Fabulous, as if they need another reason to lose customers.
I'm trying to figure out whether Im in a situation with my new build options as to whether I'll suffer from the cracking/popping/missing features I care about scenario or not. I don't care to use the onboard sound as I like what X-Fi does for headphones but.... Ahh well.
But on to a real question. I had once ordered a Dell XPS 630 (don't ask, I deserve the ridicule) and although it had many faults and hence why I am now building my own after such a long time not doing so...it did have something I really liked:
-When I plugged in the headphones to the front stereo jack, my regular speakers cut out and the creative software shifted into headphone mode (with setting for that profile such as that crystalizer thing, etc.)
Since Ive not yet built my PC, I though there was a connector on the X-Fi XtremeGamer card that would go to the front audio port but instead Im hearing that just plugs into the Mobo and there is nothing on the card to assist with that. If you want to use headphones, you need to plug them into the back.
BAH!
So how do companies like Dell do that? They have their own seperate board that attaches or combines with their Xtreme(whatever) cards?
I guess I could get the X-Fi platinum edition which has that thingy that sits in a 5" drive bay but I don't need all that crap other than the headphone jack it has - and Im guessing will cut out the main speakers?
Is there a 'finished' product or mod you can order instead of assembling it? If not, I guess I'll try.
I still don't know if this means it will cut out the main speakers and switch me into headphone mode but I'm hoping it will since the card would detect...well something
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Update: After MUCH fishing I found this for those who might not want to do it themselves. Hopefully this works as planned...
I will just copy and paste my post from various forums regarding this issue. Read this carefully to make sure the Performance PC cable is setup properly.
I have an X-Fi Fatal1ty Pro card and an Antec 900 case. I have managed to get the front audio panel to work properly for both headsets and microphone.
Instead of building my own harness, I bought one from Performance PC's.
I don't know if it's just the adapter cable that I received or if they are all this way, but I noticed that they crossed the 2 black wires at the AC'97/HD connector. Pin #1 is supposed to be Mic Input and Pin #2 is supposed to be ground. After tracing the wires to the Creative proprietary connector, I found that they were crossed. It is easy to extract the pins from the AC'97/HD connector, but you must be very careful when pulling up on the pin retainers because they are made of thin plastic and don't flex very much and can break.
Just a minor detail, but I noticed that there is a pointer on the AC'97/HD connector that is supposed to indicate the location of Pin#1. This pointer is on both male and female connectors and is supposed to align when both connectors are plugged together, so you know that it is connected right. Obviously, when they assemble these connectors, they don't pay attention to the pointer. So make sure you connect it the right way.
So to sum up the cable adapter, it does work! It works for both the headphones and microphone jack! Now the catch. I found out that it does not work very well with the AC'97 connector for my Antec 900 case, even though it says it was made for AC'97. The right side audio did not work on my headphones when it was plugged into the AC'97 connector. But if you plug it into the HD connector, it works great. I'm glad that the Antec 900 case comes with both types of connectors. So make sure you have an HD connector.
When plugging in the headphones to the front panel, it does mute the rear speakers. To get this to work you have to open the Creative control panel, under "Headset" tab, check the box to mute the rear speakers when headset is plugged in. I believe you have to close it and restart the computer for it to take affect. If you don't restart the computer, the rear speakers will not mute.
When first plugging in the microphone to the front panel, the volume is really low. I had to talk really loud to barely hear my voice through the headphones. Many people have complained about this. But, after some fiddling around I found that it can be set to a higher volume. Here is how make it work with the X-Fi Fatal1ty card in XP:
1. Open the X-Fi Creative Console Launcher (Game Mode) and go to Mixer. Max out the microphone volume.
2. Go to Windows Control Panel. Select Sound, Speech, and Audio Devices. Select Sound and Audio Devices. Select Audio tab. Select Volume under the sound recording section. It opens a new window with various slider controls. Max out the Microphone volume slider. Select Options and make sure Advanced Controls is checked. Select Advanced button. Select the checkbox for "1 Microphone +20dB Boost."
3. Do a check on the microphone and you should be able to hear yourself without talking excessively loud. There is a Test Hardware function in the Voice tab that you can perform.
Thank you much for that info. I am _this_ close to just paying more for the platinum and throwing in that front panel thingy into a bay.
If I'm going to spend $30 on a cable (well after shopping, etc.) and no guarantee it will work correctly (the place I found that link...said later in the thread he had to stop using it because of a constant hum)....I might as well put that towards a proper solution.
Sadly, I don't need all the other crap that it comes with and with all the issues in Vista and potential X-Fi2 coming soon...
