Onkyo surround 7.1 system

[ConnieBonnie]

I have no set up whatsoever.

I was planning to set it up using a 3.5 mm auxiliary cord, but the ony input besides speaker wire on all of the devices is a single input on the back of the sub which says " Line In"

id rather not fork over 150 for a receiver

any suggestions?

 

[americanaudiophile]

It sounds like you have passive speakers and a powered sub (it has a power cord). You need a receiver to power the 5 speakers and to do the surround sound processing. If your only source uses a single stereo 3.5mm mini plug then you can buy an older used receiver without HDMI which should be pretty cheap.