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addon soundcard?

J

jojospcs

n00b
Joined
Feb 13, 2010
Messages
55
Is it worth getting a discrete soundcard these days? I have Realtek hd audio like many people although mine is only the 888 chip. Some games seem to overload my speakers a bit (too much noise blended together) and I'm wondering if that is a sound card issue or just crappy game media.
 
In my opinion it always is. How much of difference it makes really depends on your source and the intended use. I listen to music and I think my built in sound card sucks big time. I used to have an Xfi and I like the sound quality a lot more (including some of the 3D effects etc).

I recently moved to my laptop for primary use and the sound card on that sucks to no end. I recently purchased an ibasso D2+ DAC AMP to power my Denon HD2000 phones for my portable setup. I haven't had a chance to test it. But I am told that the external dac should fair better than many USB cards.

Ofcourse there are many cheaper alternatives if you are going with a desktop solution. All depends on your preferences.
 
it really depends on the kind of use you're going to put on the sound card.

my experience on the matter is that if you need to buy a discrete sound card, make a search on the ones that seem appealing to you from a price point and read a few reviews from different websites to see some pros and cons. but, don't ignore the peoples' opinion. go into forums, read, ask (like you're doing here) :)
but try the manufacturers' forums if available.

i'm telling you this cause it would be shame to go and just buy something without asking a persons' opinion (like i did and regret)

i went for the x-fi titanium fatality pro (pci-e)
BIG mistake. support is non existent. the latest driver is 8 months old (windows 7 is 8 months old still in beta), the sound is full or crackling and popping, microphone boost doesn't exist. the only positive thing about it is EAX 5. big deal.
i totally regret not getting a Xonar D2X.

so mate. read, search and ask for opinions. :)

anyway, to answer your question, there is a difference. sound quality, fps in games, surround in games. in total, it's better using a discrete sound card

Cheers !!!
 
I recently purchased a Musiland Monitor 02 US, and after about a week of usage I can highly recommend it. Includes technology used in $1000+ DACs. Supports bit-perfect, asynchronous USB playback up to 24 bit/192kHz, and full ASIO support. Generally well-regarded at head-fi (there's a whole thread 35+ page on it). This thing is crystal_clear.

However I will say the headphone amp on my Nakamichi RE-10 is superior to the built in amp on the Musiland (I am using Sennheiser HD580). Regardless the unit is still a steal at $130.

http://cgi.ebay.com/USB-Digital-Sound-Card-Musiland-Monitor-02-US-/260437930872
 
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