Hey,
I am a novice on this field.
I want to connect my computer sound card (5.1 channel) to bose life style music center(reciever) but I couldn't find the right cable for this. I see whole bunch of RCA audio cable but never seen a single audio cable with RCA jack one end and digital jack the other end.

Please help me out this.
Thanks

What outputs do you have on your sound card?
Is it a single "orange color RCA Plug?" or does it have 5 RCA plugs out?

What input do you have on your Bose lifestyle?
Do you have Digital Coax in? (One Orange RCA)
Do you have Optical In? (black square plug a plug or a little flap)
Do you just have Stereo RCA in? (One Blue and One Red RCA)

You dont get a Cable only solution that goes from Analog to Digital.
Both the optical and (single orange plug RCA) are digital Input/outputs.

Tell me exactly what out puts you have on your card and what you want to use it for so i can help you come up with a solution.

** corrected input of optical source

This message was edited by snappy on 09/11/04 22:51 ET.

It is computer sound card so I believe that the outputs are digital and I have one orange, one light green, and one black output.

On bose life style music center, it has three inputs (all RCAs), which are for the video sound (red and white), for aux (red and white, I have no idea what is aux), and for tape play (red and white)

what do the labels on the sound card outputs say. if the orange one says SPDIF then that is the digital output, or if any of them are labeled as SPDIF for that matter. Are the outputs on your sound card mini headphone jacks or regular size rca like on the back of the bose. your bose system may have an optical in most newer lifestyle systems do. What model of bose is it. if you look on the back you may find a squareish plug that has a little flap or plug covering it, this will be the optical input. no little red light will shine from an optical input, so it may be there you just may have missed it. If there is an optical input on the bose (there probably wont be an SPDIF on a bose system) you can get an adapter to convert the SPDIF from you sound card to an optical for the bose. If you can post the model # of the bose and whether or not one of those outputs on your sound card is labeled SPDIF then it will be easier to help.

Or use hammer and then go buy real surr. sound receiver.Sorry I hate Bose :-) This is rude I know - sorry guys . I think you own some old Bose system with analog in only - so forget 5.1 in ,but I can be wrong.

On back of my sound card, it says "Digital output". I don't know if it is SPDIF or not. The jack is not RCA end but regular mini headphone jack like.
My Bose lifestyle is old (made in 1995). So I don't see any optical input, all I see is stereo RCA output. I didn't buy this system, it was attached in my house when I bought my house.

I am not wrong - your system is old and if you want to digital in , you have to buy new receiver - I believe , this si not going to ruin your bank account :-))

a system that old will not have a dgital input what you will have to do is use the regular headphone jack on your sound card, get a mini jack to rca adaptor and hook you pc up to the analog rcas on the bose. you will not be getting digital surround sound but at least you will have the sound through your system. or replace the bose, if you try the hammer idea i would wear safety glasses.

But first unplug power cord - idea without fireworks :-))