Soundcard vs onboard sound?

[Pressure Drop]

Ok so I was wondering whether it’s worth my while getting a soundcard to replace the generic Realtek AC97 onboard sound.

I also used to run my sound through a proper amp and a set of decent quality speakers with a sound card on my old pc. Ahh those where the days don’t have room for those speakers or amp in this flat though <_<

Now I’ve splurged like €100 on some mini-speakers with built in amp
http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_u...phileAV40.html

they’ve not arrived yet but I was wondering would it be worthwhile getting a soundcard or would I not be able to tell the difference?

Obviously a soundcard is better but for general audio of Xvid movies and mp3 would it make much difference? Specially when I wouldn’t be looking to spend a lot on a sound card ??

I kinda thought that onboardsound had improved to the point where soundcards where more for ppl who recorded a lot of stuff or wanted like 7.1 gamez & moviez or had a really good hi-fi system.


Hmmm

Btw I use my pc for watching ripped dvd’s T.V. music (virtually all compressed mp3 usually a decent bitrate though) & games.

any feedback would be good, i'm in no rush either just pondering

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Ok so I was wondering whether it’s worth my while getting a soundcard to replace the generic Realtek AC97 onboard sound.

I also used to run my sound through a proper amp and a set of decent quality speakers with a sound card on my old pc. Ahh those where the days don’t have room for those speakers or amp in this flat though <_<

Now I’ve splurged like €100 on some mini-speakers with built in amp
http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_u...phileAV40.html

they’ve not arrived yet but I was wondering would it be worthwhile getting a soundcard or would I not be able to tell the difference?

Obviously a soundcard is better but for general audio of Xvid movies and mp3 would it make much difference? Specially when I wouldn’t be looking to spend a lot on a sound card ??

I kinda thought that onboardsound had improved to the point where soundcards where more for ppl who recorded a lot of stuff or wanted like 7.1 gamez & moviez or had a really good hi-fi system.


Hmmm

Btw I use my pc for watching ripped dvd’s T.V. music (virtually all compressed mp3 usually a decent bitrate though) & games.

any feedback would be good, i'm in no rush either just pondering

I use Nero 8 on my systems as far as software is concerned...however as far as the Realtek AC97 onboard sound is concerned, I have that as well....I bypass this for a Creative Sounblaster 5.1 card on my XP systems and , specifically for certain recording options that become options inherited into the Nero software. My Soundforge 9 & Vegas also works with Nero for plug-in applications too when I use Video & Audio options. The onboard Realtek just does not do all that much for me and what I use sound and video for. You can always switch back and forth from an add-on card to the onboard card. If you have the space to add a soundcard, it won't mess you up.

As for Vista...Creative X-Fi series are Vista compliant.

[DankNuggets]

hmm. haven't had an integrated sound chip in like 5 yrs, but this is why i opted out of it for a sound card.

At the time, with the integrated chip, I had three jacks - in/out/mic. No convenient sub/center/satellite set up for the speakers I bought which needed those jacks for optimal performace. Also, at the time, my integrated chip couldn't do audio in and out at the same time. Probably not something that comes up a lot for the average user. Also, having teh sound card meant I had somewhere to hook my extra dvdrom drives in, as I had a lot of drives at the time (old computer).

Basically I just had an old system. I wouldn't know off hand, but if the integrated chips these days can do in/out, you have a satifactory # of jacks, and you have one dvd drive (old days had cdrom, cd burner, dvd, dvd burner-- now it's all in one) then you're probably just fine w/o the card.

but then again, i think it was pretty cheap to upgrade to it too.

[Burzum]

Recently swapped my AC97 and old cheap Creatives for a SB X-Fi Music and a pair of Logitech Z-2300 2.1 speakers. Result is that the sound is better by a large margin (most probably due to better speakers) and the annoying hum/hiss that plagued me for years is gone (which I attribute to the crappy onboard soundcard).

[Dutch_]

If you want better sound quality you have to upgrade your speakers. Onboard sound has the same sound quality as a sound card. Maybe not on a technical level, but I doubt many ppl can hear the difference.

You buy a sound card if you want to record music (onboard has pretty crappy recording quality, or if you want special sound effects like EAX (for games).

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If you want better sound quality you have to upgrade your speakers. Onboard sound has the same sound quality as a sound card. Maybe not on a technical level, but I doubt many ppl can hear the difference.

You buy a sound card if you want to record music (onboard has pretty crappy recording quality, or if you want special sound effects like EAX (for games).

EAX is history on Vista...simulated, but history.

I wonder how the new Windows 7 will work in conjunction to the soundcards...now that many of the companies such as creative have worked around the Vista probs.

[Pressure Drop]

thanks for the input guys

what dutch_ said is kinda what i had in my head

i run XP and don't plan on upgrading to vista soon, i'll wait till i get my speakers and decide then

[project dragon]

I've heard good things about those speakers, even just plugged onboard, so unless you are extremely picky about your sound, I don't think you should be disappointed.

I've got the same speakers as Burzum and I plug it right into my laptop (since upgrading doesn't seem to be an option), and I'm enjoying them. I also really like the big volume knob, and for $80 cad, I considered them a steal.

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thanks for the input guys

what dutch_ said is kinda what i had in my head

i run XP and don't plan on upgrading to vista soon, i'll wait till i get my speakers and decide then

May just skip over Vista since MS is rolling out "7" to replace it.

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Recently, as in last week, I set up a new system running a evga nForce 790i SLI Motherboard that has the Realtek HD audio onboard...hated it! just Installed a Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional 7.1 PCI Express Sound Card yesterday...and OMG...what a difference!

A bit late to add on to this topic, but an what an audible difference... I felt was worthy on noting. I was tempted, but held back on getting the AuzenTech AZT-FORTE X-Fi Forte 7.1. It's a better card, but for the audio I that will be used on this system, it wasn't worth it.

[DankNuggets]

Recently, I set up a new system running a evga nForce 790i SLI Motherboard that has the Realtek HD audio onboard...hated it! just Installed a Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional 7.1 PCI Express Sound Card yesterday...and OMG...what a difference!

A bit late to add on to this topic, but an what an audible difference... I felt was worthy on noting. I was tempted, but held back on getting the AuzenTech AZT-FORTE X-Fi Forte 7.1. It's a better card, but for the audio I that will be used on this system, it wasn't worth it.

the value is in the # of qualifiers attached to the words "sound card" !!

ftr, that's 10 words, though some are more necessary than others

no way that other card would be as good, it has half as many words to name it's product

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Difference between the Creative and the AuzenTech is the sampling rate...the AuzenTech has a higher Sample Rate...not as nice packaging though.

Again it depends on what your doing with your audio...if it is just for games, then it really shouldn't matter, but if you are seriously mixing and or doing at home studio work...audiophile stuff, the higher rate of the Auzen would be prefferable. It is also built around the Creative X-Fi Native PCI Express audio processor.

Creative has a Sample Rate of 96Khz and the AuzenTech has a rate of 192Khz. For the extra $40, I went with the Creative...plus I liked the way they built and encased the Creative X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty.