Greetings all,

I recently completed installation of an ASUS P4S8X, with P4 @ 2.4G, 512M
ram, and Windows Xp. So far, all has gone well. The only problem I have is
with the sound. Though the sound software controls seem to function
normally, the sound level from the speakers is very low. The speakers are
small bookshelf 2-way speakers rated at about 15 watts rms each, so they
should be little trouble to drive. These are the same speakers that I used
with my last system (intel 810, celeron 700Mhz) and the audio level was more
than adequate with the controls set normally.

I've double checked jumpers and software settings and, to the best of my
knowledge, everything seems ok. My thought is that the output from this
board is truly a "line level" output, and that it is not capable of driving
an 8 ohm speaker? Could it be that I need an amplifier between the board and
my speakers? I did try an old pair of powered speakers and the audio level
was on par with what I'm used to. However, I do need to stay with the
speakers that I have been using, as they provide the accurate response
necessary for the sound restoration that I am involved in.

If need be, I will add an amp to my system. It's just that the machines that
I've had in the past have provided reasonable audio level without external
amplification, so I don't want to overlook a possible MB problem. Any
thoughts would be appreciated.

Jeff Madore
K1LE - CT

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