posted
I have been trying to install a new Yamaha YMF740B sound card for the last day. My comp originally used the onboard sound. I disabled that card through BIOS and have finally found drivers that make the new one work. I had to manually install them, since XP kept refused to install them, so now I finally have sound.
However, only one speaker is making sound. I just have 2 regular stereo desktop speakers. They have one cable that connects to the sound card. My new sound card has two jacks that are labeled Speaker 1 and Speaker 2. No matter which one I plug my cable into, only the one speaker makes sound (and it is the same speaker that makes sound, regardless of which jack it is in).
Do I need new speakers that have two cables, since there are two jacks on the sound card, or does this sound like a driver problem?
Another website mentioned that not having the drivers installed in config.sys can make only the left speaker work, but I can't find that file nor do I know how to do that. I have used the driver self-extractor, and device manager says my device is working properly. Any ideas?
I think I would drop dead if a computer project went right the 1st time. Posts: 684 | Registered: Aug 2001
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posted
It sounds like your new sound card has two 1/8" mono jacks, instead of the more usual one 1/8" stereo jack. Your speakers probably have a 1/8" stereo plug, so you only hearing the speaker that still makes contact in the mono jack.
You don't need new speakers, just a Y adapter, that goes from 2, 1/8" mono plugs, to a 1/8" stereo jack.
That said, a store like radio shack should be able to sell you the connectors you need.
Edit: I can't imagine why they would use dual mono 1/8" jacks, when RCA connectors are so much more standard when you have one for each channel. What does the connector on your speakers look like?
1/8" jacks - here (the middle 2 in that first picture are mono (L) and stereo (R)) RCA - herePosts: 1621 | Registered: Oct 2001
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So, the y-splitter works, kind of. Both speakers work now, but there is also a lot of air noise and some static, especially when I move my mouse cursor.
When I take the splitter out and just use the regular stereo jack, only the speaker that doesn't work makes this air/static noise. Why would my mouse affect the sound?
Posts: 684 | Registered: Aug 2001
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Get this...if I use the splitter and only plug the 2 mono jacks into the soundcard halfway, the static disappears and the speakers work perfectly.
Maybe my soundcard is jacked up. Anyway, thanks for the help. I guess if it's working, I won't complain.
Posts: 684 | Registered: Aug 2001
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I've worked on a lot of different computers, and I've noticed that some sound cards can pick up noise from activity resulting from things like moving the mouse. It always seems to be much worse on the front audio jacks, presumably because of the unshielded wire picking up electromagnetic interference. Are your audio jacks coming straight off the sound card on the back of the computer, or are they around the front?
Secondly, have you checked to make sure that the speakers, as they're set up with the adapter, are broadcasting in stereo rather than both on the same mono channel? I find it kind of odd that they'd be labeled "speaker 1" and "speaker 2" rather than "left" and "right". Anyway, if you haven't tested them, here is a clip from the song I usually use to test out any speakers for stereo. If you can hear the sound travelling from left to right and back, it's good. If it fades in and out, you've got two mono channels.
(Bonus points to anyone who knows what the clip is from.)
Posts: 563 | Registered: Feb 2006
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