Xonar HDAV Slim AVcard User manual
E4232 First Edition V1 October 2008 Copyright © 2008 ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. All Rights Reserved. No part of this manual, including the products and software described in it, may be reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any language in any form or by any means, except documentation kept by the purchaser for backup purposes, without the express written permission of ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. (“ASUS”).
Contents Contents........................................................................................................ 3 Notices........................................................................................................... 4 Federal Communications Commission Statement............................. 4 Canadian Department of Communications Statement....................... 4 Safety information........................................................................................ 5 Trademarks....
Notices Federal Communications Commission Statement This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. 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. This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules.
Safety information • Before installing the device on a motherboard, carefully read all the manuals that came with the package. • To prevent electrical shock hazard or short circuits, switch off the power supply before installing the device on a motherboard or connecting any singal cables to the device. • If the device is broken, do not try to fix it by yourself. Contact a qualified service technician or your retailer. • Before using the product, make sure all cables are correctly connected.
1. Introduction 1.1 Package contents Check your ASUS Xonar HDAV 1.3 Slim AV card package for the following items: • ASUS Xonar HDAV 1.3 Slim PCI AV card • HDMI cable x1 • DVI-to-HDMI cable x1 • S/PDIF TOSLINK optical adapter x1 • Low profile PCI card bracket x1 • Support CD (including ASUS Gamer OSD and RMAA V6.0.6 utilities) • Quick Start Guide • ArcSoft TotalMedia Theatre Blu-Ray Disc / HD-DVD Software Player CD 1.
1.3 Specifications summary Items Description Main Chipset ASUS AV200 High-Definition Audio Processor (Max. 192KHz/24bit) Audio Processor HDMI Transceiver CAT 6023 and 6613 (HDMI v1.3a compatible) Wolfson WM8776 on AV card (Max. 192kHz/24bit) 24-bit DAC of Digital Sources: Wolfson WM8776 (Max. 96kHz/24bit) 24-bit ADC for Analog Inputs: Bus Compatibility PCI -PCI 2.1 specification compatible HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) -Compliant with HDMI v1.3a industrial standard (10.
HDMI-Out Type A *1 HDMI-In Type A *1 -For connecting headphone/line-out jack and mic-in jack on the front-panel of the PC case -Works with both Intel HD Audio and AC97 standard front-panels (2 x5 pins) HDMI Ports Front-Panel Header Other Line-level Analog Input (for CD-IN/TV Aux-In 4-pin header Tuner): Coaxial and high-bandwidth TOSLINK optical combo Digital S/PDIF Output connector supports 192KHz/24bit Driver Features Operation System Windows Vista/XP(32/64bit)/MCE2005 Dolby Digital Live Dolby Hea
2. Hardware overview Xonar HDAV Slim card layout 1 4 5 2 3 No Item Description 1 S/PDIF Out port Coaxial and optical TOSLINK combo digital output port. Connects to an external digital decoder or digital speaker systems, Home Theater systems, AV receivers for outputting digital audio including PCM, Dolby Digital, DTS, WMA-Pro, etc.
3. Installing the hardware 3.1 Preparing your computer Before you proceed with the following installation steps, it is recommended that you disable the onboard audio device in the BIOS settings, or uninstall any other audio cards on your PC. (For BIOS setting or uninstallation of other sound cards, refer to the user manuals of your motherboard and audio card.) 10 1. Power off your computer and disconnect the power cord. 2. Open the computer chassis. 3.
3.2 Card installation Securing the Xonar HDAV Slim card: 1. Power OFF the computer, the monitor, and all other peripheral devices connected to your computer. 2. Unplug the computer power cord from your computer and power outlet. 3. Touch the metal back or side panel of the computer to avoid static electricity. 4. Remove the chassis cover. 5. Remove the metal bracket from an available PCI slot for the Xonar HDAV Slim card. 6. Carefully insert the Xonar HDAV Slim card into the PCI slot.
3. Using an HDMI cable, connect one end to the HDMI out port of the Xonar HDAV Slim card and the other end to the HDMI display device. • Ensure that you have properly connected the DVI-to-HDMI cable for normal video signal transmission. Otherwise, there might be no video on your HDMI display device. • HDMI AV output will work only when the source graphics card and the terminal display device are both properly connected to the Xoanrd HDAV Slim card’s HDMI input/output ports.
4. Installing software 4.1 Installing the card driver Ensure that you have installed the VGA card driver before installing the Xonar HDAV driver. Otherwise, driver installation error may occur. 1. After you have installed the Xonar HDAV Slim card, turn on your computer. Windows® automatically detects the HDAV card and searches for device drivers. When prompted for the drivers, click Cancel. 2. Insert the support CD into the optical drive.
5. Connecting speakers and peripherals Connecting digital speaker systems (Home Theater) The Xonar HDAV Slim supports Dolby Digital Live and DTS Interactive technologies, which transcode any audio, including games and music, into industry-standard Dolby Digital or DTS 5.1 surround bit-streams. This makes playback through your home theater system possible, creating an immersive and impressive cinema surround sound experience. A single digital cable connection can carry high-quality Dolby Digital or DTS 5.
6. Xonar HDAV Center 6.1 Xonar HDAV Center GUI 1. After the driver installation is complete and your computer has been rebooted, you will find the Xonar HDAV Center’s icon in the system tray on the bottom right-hand corner of the screen. Double click this icon to open the Xonar HDAV Center utility. If the icon could not be found in the system tray, launch the Xonar HDAV Center from the Windows desktop by clicking Start > All Programs > ASUS Xonar HDAV > Xonar HDAV Center. 2.
No Item Description 1 Support link Clicking this button will lead you to the ASUS official website. 2 Display Area This display area shows the 10-band signal meter, volume level, and the status of the Dolby/DTS technologies, EQ, and DSP modes. Note: this area just displays information, but is not used to alter settings. 3 HDMI Out mode Click this button when you connect the Xonar HDAV Slim card to an HDMI device.
6.2 Audio-Main Setting 6.2.1 HDMI Out mode / Analog Out mode Select the appropriate mode corresponding to the device you connect the Xonar HDAV Slim card to. HDMI Out / Speaker Test / Speaker Swap Click the HDMI mode button and configure the related settings when you connect the Xonar HDAV Slim card to an HDMI device. 1 2 3 No Item Description 1 HDMI Out The HDMI Out setting is used to match your actual speaker setting, such as headphones, 2 speakers (or 2.1), 4 speakers (or 4.1), 5.
Analog Out / Speaker Test / Speaker Swap Click the Analog mode button and configure the related settings when you connect the Xonar HDAV Slim card to powered analog speakers or digital home theater systems, etc. 1 2 No Item Description 1 Analog Out The Analog Out setting is used to match your actual speaker setting, such as headphones and 2/2.1 speakers. Xonar HDAV Slim will play the channels and do the proper 3D/ Dolby/DTS sound processing accordingly.
6.2.2 Sample Rate The sample rate determines the number of audio samples per second that the Digital-to-Analog Converters (DAC) and S/PDIF digital interface will output. The Xonar HDAV Slim card can support sample rates up to 192KHz (44.1K, 48K, 96K, 192KHz). Usually audio CDs and MP3 files are 44.1KHz; DVD-Video uses 48KHz; DVD-Audio or other HD media may contain 96KHz or 192KHz high-definition audio content.
6.2.3 SPDIF Out/DDL/DTS Interactive Xonar HDAV Slim is capable of outputting Dolby Digital Live and DTS Interactive, which are real-time encoders that transcode any audio, including games and music, into industry-standard Dolby Digital or DTS 5.1 bit-streams on-the-fly. This is ideal for playback through a home theater system, creating an immersive and impressive cinema surround sound experience. It enables a single digital connection to carry high quality Dolby Digital or DTS 5.
6.2.4 Audio Channels (For Vista only) This setting only appears in Windows Vista. Vista will deliver the audio channels to the audio driver according to this setting, no matter what the original audio content is or how many channels they have. Therefore, you need to set this in accordance with your audio content before you play it. Please note that this setting is synchronized with Vista’s system speaker configuration and changing the setting during playback will cease the audio playback program.
6.2.5 7.1 Virtual Speaker Shifter The 7.1 Virtual Speaker Shifter has the following major features: • Expanding/upmixing audio to 7.1-channel surround sound • Virtualizing 7.1 surround sound over any set of speakers • Shiftable virtual speaker positioning allows you to adjust the best sound field easily without moving physical speakers and wires 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 22 No Item Description 1 Shifter enable/disable Click this check box to enable the 7.1 Virtual Speaker Shifter.
6.2.6 Dolby Pro-Logic IIx Dolby Pro-Logic IIx is a 7.1 surround upmixing technology and is widely used in home theater systems, TVs, game consoles, and car audio systems. It can expand stereo audio, such as MP3, CD, and TV programs into immersive 5.1 or 7.1-channel surround. 2 3 4 1 No Item Description 1 Dolby Pro-Logic IIx enable/disable Click this check box to enable Dolby Pro-Logic IIx. Clicking the text bar will switch the right window to the Pro-Logic IIx page for manual adjustments.
6.2.7 DTS Neo:PC DTS Neo:PC is another 2-to-7.1 channel upmixing technology, using a sophisticated algorithm from DTS Labs. It can spread stereo audio such as MP3, CD, and TV programs into an immersive 5.1 or 7.1-channel surround sound environment. 2 3 4 5 6 1 24 No Item Description 1 DTS Neo:PC enable/ disable Click this check box to enable DTS Neo:PC. Clicking the text bar will switch the right window to a DTS Neo:PC page for manual adjustments.
6.2.8 Dolby Headphone Dolby Headphone creates a stunning multi-channel surround experience over ordinary stereo headphones for playing 3D games, watching 5.1 DVD movies, and listening to music. Dolby Headphone produces surround sound cues so realistic that you will believe you are listening over speakers in a well-controlled studio. Dolby Headphone can also improve listening comfort and reduce "listener fatigue" from long listening over headphones.
6.2.9 Dolby Virtual Speaker Dolby Virtual Speaker technology simulates a 5.1-speaker surround sound listening environment from as few as two speakers. Dolby Virtual Speaker also creates a wider two-channel environment during playback of stereo CDs and MP3 content, and when combined with Dolby Pro Logic® II processing, delivers a virtual 5.1-channel surround listening experience from any high-quality stereo source.
6.3 Mixer/Volume The mixer page is designed to control the volume for playback and recording on the Xonar HDAV Slim. In addition, the Xonar HDAV Slim also provides a highquality digital monitoring function for hearing the recorded audio from the speakers. You can also process the input signals with all playback sound effects such as Dolby and DTS technologies. 6.3.1 Playback Volume 1 6 2 3 4 5 No Item Description 1 Playback volume tab Click this button to show the playback volume page.
6.3.2 Recording/Monitoring Volume 1 7 8 2 3 4 5 6 No Item Description 1 Recording Volume Tab Click this button to show the recording volume page. 2 Left/Right balance This horizontal slider controls the volume between the left and right channels. 3 Recording volume slider Drag this slider down to decrease the recording volume; drag up to increase the recording volume. The tool-tip reveals the percentage number from 1 to 100 in terms of the full scale level.
6 Source / path name This shows the source name for each volume control slider, including: Mix: Stereo Mix which will record all analog inputs and digital wave audio you are playing on PC Aux: recording from Aux-In for typically TV-tuner card audio or other sound sources WAVE: recording from digital wave audio you are playing on PC (Note: Windows Vista doesn’t support WAVE recording.
6.4 Effects 6.4.1 Environment Effects Environment effects can be used to create realistic listening experiences that mimic different environments. There are a total of 27 environment options, which can be applied to all 2D sound sources, like music. 3 1 2 30 No Item Description 1 Default environments These four buttons activate Bathroom, Concert hall, Underwater, and Music Pub environments, respectively.
6.4.2 10-Band Equalizer The equalizer can modify the audio output for different frequencies, and be used to compensate for deficiencies in your speakers/systems. There are 12 default patterns and you can also make your own settings. 1 3 2 4 5 6 No Item Description 1 Default equalizer options There are 12 available equalizer patterns. Click one to apply it.
6.5 Karaoke The Xonar HDAV Slim provides powerful features for Karaoke, including KeyShifting, Vocal Cancellation, and Microphone Echo. Key-Shifting can change the pitch of Karaoke background music, and Vocal Cancellation can reduce the original vocal in songs and keep the music and symphony for karaoke. 5 1 2 3 4 32 No Item Description 1 On/Off Click the switch to turn on or off the functions on this page.
6.6 FlexBass FlexBass, an advanced bass management and enhancement mechanism, allows you to select each satellite speaker’s type for optimal sound performance from the speakers. (Small: common speaker that cannot produce low frequencies; Large: wide-band speakers that can produce low frequencies well). It comes with an adjustable crossover frequency for the boundary of the bass signals.
4 34 LFE Crossover Frequency Adjusts the cut-off frequency (50~250Hz) for LFE (lowfrequency effects) signals. Xonar HDAV Slim will filter out the bass signals below the crossover frequency from small speaker channels and forward them to the subwoofer. The higher the crossover frequency, the more bass signals will be subtracted.
6.7 Smart Volume Normalization Smart Volume NormalizationTM (SVN) automatically keeps all music or video/TV audio output at a constant level to reduce manual adjustment hassles inherent with sound sources of different loudness. It allows you to listen to various content, like MP3, TV program, DVD video and even games with consistent sound level. The following graph shows how different signals 1 & 2 will become the same level (for example, 10dB below full scale) after you turn on SVN.
3 2 1 36 No Item Description 1 SVN On/Off Click this button to enable SVN. This button is outlined blue when active. 2 SVN blue light When SVN is enabled, the master volume knob will be illuminated by a blue light. It will be lit red if the volume is muted. 3 SVN display When SVN is enabled, “Smart Volume” will be lit up at the bottom of the volume meter and the volume meter will show the level.
6.8 DS3D GX and DSP Modes Xonar HDAV Slim is introducing an innovative technology –DirectSound 3D Game Extensions v1.0 (DS3D GX 1.0)- to restore DirectSound 3D Hardware acceleration mode and its subsidiary EAX effects on Windows Vista for 3D games. Unlike some proprietary API like OpenAL, DS3D GX doesn’t require games to support OpenAL API. All existing games compatible with Microsoft DirectX and DirectSound 2D/3D will be supported with DS3D GX technology.
3 38 4 2 5 1 No Item Description 1 GX Mode DirectSound 3D Game Extensions mode to support EAX and DirectSound 3D Hardware extensions for lots of DirectX/ DirectSound3D games on Windows Vista. 2 Hi-Fi Mode This mode is set for Hi-Fidelity playback, where all effects will be cleared to keep the original digital data and analog output quality as high as possible. 3 Music Mode This mode is set for Music playback. 4 Movie Mode This mode is set for DVD Movie playback.
6.9 VocalFX VocalFX is an innovative voice processing technology to let your voice get into the realistic game landscape (VoiceEX) or to emulate the background scenes in online chat (ChatEX). It also allows you to change your voice pitch to disguise who you are (Magic Voice). These features dramatically increase the fun for voice communication on PC. 3 4 5 1 2 No Item Description 1 VoiceEX It produces realistic and dynamic environmental reverberation for your voice in 3D gaming communication.
For 3D Games 1. Check the check box of VoiceEX and Local VoiceEX. 2. Make sure you and your team member can talk to each other in the game. For VOIP 40 1. Press App List 2. If you don’t see the VOIP application of yours in the list, press Add.(Make sure the Skype and MSN Messenger are the latest version) 3. Look for the application’s location and Open it.
4. Your VOIP application has been added into list. 5. Check the check box of ChatEX and Magic Voice. 6. You can use ChatEX and Magic Voice when you chat online. Click the checkbox to enable VocalFX function, then a prompt message will pop up: This message implies the record device will be set to microphone. Make sure the GX function is enabled. Click “OK” to accept it, or “Cancel” if you want to enable it later. Check “Don’t remind me again” if you don’t want to see this message pop up next time.
6.10 DVD/Blu-ray Playback over DH/DVS/DDL/Multiple Analog Speakers 6.10.1 Under Windows XP DVD/Blu-ray playback by SPDIF/HDMI (Dolby Digital/DTS digital audio passthrough) 42 1. Open TotalMedia Theatre > Setup > Audio. 2. Select S/PDIF in Audio Output Mode. 3. Press Apply first, and then press OK. 4. Open the Xonar HDAV Center 5. Enable SPDIF Out.
DVD/Blu-ray playback by SPDIF/HDMI (Add Sound effects w/ DDL encoding) 1. Open TotalMedia Theatre > Setup > Audio. 2. Select 5.1 Channels in Audio Output Mode. 3. Press Apply first, and then press OK. 4. Open the Xonar HDAV Center. 5. Enable SPDIF Out. 6. Select Dolby Digital Live in SPDIF Out. 7. In this mode, you are able to adjust the DVD sound volume, your multispeaker placement and surround soundfield virtually by 7.1 Virtual Speaker Shifter.
6.10.2 Under Windows Vista Dolby Headphone (Virtualized 5.1 surround sounds over stereo headphone) 1. Open TotalMedia Theatre > Setup > Audio. 2. Select 5.1 Channels in Audio Output Mode. 3. Press Apply first, and then press OK. 4. Open the Xonar HDAV Center. 5. Select 6 Channels in Audio Channel. 6. 7. 44 Select FP Headphone in Analog Out. Check Dolby Headphone.
Dolby Virtual Speaker (Virtualized 5.1 surround sounds over stereo speakers) 1. Open TotalMedia Theatre > Setup > Audio. 2. Select 5.1 Channels in Audio Output Mode. 3. Press Apply first, and then press OK. 4. Open the Xonar HDAV Center. 5. Select 6 Channels in Audio Channel. 6. 7. Select FP 2 Speakers in Analog Out. Check Dolby Virtual Speaker.
DVD/Blu-ray playback by SPDIF/HDMI (Dolby Digital/DTS digital audio passthrough) 46 1. Open TotalMedia Theatre > Setup > Audio. 2. Select S/PDIF in Audio Output Mode. 3. Press Apply first, and then press OK. 4. Open the Xonar HDAV Center 5. Enable SPDIF Out.
DVD/Blu-ray playback by SPDIF/HDMI (Add Sound effects w/ DDL encoding) 1. Open TotalMedia Theatre > Setup > Audio. 2. Select 5.1 Channels in Audio Output Mode. 3. Press Apply first, and then press OK. 4. Open Xonar HDAV Center. 5. Select 6 Channels in Audio Channel. 6. Enable SPDIF Out. 7. Select Dolby Digital Live in SPDIF Out. 8. In this mode, you are able to adjust the DVD sound volume, your multispeaker placement and surround soundfield virtually by 7.1 Virtual Speaker Shifter.
7. Troubleshooting and FAQs [Troubleshooting] The audio card driver could not be installed on my PC. Instructions: 1. Make sure that you have properly plugged the audio card in the PCI slot on your motherboard. 2. Check that the Windows hardware device manager has discovered a multimedia audio device. If no device is found, please try scanning for new hardware. 3. Try soft reboot (restart) your Windows. 4. Remove the card, plug it into another PCI slot, and try again.
I cannot hear any sound from the S/PDIF output Instructions: 1. Ensure that you have enabled S/PDIF output in the Audio Center GUI (Main page) 2. Ensure that you are connecting the correct S/PDIF output jack on the card to the decoder’s (AV receiver) S/PDIF input jack 3. You may need to select the correct input and mode of your decoder or AV receiver. For Dolby Digital or DTS output, you may have to double check that the AV receiver is in that decoding mode. 4.
3. Please note that the frequency meter on Xonar HDAV Center panel will not take effect either when the playback source is 96KHz or 192KHz sample rate to prevent any processing distortion. [FAQs] Q1: Does the Xonar HDAV Slim support Windows Vista? Answer: Yes, the Xonar HDAV Slim driver package does support Windows Vista 32/64 bit and most key features are available. In addition, Xonar HDAV Slim supports unique DS3D GX 2.
Q5: Why do I need Dolby and DTS for PC games? Answer: 1. Dolby Digital, Pro-Logic IIx, and DTS are available on the latest game consoles, like XBOX360, PS3, and Wii. Dolby and DTS can provide the best gaming sound experience and compatibility with home theater or TV systems. 2. Dolby Headphone and Dolby Virtual Speaker are the best 3D sound positioning, spatial modeling and 5.
ASUS Xonar HDAV Slim
