Head-Fi.org › Forums › Equipment Forums › Computer Audio › Onboard sound vs sound card?
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Onboard sound vs sound card?

post #1 of 10
2/26/11 at 8:10am
Thread Starter 

Hey guys. I've just registered a couple of minutes ago because i just stumbled across this website and i wan't to ask some questions.

I've just recently got a set of Edifier s550 5.1 speakers. I want to know how big of a difference i will get from changing to a 100 - 200$ sound card vs onboard sound (Gigabte MA770T-UD 3. Realtek ALC892/888). I mostly use my speakers for playing games and listening to rock/metal in flac quality. My only requirements for a sound card is it to have at least 5.1/7.1 jackstick or RCA connections, since my speakers only are analogue. And of course they have to be between 100 - 200$.

Thanks

Reply
post #2 of 10
2/26/11 at 1:39pm

I'm fairly sure the Realtek ALC8xx is one of the best onboard codecs out there, so it will probably not make a lot of difference in sound quality to be honest.

But since you play games, you will want the soundcard for the effects, in which case I think you'll be better off with a Creative X-Fi Titanium HD.

Reply
post #3 of 10
2/27/11 at 1:10pm
Thread Starter 

Hi and thanks for the reply.

I've looked a bit at the titanium hd card and it has got some pretty mixed reviews. It hasn't quite got the connections i want since i use 5.1 and it only has 2.0 by the looks of it. It's also nearing my budget limit. 

I've been looking at the Titanium Fatality Pro, which is cheaper and has the connections i want. I've read some reviews of this one too and it has got some pretty decent critics. Most of the bad critics goes to the music part. Do you recommend this card or do you recommend something else? And do you think it's an upgrade worth? I've also taken a look at some Asus cards, but they are quite a bit more expansive and they don't have that many "gaming" features.

Thanks

Reply
post #4 of 10
2/27/11 at 3:04pm

My bad, I thought the Titanium HD could output 5.1 with those 3.5mm jacks there. (I don't care for 5.1 to be honest tongue.gif)

But from what I've seen, it's the best reviewed Creative card yet, I see much more "mixed reviews" for other Creative models (especially regarding drivers)...

 

Guess you should stick with the normal Titanium Fatal1ty then.

 

Many people say Asus's emulated EAX effects are inferior to Creative's. Some might say EAX is deprecated, but it's still used, so you've gotta consider it.

Asus has great sound quality otherwise.

Reply
post #5 of 10
2/27/11 at 4:22pm

I have an Asus A8N32 SLI Deluxe with the Realtek ALC850, and an Audigy 2 ZS soundcard.

I have to say, the Audigy sounds superior through my Logitech Z2300 Sub/Baby Advent II satellites. The difference seemed subtle when going from the Realtek to the Audigy, but when going back, the music sounded lifeless and compressed comparatively.

 

I don't know how the ALC850 compares to the 892/888, but from my experience I'd say get a dedicated card. Maybe you can pick up a cheap Audigy 4 or X-fi on craigslist and do some testing for yourself?

Reply
post #6 of 10
2/28/11 at 7:38am
Thread Starter 

Thanks to both of you for the replies.

I'm a bit confused about if i should get a card. Some people say it's worth it and some people don't (but i can't see how onboard sound on a 100$ motherboard can compete with a 100$ sound card).

Anyway, i have found some more cards and the Auzentech X-fi Forte looks best in my eyes. It seems to beat the Titanium Pro in both gaming and when listening to music, it has all the connections i want and it priced about the same as the Titanium HD. It shouldn't have anywhere near the same amount of driver issues and it supports some more digital outputs compared to the Titanium series. Do you recommend this card? (i don't want you to go researching, but i'd like to know if you know it's a terrible card or if it's good).

Reply
post #7 of 10
2/28/11 at 8:02am

The people that say it isn't worth it probably use skullcandy. The difference is huge if you have decent headphones especially in FPS games. Looking back to my days with onboard it was like playing the game in a fog with sounds that appeared to come from nowhere now there is direction and I can predict when to shoot so its almost like having a wall hack. If you play FPS games you should probably have a sound card.
 

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dolph View Post

Thanks to both of you for the replies.

I'm a bit confused about if i should get a card. Some people say it's worth it and some people don't (but i can't see how onboard sound on a 100$ motherboard can compete with a 100$ sound card).

Anyway, i have found some more cards and the Auzentech X-fi Forte looks best in my eyes. It seems to beat the Titanium Pro in both gaming and when listening to music, it has all the connections i want and it priced about the same as the Titanium HD. It shouldn't have anywhere near the same amount of driver issues and it supports some more digital outputs compared to the Titanium series. Do you recommend this card? (i don't want you to go researching, but i'd like to know if you know it's a terrible card or if it's good).

Reply
post #8 of 10
3/1/11 at 1:34pm
Thread Starter 

Thanks.

I mainly want the card for game effects since i value the sound almost as high as the graphics.

 

I haven't heard any major audible flaws yet (there is a bit, but not overwhelming). Since i have a 5.1 system, will an AMP/DAC have an effect on that? And do you think the sound quality difference will be worth the money? My system is not some 100$ surround sound system, but it's certainly not some 1000$ + system (350 - 400 in US to be precise).

 

And if i get into trouble with Auzentech, i'll just hand over the phone to my mother and they'll regret they didn't give me one for free tongue.gif

Reply
post #9 of 10
3/1/11 at 1:57pm

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dolph View Post

I haven't heard any major audible flaws yet (there is a bit, but not overwhelming). Since i have a 5.1 system, will an AMP/DAC have an effect on that? And do you think the sound quality difference will be worth the money?

 

I think you missed my point, the soundcard is a DAC (it's not necessarily a headphone amp though), you don't need to buy another. If you do, it will bypass the card.

Reply
post #10 of 10
3/3/11 at 12:47pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vitor Machado View Post

 

 

I think you missed my point, the soundcard is a DAC (it's not necessarily a headphone amp though), you don't need to buy another. If you do, it will bypass the card.


Thanks. I got a bit confused about it and didn't have time to research (damn homework!).

I've heard some people say the amp dies after a year, even though they didn't use headsets (they are easily replaceable though). Is that just because it can't tell the difference between a headset and speakers?

Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Computer Audio
Head-Fi.org › Forums › Equipment Forums › Computer Audio › Onboard sound vs sound card?