"no matter what i do".....?
Does the Kardon bass/octopus work properly on other computers or other sound sources?
Are you sure you have the correct cables and plugs (i.e., TS, TRS, TRRS)? Did you try other cables?
What sound card to you have? Did you double check all of the various "Playback device" settings that can be found by right-clicking the speaker icon (probably lower right screen corner)? There are many configuration options available. Verify that you are using the correct audio port.