[TJ1]

Hello everyone,

We have a ActivWall 102 and PC laptops running Windows 7. Our educators want to be able to plug their laptops into the board via the HDMI cable so they can display video and games etc directly from their work laptops. We purchased a convertor so the HDMI cable can plug into the laptops and it worked for display however, there is no sound coming through at all. The convertor is a USB2.0+VGA Male to HDMI Female 1080p convertor (model: IZEC-A20) by iczi-e.com. The speakers for the board are running through the projector as designed and they work fine. I have a mac laptop which can be plugged directly in using the HDMI cable and no convertor and the video and sound work fine. 

Is it likely the convertor is the issue here or is it more of a PC (Windows 7) compatibility issue with the board? I could get an audio splitter and run a second cable directly to the laptop headphone port but would like to avoid another cable. Any ideas?

Much appreciated,
TJ

[Anonymous]

Hi TJ1,

Thanks for posting on the Support Community.

I think the issue here is most likely to be the converter as this is a VGA to HDMI, as VGA doesn’t carry sound (HDMI does).

I’m guessing that you’ve purchased the adapter as the laptops do not have HDMI outputs on them, is that correct? 

If so, you would need some form of converter which included the option for a 3.5m audio port and cable to be used to the projector.
Whilst we don’t support the use of converters/adapters with the systems, below is an example of this:
This would connect by VGA from the laptop to the converter, a 3.5m audio cable from the laptop to the converter. It will need to be powered by USB and then you connect the HDMI to the other end, this way the sound is still outputted to the ActivWall speakers using the current cabling set up with the projector.

I hope this makes sense, if you have any questions please let me know.

Kind regards,
Adam
Promethean Technical Support

[Anonymous]

Ok and thx for the advice. I will look into what you said. 

The laptops they have do not have HDMI ports so yes I got them to buy a convertor but this one (mentioned in earlier post) is supposed to connect the sound via an additional USB plug going into the laptop. I didn’t pick the convertor but did specify it should had audio functionality. 

The promethean board speakers, that are mounted above the board, are connected directly to the projector and the lead is thread through the arm that holds the projector so it is not easily accessible.

Am I to understand that the board is supposed to only work with computers that have an HDMI in like my newer macbook? 

When you say “Whilst we don’t support the use of converters/adapters with the systems…” can you elaborate on why that is? Could it cause damage?

Thanks again for your help.
TJ

[Anonymous]

Hi TJ1,

Thanks for your reply.

With regard to the adapters/converters, as Promethean do not supply these, should you experience any issues we will always recommend troubleshooting to be performed without converters or adapters being used to avoid this being the fault (such as troubleshooting with your newer Mac which has the HDMI connectivity rather than the older Macs which you will need the adapter for). 

With the adapter I provide a photo to, this will help you have VGA and audio to convert through the HDMI source and should work (providing it has the powered USB cable plugged in too). The adapter you provided, (from what I could see online) was only a VGA to HDMI converter.
As VGA cables do not carry sound (only video),  you would need to have another method of providing sound to the speakers, such as connecting the lead directly to the projector which could prove more troublesome as the cables are threaded through the arm of the projector. 

I hope this information helps.

Kind regards,
Adam
Promethean Technical Support.

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