Upgrading older SB Live! cards to SB Live! 5.1

[Áedán]

Looking 'round the net for information on Spode's problem with his Live! 5.1 and DTT3500 I found some far more interesting information...

Digit-Life have an article detailing an upgrade for the older SB Live! cards, to allow them to function as SB Live! 5.1 cards. By studying the cards, Evgeny managed to work out that the drivers work out which firmware to send to the card by examining a single byte in the EEPROM on the card.

Changing the byte to another value makes the drivers upload the 5.1 firmware instead. As the EMU10K1 processor is used on both the Live! and the Live! 5.1, the core of the card is identical. As a result of this finding, Evgeny upgraded his Live! Value to a Live! 5.1. The only problem was that the Live! Value doesn't have all the analog audio outputs, so he details how to put together a Digital DIN connector for systems like the DTT3500.

Live! to Live! 5.1 Hardware Upgrade

[mrpcman]

That's sweet. I've got too old ones lying around..

[Holst]

WOW!! thats very cool

Thanks Aidan, ive now got yet another component to solder.

This is particually usefull to me as I have a six speaker system and only a live value card.

Ill definatley try this rather than upgrade.

[Pyrotechnic]

how is the price on the SB live these days? is the Audigy cheaper ?