Z5500 advice needed

T

Tudz

Supreme [H]ardness
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Jun 15, 2008
Messages
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Hey guys,

A friend of mine has a set of Z5500s and has gotten rid of his desktop and is now using a laptop. As such, he needs a USB soundcard to drive it for movies and games.

Is there any advantage to having a soundcard with 5.1 analog output going into the Z5500, or would it be better to get something with DDL/DTS and just run optical 5.1 into the Z5500 to let it do the work?

If we do go with a soundcard with DDL/DTS, does it really matter if its a cheap card or an expensive one (ie. since its not acting as a DAC or an amp, does it really matter what soundcard it is or will anything with DDL/DTS be fine?).

Any suggestions on what to get? Its mostly for games/movies, and something with Linux support as well as that's what he uses most the time when watching movies.

Thinking of going USB X-Fi Surround 5.1 Pro or USB Asus Xonar U1.

Cheers,
Tudz
 
I would get one with analog outputs. Analog is uncompressed, 5.1 over optical is highly compressed. Also if you want to watch blu-rays with DTS-HD or DD-Master audio it won't work over optical.
 
JohnleMVP said:
I would get one with analog outputs. Analog is uncompressed, 5.1 over optical is highly compressed. Also if you want to watch blu-rays with DTS-HD or DD-Master audio it won't work over optical.
Click to expand...

5.1 is highly compressed. Yes. Does it matter or effect the quality of the sound? No not in performance from a laptop to logitech speakers.
I have no recommendations for a product for the OP but you will be fine with a digital output if you can find a USB product which has one.
 
I'd agree with Snufycat, except I haven't seen a USB soundcard with Dolby Digital Live.

The X-Fi Surround 5.1 Pro is $40 refurbished on Amazon, and you can use 5.1 analog with it.
 
Cheers guys.

The Xonar U1 has Dolby Digital Live, but I dont believe it has linux drivers. The reviews for the X-Fi Surround 5.1 haven't been brilliant though.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks.
 
Snufykat said:
5.1 is highly compressed. Yes. Does it matter or effect the quality of the sound? No not in performance from a laptop to logitech speakers.
I have no recommendations for a product for the OP but you will be fine with a digital output if you can find a USB product which has one.
Click to expand...

I don't know what type of laptop his friend has, but if it has a blu-ray drive (or watching a good rip), I don't believe he will get 5.1 audio over optical if its encoded in DD-MA or DTS-HD, it will just be stereo. It should work though if he uses analog connections. The speakers may not be good enough to hear loseless audio difference, but it would still be 5.1 vs stereo.
 
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