Most Versatile Sound from PC

[Jisi]

Hey Fellow HeadFiers, I need your help.
I'm currently at my dorm and I need a simple solution for a versatile sound source. I am using my laptop as the source, and the internal sound card just isnt cutting it. Are there any PCslotsoundcards, or external soundcards(thinkin more bang for the buck), that allow me to hookup 5.1 speakers, along with provide great decoding and sound to headphones. It would be great if this soundcard/station also had an integrated amp in it. But I could always get a cheap go vibe amp if nessesary. I just need to be able to put a 5.1 and headphones into the sound solution, and then that into my laptop thru USB or pcslot.

If you have any good suggestions please leave a little review on the item, as I am not that familiar whats on the market. Thanks a lot guys... help me out please! the crappy sound coming out of my ibm is dreadful.

Later,
Jisi

[KenW]

Dude, I had the same issue and after narrowing it down to a couple of DACs, I just gave up and settled for a transit to eliminate the hiss I was getting from my card. Opinions on this one are a dime a dozen. Heck, if you or anyone else has the definitive answer, LET ME IN ON IT!!

[Naga]

try an emu 1616M - its pricy as hell but should be worth it for your needs

or go to slickdeals.net you can find an external 5.1 phillips soundsystem for 20$ - i have no idea what it sounds like tho

[Behemot]

hi Jisi, it really depends on what you need the card for and the budget...
EMU 1616 PCMCIA card is believed to be the best but it is not that versatile as a much cheaper Audigy 2 ZS PCMCIA. I played with this one at the college a few months ago and was really surprised, it seemed liked creative managed to get things right... All worked nicely in Cubase SX 3 with quite a number of VSTis. Have a look on some of the reviews and threads on these forums, this may help to find out what is good for you
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1749807,00.asp
http://www.extremetech.com/article2/...1684450,00.asp
Need a notebook sound solution for use with Klipsch speakers
PCMCIA Soundcard
Soundcard for laptop?