A full guide for Front Audio if you please!

**dune** · March 10th, 2007, 02:34 PM

Hi,
There a too many motherboards & audio chips on them are vary from one to another.There are many PC Cases also and on them connectors of Front Panel Audio are vary...some of them has integrated connectors or the label of each connector is different from case to case at least.
I want a full guide for all of them except reading mobo's manual !!!!
Because for each , sometimes only MIC works or only Speakers and FORTUNATELY sometimes both of them!
...Or maybe when you connect to front audio the back jacks will be disable also.
Please help me about it.
Thanks.

**slgrieb** · March 10th, 2007, 06:41 PM

Sorry, Dune, I think you are SOL. Out of luck, in other words. You said it yourself; there isn't any standardization. I'd go with a USB devices wherever possible.

**Ferrit** · March 11th, 2007, 01:38 AM

Pretty much correct. There are just too many people building cases and motherboards and no standardization between them

**dune** · March 11th, 2007, 01:43 PM

Any idea or any artful solution ...

**CCT** · March 11th, 2007, 04:07 PM

Dune: by now you should understand, there isn't any 'STANDARD' for audio ports/jacks, and many companies don't want there to be because that would empower the consumer and cut costs.

On the other hand, many of the people who read this site are British, and as you may probably know, they don't take to

"Full Frontal Audio".

edit: not trying to hijack this, just truth ya know ?

**NooNoo** · March 11th, 2007, 11:52 PM

errrm excuse me.. I am British, why wouldn't I use front audio? Or is my jet lagged mind missing something

Dune, trust me, while what you want is (you would have thought) common sense, what you get in the real world is different. There is no site or manual which will do this... maybe you would like to start one?

**dune** · March 12th, 2007, 05:51 AM

I would like but first of all I have to know about it completely I think.

I know for Front USB connectors even if there is not any lables often I can connect them in the way of their colors. But for F.Audio I don't think so.
It's a good idea if someone have a pinned thread for our forum. then every single person writes his/her own experience for others.

**Platypus** · March 12th, 2007, 06:51 AM

Originally Posted by NooNoo

is my jet lagged mind missing something

"No full frontal please, we're British..."

**Platypus** · March 12th, 2007, 07:08 AM

With a lot of options now available for sound, it may not be practical to specifically label case-front connectors. If there are two 3.5mm sockets for example, it's really up to the user's needs what they are used for. You might want Mic and Line IN, Mic and Line Out or Line In and Line Out.

If you're doing many such installations using cases with poor connector labelling, a small continuity tester sold by electronics stores (Radio Shack etc) can be useful. It will beep when it gets a connection, and with a 3.5mm to 2xRCA lead plugged into a front socket, you can touch the test prods onto the flying leads and quickly tell which one is L signal, R signal for each socket, and ground (-).

**slgrieb** · March 12th, 2007, 07:16 PM

Platypus, I think a lot of the problem also involves mainboards that have poorly implemented front panel audio (even no front panel connectors). When you get a mix of problems with the case and the mainboard, it all gets pretty annoying.

Still, all this discussion of "full frontal audio" and the like makes me want to say something that is about 20 year overdue: Thank you, Australia, for Chrissie Amphlett!