I'm looking for a no-frills audio receiver and I was hoping you guys could give me some most-bang-for-the-buck reccommendations. I already have a set of Dell WL6000 PC surround sound speakers that I would like to use, so I just need the box itself. I'd just like to take advantage of my nintendo's surround sound options (yes, I know its only DPL II), and perhaps the same for an xbox 360 down the line. If I could connect my PC to it as well so I don't have to switch the speakers back and forth, that'd be nice, but it wouldn't be the end of the world. I can tell you that I think this is the exact device I wanted http://ca.creative.com/products/product.asp?category=4&subcategory=136&product=9468 but they don't make it anymore. Can anyone reccommend to me an audio receiver that can accomplish this?
As long as the PC's sound card has audio outputs, you should be able to connect to almost any surround receiver. But I wouldn't use PC speakers, with a real receiver. The speakers probably can't handle the power. Unless you buy an HTIB (home theater in a box), or a full HT with separate components, including a set of speakers (real speakers, not PC speakers) your best bet is to get a 5.1 capable sound card and a set of 5.1 PC speakers (mine is set up this way).
Thanks for your reply. I'm hoping to avoid having to buy an HTIB or a receiver/surround sound setup, because I already have a pc audio card with 5.1 surround sound and 5.1 speakers. But, I can't use them with my nintendo, which is what I want. Unfortunatly, I've done a lot of research and it seems like the product I need isn't made by anyone anymore. Gone are the days of the standalone audio decoder.
Would something like this be useful? http://www.digit-life.com/articles/de005jazzspeakers/index.html I guess you've done a Google search............
That's exactly what I want. (Actually, the DE-006 is a little nicer). They don't make that thing anymore, either. Or at least, I can't find it for sale anywhere (and the company's home page is pretty unintelligible). I found four or five reviews on it that say it's great. (Awesome, right?) I really appreciate your checking it out though. I think I'm just out of luck.
