Logitech Z506 5.1 Speakers not working properly

[Jim12345]

2003 – Bought Dell computer & had Altec Lansing 4.1 speakers
2011 – Bought HP computer & continued to use same speakers with no problem

HP Computer – I am not sure what chips are being used to provide sound. The Windows Device Manager shows I have both the AMD High Definition Audio Device and the Realtek High Definition Audio (the word “Device” is not show for the Realtek item).
AMD High Definition Audio Device – Since I have an AMD processor, maybe they used an AMD sound chip for the computer’s onboard sound. I believe that is built into the motherboard and is connected to the jacks I see on the back of the CPU. The audio jacks are the normal 6 colored inputs. They are not taking up a PCI slot and, instead of them being in a row or column sequentially, they are three in a row right to left with another row of three just below.
Realtek High Definition Audio – Or perhaps the sound chip is Realtek.

2017 – Altec Lansing speakers finally died. I bought new Logitech Z506, 5.1 speakers. The system has excellent sound.

The Problem

The Given
First, I believe the speakers are correctly connected. The 5.1 sound test via Realtek HD Audio Manager gives me sound from all six sources.

The speaker wires are as follows
One green wire whose ends plug into the Sub and the back of my CPU (sound jacks).
One conjoined wire that contains one black wire and one orange wire that split at the end, each with its own 3.5mm connector. The back of the Sub labels these inputs as “6 Channel.” I plug the black and orange at the other end into the back of my CPU (sound chip).
On my old speaker system, it had the green wire, of course.
However, instead of a combination black and orange wire, it had the green wire and the black wire coming out of the same hole, although they were not conjoined. But there was no orange wire at all.

The connection & the essence of the problem
If I connect only the green wire, I get volume from all six sources but lose all of my Quicken system sounds (beeps, alerts, pings, cash register sound when recording transactions, etc.).
If I then also connect the black & orange wires, I get all of my Quicken sounds back but lose sound in 4 of the 6 sources. In other words, I get sound only from the LF & RF speakers but lose it in the LR, RR, Center, & Sub.
All of my Windows system sounds are fine.

Troubleshooting Attempts
1) I have configured the system for 5.1 speakers via the Realtek HD Audio Manager plus, as mentioned above, I have run a sound check.
2) I have also configured the system for 5.1 speakers using Windows’ generic sound manager, which I believe is the AMD HD High Definition Audio Device.
3) As suggested by another forum member at another site, I have checked my Quicken sounds in the Windows generic sound manager and they test fine.
4) I have checked and unchecked various speakers options in the Realtek HD Audio Manager but none of that works.

My Guess
1) I am guessing that the AMD HD Audio Device, assuming that is the one with the available plug-ins in the back of my CPU, is configured for a 4.1 system or below, which is what I had, and that it is not configured for a 5.1 system. I don’t know how to check if my current sound chip can handle a 5.1 system other than I’m not getting any sound when I use the “6 Channel” setup. Of course, it might be able to handle a 5.1 system and there is some other problem.
2) I am wondering if I were to go out and buy a “black only” wire to simulate what I had in my old system and plug that into the back of the Sub and into its corresponding opening in the back of my CPU, thus bypassing the black and orange setup of the Sub. It probably would not work but that shows you how little I know about all of this.
3) So I am thinking that the problem is either the sound chip or a software setting in the Sound Control Panel.

So that is about it. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I can send pictures of the back of the Sub or my CPU, if necessary. If the sound chip is the problem, I have found a Creative Audigy 5.1 sound card for about $35 but I don’t want to buy it and have it installed if that is not the problem. Thanks in advance if anyone has any ideas.

Best regards,
Jim

P.S. Since posting my original message a short while ago, I have determined that the AMD HD Audio Device software is used for HDMI and Display Port connections. While I have HDMI ports on my monitor and CPU, my monitor is connected to the CPU via a DVI connection. Also, I discovered that the Realtek High Definition Audio software is used specifically for the motherboard sound. In any event, this tells me that, whatever the problem is, it has to do with either the Realtek software or the sound chip on the motherboard. I am sorry if this muddies the water any. Most of you probably already knew this, however.

 

[fireberd]

You have figured out the sound. You have Realtek for the PC sound. AMD is only for HDMI audio.
If the speakers are set for 5.1 and test properly that means the Realtek sound is working correctly.
The problem (usually) is in the application that is generating the sound. I've seen this before where an application does not generate the surround sound.
4.1 sound is obsolete and not used anymore.

 

[Jim12345]

Fireberd:

Thanks so much for taking your time to consider my issue and respond to me. I appreciate your help.

I am confused, however. If the sound problem is coming from the application, then why do the Quicken sounds work when I have the black and orange wires connected for the "6 Channel" setup but the other 4 speakers do not work? Then I disconnect the black and orange wires and the Quicken sounds stop working but all 6 speakers do work.

It seems like it would be the other way around. Where all 6 speakers would work when I have the "6 Channel" connection established with Quicken sounds not available but, when I disconnect the "6 Channel" connection, it seems that would be when the speakers are limited and the Quicken sounds work.

Of course, the ideal setup would be to have the "6 Channel" connection giving me all 6 speakers working as well as the Quicken sounds. So do you think getting a dedicated sound card would help? I don't mind doing that but I would hate to do so and the problem not be resolved. Of course, the only way to find out would might be to just do it.

I suspect I should get a 7.1 card since a 7.1 card will handle a 5.1 setup (but not the other way around) and it gives me room for expansion in case I ever get a 7.1 system. If I get a sound card, however, I read somewhere that I would have to disable the Realtek software in the Device Manager (that is easy enough) but that I would also have to turn off the audio feature in the BIOS. I have done very little with the BIOS before so that could be a little tricky for me. I can look up what "F" key to hit as Windows is loading so that I can access the BIOS. Of course, I would either need to install the sound card driver via any CD that comes with the card or download the driver from the manufacturer's website. I would then use that software to set my 5.1 speakers correctly, much like the Realtek software allows me to do.

And I am guessing the final thing I might want to do is contact HP, give them my unit's serial number, and ask them what the highest speaker configuration the sound chip in my PC can handle. If they say it's the old 4.1 standard, then that is the issue. By the way, in checking sound issues in Quicken, I am told that Quicken itself does not have any sound settings (which I know is true because the preferences do not show any at all) and that Quicken relies solely on the Windows system sounds. And my Windows system sounds are unaffected by either of the setups with these speakers.

And, incidentally, one final thought. Do you think it would be worthwhile or even harmful to update the Realtek driver? If it causes and additional problems then Windows gives me the option to rollback the update to the driver I currently have. I am just wondering if an updated driver might make Realtek recognize everything correctly.

Based on the above, any other thoughts, comments, or suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks again.

Best regards,
Jim

 

[fireberd]

The HP site should have the specs for your HP. What is the specific model?

The reason I mention an application is that generally stereo is all you will get unless the application is using 5.1 (or 7.1). Some speaker systems will simulate surround but the simulation is within the speaker's amplifier circuitry.

You can check for updates for the Realtek but with Win 7 there probably isn't anything to benefit you.

If you get a separate sound card, there is no guarantee that you will get more than you have now with Realtek. If a separate sound card is used the on-board audio needs to be disabled in the BIOS to avoid any conflicts.

 

[Jim12345]

Fireberd:

Thanks, once again, for responding. My HP model is an HP Pavilion Elite HPE. Purchased in 2011. I have a TB capacity HD and 16GB of RAM. I suppose this is all going to depend on what HP tells me about the sound chip when I call them. I'll let you know what they say. Thanks for everything and, of course, if you think of anything else, I would be interested. Hope you have a great weekend.

Best regards,
Jim

 

[fireberd]

Keep in mind that since all the speakers test correctly with Realtek, that says Realtek is outputting 5.1, when an application generates it. Switching to a separate sound card won't make any difference.