Sound Cards for laptops

[4LC4PON3]

I had a ? is the Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS the best sound card right now for Laptops. if not what is.

 

[weebob]

its the best portable one i can find... theres the full external usb/firewire ones like the "Terratec Aureon 7.1 firewire"

http://sounden.terratec.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=198

Is it going to used mainly for gaming?, stick with the Audigy

 

[4LC4PON3]

im looking strictly for a pcmcia card for my laptop. i travel alot and its not for gaming. music and movies only

 

[lithium726]

to be honest, onboard should be fine.

the a2 zs is the only PCMCIA audio card i am aware of it. it runs hot as hell and you need external speakers to use it, I dont really see what the attraction is unless you are using it in a DTR enviroment... traveling i really do not see its use... not gonna sound much different through headphones.

 

[4LC4PON3]

well right now. i have a 5.1 surround sound and i watch a ton of movies on my laptop at home and listen to music. i was just wondering if its gonna be a nice upgrade for my 5.1 system

 

[Aztlan]

to be honest, onboard should be fine.

the a2 zs is the only PCMCIA audio card i am aware of it. it runs hot as hell and you need external speakers to use it, I dont really see what the attraction is unless you are using it in a DTR enviroment... traveling i really do not see its use... not gonna sound much different through headphones.

do you own one?

because I own two of them

first.. the card doesnt even run hot.. it runs warm like any other card

2nd.. you can notice a difference in sound when using the headphones

3rd.. speakers sound better with it

but yeah.. internal speakers dont work with it

I am hoping the X-fi is released for laptops.. that will be great

 

[4LC4PON3]

yeah i dont use the internal speakers at all. only my 5.1 surround. im justtrying to figure out if i will hear an amazing difference cause i dont want to spend 100.00 for nothing

 

[Aztlan]

I reccomend you to look at the for sale forums

people have been selling new one for 65 shipped

 

[4LC4PON3]

I dont buy off the internet. i buy localy, circuitcity, best buy or compusa. very impatients and i dont like to wait. im actually buying it in the morning

 

[Cyrilix]

Best soundcard for laptops? How about a dedicated USB DAC like the Headroom Micro?

Edit: Err...not buying off the internet will limit your choices greatly.

 

[4LC4PON3]

i understand that, what im asking is this. like stated above, is the sound blaster audigy 2 zs the best pcmcia sound card available for the laptops at this point?

 

[lithium726]

do you own one?

because I own two of them

first.. the card doesnt even run hot.. it runs warm like any other card

2nd.. you can notice a difference in sound when using the headphones

3rd.. speakers sound better with it

but yeah.. internal speakers dont work with it

I am hoping the X-fi is released for laptops.. that will be great

no, i do not own one, relaying information i had heard. I hate creative, havent owned anything from them since the KT133/SB live! fiasco...

what laptop do you own, and what sound chip is inside it? This will make a huge difference...

more importantly, what sound chip is inside your machine, OP?

 

[4LC4PON3]

i have a gateway mx7118 Conexant AMC Audio wich i think pretty much AC 97 Audio

 

[SockMan!]

i understand that, what im asking is this. like stated above, is the sound blaster audigy 2 zs the best pcmcia sound card available for the laptops at this point?

It's one of the best PCMCIA soundcards - though that's not a hard feat to pull considing that most laptop/portable soundcards are USB ones. It's a good card, probably noticably better in sound quality than the integrated sound in your laptop. It has a bunch of features that you'd probably find useless - like EAX and hardware accelleration, but otherwise sounds like what you're searching for.

The Echo Indigo products should provide superior sound quality to the A2ZS. However, the Indigo doesn't support surround sound. I'm not sure if you'd be able to find it locally.