[device manager]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sonicm Hmmm...I was thinking about getting the Audigy2, I found some good deals on them, but does anyone know the difference between Audigy2 and the Audigy2 ZS?

The difference is one sucks, and the other one sucks even worse. Do a search for audigy on this website and you'll see that it's a frowned upon card.

One of many threads.
http://www4.head-fi.org/forums/showt...ghlight=audigy

 

[sonicm]

*sigh*
So would anyone know what the next best thing would be? I am SO confused as to what to get right now, btw my budget changed to $40-60, and I'm still using it straight into my headphones for now.

 

[skyline889]

Quote:

Originally Posted by device manager The difference is one sucks, and the other one sucks even worse. Do a search for audigy on this website and you'll see that it's a frowned upon card. One of many threads. http://www4.head-fi.org/forums/showt...ghlight=audigy

Okay first off, the X-fi "Extreme music" you have isn't a great sounding card for music either, imo. The Elite Pro my friend has, sounds like poo wrapped in a blanket (Bit of an overstatement, but it's definitely not the card everyone raves about), granted it did sound better and had more resolution and depth than my Platinum Pro, but it's also $150 more, so that's to be expected.

Second, if he's planning on using it without a DAC for now but wants the option of adding one later, a used EMU 0404 would sound a lot beter and be a better value for the money than an X-Fi. The 0404 was a little too sybillant for my tastes, but for $70 used, you can't go wrong, and unless your a hardcore gamer, you don't need the extra "features" you get charged for with the X-Fi.

 

[incognitoedleon]

^ I think sonicm meant that both a DAC and an amp would not be used in the setup as it is right now. The 0404 is an excellent source -- if you have an amp. Like the AV-710, it has no built-in amplifier.

 

[skyline889]

Sorry, didn't realize he was planning on running his set-up unamped.

 

[device manager]

Quote:

Originally Posted by skyline889 Okay first off, the X-fi "Extreme music" you have isn't a great sounding card for music either, imo. The Elite Pro my friend has, sounds like poo wrapped in a blanket (Bit of an overstatement, but it's definitely not the card everyone raves about), granted it did sound better and had more resolution and depth than my Platinum Pro, but it's also $150 more, so that's to be expected.

O RLY?

I think you are referring to the sound quality of the X-Fi onboard DAC and opamps. In that case I will agree that they are mediocre. However I use the X-Fi as a transport, as do many others, for bit-perfect digital out to a DAC/AMP. It's no different than the popular Chaintec AV-710's. I retain all of the X-Fi DSP's, hardware AC3/DTS decoding when I watch movies & listen to DTS audio discs, a mode switcher, and the best gaming experience possible. That doesn't sound like "poo wrapped in a blanket" now does it?

On a different note I realize that the X-Fi is double the budget of the original poster, and I only mentioned it because he was considering an Audigy 2. However he could look into a TBAAM which would be a viable option.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16829118107

 

[skyline889]

Yeah sorry, I was referring to the onboard headphone amplifier on the breakout box, and the analog speaker outs on the back of the pci card.

 

[device manager]

Aloha!

 

[KevC]

Woah woah woah guys, excellent discussion but after reading his first post... he has no decent headphones!

HEADPHONES is the first thing that makes the biggest difference, you should invest those $40 into headphones before worrying about soundcard.

Get a pair of Koss KSC75 and you'll be happy =) Even with onboard sound.

But if you want a soundcard, I <3 my AV710.

 

[soloz2]

if you can squeeze the audigy2zs into your budget then go for it, if not then get the audigy2. But I agree, you won't notice a huge difference between sound cards unless you have good speakers or headphones to use with them.

I was running an audigy2zs gamer in my rig and upgraded to an X-Fi Xtreme music. With my logitech headset that I paid $12.50 for from Amazon I could not tell a difference. lol. However, now that I have my Senn HD595's I can tell that the X-Fi is indeed a pretty decent source.


since you are needing to stretch your budget maybe you should go back and look at the live 24 bit or audigy se paired with a pair of used headphones. you can get some decent cans for about 30-40 used. or even a pair of decent new ones

 

[sonicm]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KevC Woah woah woah guys, excellent discussion but after reading his first post... he has no decent headphones! HEADPHONES is the first thing that makes the biggest difference, you should invest those $40 into headphones before worrying about soundcard. Get a pair of Koss KSC75 and you'll be happy =) Even with onboard sound. But if you want a soundcard, I <3 my AV710.

XD Yeah I know I really need better headphones, but the way I see it, while having bad headphones on a good sound card would limit a sound cards output, a bad sound card of good heaphones would too, and it also might magnify the inperfections in the music(cause due to the sound card)...but thats really inexpensive, maybe I can get it around the same time I get my sound card...


Quote:

Originally Posted by soloz2 if you can squeeze the audigy2zs into your budget then go for it, if not then get the audigy2. But I agree, you won't notice a huge difference between sound cards unless you have good speakers or headphones to use with them. I was running an audigy2zs gamer in my rig and upgraded to an X-Fi Xtreme music. With my logitech headset that I paid $12.50 for from Amazon I could not tell a difference. lol. However, now that I have my Senn HD595's I can tell that the X-Fi is indeed a pretty decent source. since you are needing to stretch your budget maybe you should go back and look at the live 24 bit or audigy se paired with a pair of used headphones. you can get some decent cans for about 30-40 used. or even a pair of decent new ones

I still dont get this whole 'mixer' issue, what does a mixer do? If its not that important, couldn't I just disable it? I'm sure I sound like a noob, but thats one because I am one XD