Startech External Sound Card? 7.1 Surround Sound Card

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ptr1959w

Weaksauce
Joined
Feb 2, 2012
Messages
73
Hi there,
I am a newbie and was wondering if Startech is a reputable company ? And do they manufacture good sound cards? One of my questions is "Do I need to use more then 2 speakers? Because it mentions something about 7.1 surround sound card..I am new at using an external sound card. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
 
ptr1959w said:
Hi there,
I am a newbie and was wondering if Startech is a reputable company ? And do they manufacture good sound cards? One of my questions is "Do I need to use more then 2 speakers? Because it mentions something about 7.1 surround sound card..I am new at using an external sound card. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

When talking about literally any upgrade, you should ask yourself what your current solution is lacking in order to chart a course.
 
ptr1959w said:
Thanks for the info and reply
Click to expand...

I realize that I didn't really answer your question- Startech is probably okay for generic electronics and adapters and such, and their sound cards could be okay. I honestly wouldn't touch them though; unless there's something seriously wrong with your onboard audio, your money is better spent on speakers/headphones.

As for number of speakers: I'd stick to stereo. If you're after surround-sound, get a decent set of headphones :).
 
startech is a very reputable brand but they don't make the sound card chips, just put it together in a package. so look at the chip its using and see how its rated. BUT...
if youre using stereo speakers there no point in getting an external 7.1, your onboard will be just as good.
 
If anything, a Startech sound device is going to be extremely basic, most computers already include a basic onboard sound device; if your onboard sound works, do not buy a Startech sound card. I would only recommend a Startech sound card if you needed a cheap solution for getting basic sound out of a computer.
 
There are only a handful of external sound cards that can do true 7.1 surround sound with speakers.

I have the Asus Xonar U7 MkII and it's very superior to the Startech device (and costs $90-100) If you're not going to run 7.1 speakers, you're probably better served by other devices.

I have a very low opinion of "virtual 7.1 surround sound" which is what you get in headphones - my advice would be to stick with stereo.
 
Actually I would like to set up for 2.1 instead of 7.1..The Startech supports 2.1 ..I looked for the Asus sound card .I didn't see very many reviews on the sound card.
 
If you have onboard sound it will do 2.1 just get a speaker set with a sub and a stereo Jack.
 
I still like what a sound blaster zx can do with it's sbz surround. For around $50 for an oem model, it is a good upgrade over most onboard sound. Especially if paired with those $50 ish Phillips shp9500 headphones.
 
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