[NBLUG/talk] Speakers

[Bob Blick]

--- Jack Smith <jack.delbert at gmail.com> wrote:

> Can a sound card directly drive large speakers or do
> I need to run the
> output through an amp?  If the answer is some do and
> some don't how do I
> tell before I start buying cables?  I have a Realtek
> ALC850 on my
> motherboard.

You'll never get room-filling sound. Many sound cards
have a watt or so, enough to give you desktop-filling
sound. But in this case, I'd put less-than-even odds
on it. Few motherboards have an amplifier chip. If you
have a pair of headphones, try them first. Although
most headphones have a higher impedance than speakers,
it's at least in the same ballpark. If you can get
loud, undistorted sound through headphones, you will
be able to drive speakers directly at least to some
extent.

Cheerful regards,

Bob