Hello Steve,
You are correct; the analog input channels on the NI 6229 cannot output a voltage. However it sounds like what you're trying to do is a self test. If you are wanting to route the 6229's analog output channels to an analog input channel to read back the output then this is something that you can do internally.
If you just want to test the card you can use the DAQ Diagnostic Utility. This utility internally routes signals to make sure the card is functioning correctly.
If you want to view the output then you can use the test panels in the Measurement and Automation Explorer to do so.
1. Open the Measurement and Automation Explorer.
2. Navigate to My System» Devices and Interfaces» NI-DAQmx Devices.
3. Right click on the PCI-6229 and select Test Panels.
4. Click on the analog output tab, configure a sine wave output on ao0 and click start.
5. Go to the analog input tab and select DevX\_ao0_vs_aognd, set the sampling mode to continuous, the rate to be large enough to sample your sine wave and the samples to read to be 10% of the rate.
This will allow you to read back the analog output values without connecting any wires externally. I hope this helps, and if this isn't what you're looking to do it may be helpful if you can provide some more information about what you're trying to do.
Cheers,
Brooks
