
or any device compatible with the standard PC
joystick to the connector. To use two joysticks,
use a Y-cable splitter.

To play games in MS-DOS mode:

■

Connect the CD_IN connector to the analog
CD audio connector on the CD-ROM or
DVD-ROM drive.

■

If the sound is distorted, do not connect the
CD_SPDIF connector to the digital audio
connector on the CD-ROM or DVD-ROM
drive.

Telephone Answering Device

The Telephone Answering Device (TAD) provides
a connection from a standard voice modem and
transmits microphone signals to the modem. The
TAD connects to a telephone answering device.

14 HP Pavilion home PC

CD Audio

CD Audio (CD_IN) connects to the analog audio
output on a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive through
a CD audio cable. In analog mode, CD Audio
connects to the center and subwoofer channel
speakers. In digital mode, it connects to digital
speakers, such as 5.1 surround sound speakers.

AUX In

AUX In (AUX_IN) connects to internal audio
sources such as TV Tuner, MPEG, or other similar
cards.

CD SPDIF

CD SPDIF (CD_SPDIF) connects to the SPDIF
(digital audio) output on a CD-ROM or DVD­ROM drive. This is an MPC-to-MPC (2 pin)
digital audio CD connector.

Audio Extension

Audio Extension (AUD_EXT) connects to the
optical digital I/O card or Live! drive.

SoundBlaster Live! 5.1 Audio Card 15

Connecting Speaker
Systems

To watch DVD movies, play games, or to listen
to music on your computer, connect analog
or digital speakers to the SoundBlaster Live!
audio card.

When using an external Dolby digital (AC-3)
decoder speaker system, disconnect the audio
card AUX_IN connector from the decoder card
Audio Out connector. However, if an external
Dolby Digital (AC-3) decoder speaker system is
not available, do not disconnect the audio card
AUX_IN connector.

Analog Speakers

When connecting analog speakers, you may
have a triple stereo audio cable or three pairs
of 3.5-mm-to-RCA (stereo) cables. These
three cables connect to the front, rear, and
center/subwoofer inputs.

Additional information for advanced users: For
connection to center and subwoofer channels
using a 3.5-mm-to-RCA (stereo) cable, connect
the white RCA connector to the center input and
the red RCA connector to the subwoofer input of
the amplifier.

16 HP Pavilion home PC

Digital Speakers

When connecting digital speakers, you can use a 3.5-mm-to-RCA cable to plug the digital speakers into
your SP_DIF connector.

decoder/
amplifier

3.5-mm-to-RCA

Analog/Digital Out connector

discrete
6-channel

Three 3.5-mm­to-RCA cables

(stereo)

Tip: left/center channel

Connecting to
Digital Speakers

Connecting to
Analog Speakers

Dolby Digital

cable

amplifier

Ring: right/subwoofer
channel

center &
sub inputs
front
rear

(AC-3)
SP_DIF In

SoundBlaster Live! 5.1 Audio Card 17

Enabling Digital Sound

If your sound is not clear or you have any static,
you may need to enable the digital sound option
from within the SoundBlaster Live! progam.

To d o th is:

1 Click Start.
2 Select Creative.
3 Select SoundBlaster Live!
4 Click AudioHQ.
5 Double-click Speaker.
6 Check the Digital output only box.

Selecting Speaker Setup Option

The PC is automatically set up to produce sound
through two desktop stereo speakers. If your PC
has four or five surround sound speakers, set up
the surround sound option for four or five
speakers to hear sound from all speakers.

To set up speakers in Windows Me:

1 Click Start.
2 Choose Settings.
3 Click Control Panel.
4 Double-click Sounds and Multimedia.
5 Click the Audio tab.
6 In Sound Playback, click the Advanced

button.

7 Under Speaker setup on the Speakers tab,

select Quadraphonic speakers for four
speakers or select 5.1 surround sound

speakers for five speakers.

8 Click Apply and then click OK.

18 HP Pavilion home PC

To set up speakers in Windows XP:

1 Click Start.
2 Click Control Panel.
3 Click Sounds, Speech, and Audio

Devices.
4 Click Sounds and Audio Devices.
5 Select the Volume tab.
6 Under the Speaker settings, click the

Advanced button.
7 Click the arrow under Speaker setup, and

select Quadraphonic speakers for four

speakers or select 5.1 surround sound

speakers for five speakers.
8 Click Apply and then click OK.

If you lose sound from your 5.1 speakers after
you restart your PC, you may need to re-enable
the 5.1 speakers using the procedures listed
above.

Most speaker setup options are for two stereo
speakers. For example, the surround sound
speakers option produces surround sound for
two speakers only.

To prevent sound problems, make sure the
speakers are connected to the correct audio
connectors on the back of the PC.

Important:

In the unlikely event that you must recover
the operating system, as described in the Quick
Start Guide, you must reactivate the installation of
the SoundBlaster Live! audio programs. If you have
more than two speakers, you also need to reselect
your speaker setup option.

SoundBlaster Live! 5.1 Audio Card 19

Getting More Information

SoundBlaster Live! User’s Guide

After you install the SoundBlaster Live! driver
installation CD, you can access the SoundBlaster
Live! User’s Guide. This guide includes
information about:

■

How to use your SoundBlaster Live! audio card
and the included programs in your audio
package.

■

MIDI specifications.

■

Connector pin assignments.

■

Diagnostics to test the Wave, MIDI, or CD
audio playback as well as test the recording
function and speaker output of your audio
card.

■

Advanced configurations on positioning your
speakers and connecting a variety of devices.

■

Recording and authoring content.

■

Troubleshooting.

To access the SoundBlaster Live! User’s Guide:

1 Click Start.
2 Choose Programs in Windows Me, or

choose All Programs in Windows XP.

3 Choose Creative and SoundBlaster Live!,

and then click User’s Guide.

20 HP Pavilion home PC

SoundBlaster Live! Technical
Support

Go to the Creative Web site at
http://www.creative.com
for more information about SoundBlaster Live! 5.1.

You can al so g o to
http://www.soundblaster.com
for the latest software and driver updates. If
you want to contact Creative by telephone, this
Web site lists technical support numbers for your
country or region.