can anybody tell me why most graphic/sound cards have somewhere to plug an IDE interface cable and why? I am quite new to computers and have looked every where to try and find out but cant find anything. CHEERS.

I don't know of any sound or video cards that sport an IDE interface. Please give us a link so that we can tell what you are talking about.

15-20 years ago, some sound cards had a proprietary CD-ROM controller.

Idont know how to set up a link or anything like that, but all the cards i have are between 5 & 10 yrs old as i am just starting with computers and all i have is bits and bobs picked up here and there. i thought perhaps it was to play CDs directly through the soundcard but really i have'nt got a clue. any info would be a big help

In your internet browser copy a web address that shows a video card with an IDE connection, then paste it into your next post. Or just tell us which card you are talking about - make and model number.

I seriously doubt that any card you have has an IDE port. Maybe it looks like an IDE connection?

Also, why do you want to know - is there a problem we can help you with?

Perhaps the referral is to some of the older video cards which included a connection for daughterboards - usually used for VIVO (video in video out)
The VIVO boards today are more advanced, but even some of the older vivo boards required daughterboards, which were linked by cable connectors.
I can remember fitting one into someone's machine (this was win 3.1 days) and it was huge - virtually the full length of the mobo (AT) - they didn't like playing too well and cost a fortune (which is why I remember it!), but then win 3.1 required irq and dma settings to be made manually.
edit.......
or maybe a scsi card?

I have an old Crystal soundcard I picked up along the way. Have never got it to work but it has pinouts such as you describe. One set is the same as the # of pins for a floppy cable and another is a match for IDE without the missing pin. It has many others also for jumpers and such.

Didn't get much info on it (exhaustive searching on Google) so I couldn't set it up. I am assuming yours is similar and I also assume that we are talking about a 'legacy' type device.

Are your's ISA or PCI interface?

Yes, I've heard of really old sound cards with IDE connectors built-in, to do exactly what has been theorized. Play music directly thru the sound card (also functioned as a single-channel IDE controller). I believe this was only ever implemented on ISA cards.

As for video cards having this, are you sure it says IDE? Old 2D vid cards had a connector similar to an IDE connector, but these are really 3D pass-thru connectors for adding 3D to old 2D systems. Back when 3D cards first came out (3dfx's Voodoo) they did only 3D, so a 2D vid card was still needed. This 3D pass-thru is probably what you're referring to.

The connectors on sound cards are for proprietary CD ROM controllers. Some have only one, some have 3. Sony, Panasonic and another (Mitsumi I think) each manufactured their own and each required a different connector. Creative Labs made Sound Blaster 16 ISA cards with CD ROM controllers also.

I have a lot of older parts, and several cards of this type. I think one is still in my Packard Bell P-60. It came with a Mitsumi CR 562 drive, 2X and run by sound card controller.

The CD ROM is available after the sound card drivers AND CD ROM drivers are installed. Drivers were available for DOS and Win3.x, which was the latest and greatest at that time. I think win95 drivers were around too, but never tried to find them, I always used that type of CD ROM/sound card combo on DOS/Win3.x machines. I've been thinking about setting one up the past few days on a 486 actually, still have 3 or 4 of the CR 562/563 drives and a half dozen cards, several 486 boards, 3 or 4 copies of Win 3.11...might be fun...

About the only problem I ever had with them, except for being tedious to frustrating to set up, was that if you put that type card in with a standard IDE CD ROM, (connected to the IDE controller) Windows would usually try to play music CDs from the sound card, which didn't have a CD drive, rather than the IDE that was installed and otherwise working fine. That's what my PB P-60 was doing last time I set it up.

Oh, one more thing, if you run across one of the CD drives that ran on those controllers and try to use it on a standard IDE controller, the machine will refuse to boot...black screen, no beeps, no video, nothing...found out the hard way...and didn't know at the time that it was a drive if that type...THEN had the presence of mind to pay attention to the model number... :rolleyes:

Creative Labs made Sound Blaster 16 ISA cards with CD ROM controllers also.

I think I've got 4 or 5 of them, all plugged into a spare 486 motherboard sitting on a pile of boxes.

Always wondered if they took normal CD-ROM drives.