[ppau0822]

hey guys,

i need some help in deciding which is the best pci card for me to get. im looking for the best sounding card and it doesn't matter whether it is from creative, asus or azuntech. all i need is a card that plays the best music,ie, something that is pleasant to the ear and not digital or processed with good details and no roll-offs. i have NO need for stuff like 5.1 or 7.1 sound or other fancy audio technology like dts-hd or other audio codec decoding, nor any special out puts other than HP out. i will not be using an Amp and this card will have to be able to drive my future headphone (AH-D5000).

i would be using it on a windows 7 pc, 32 bit tho i might move to 64 soon ( i heard creative has driver problems) and must output music not bits

i am currently on my candidate list:
* Creative X-Fi Xtreme Audio
* Sound Blaster 5.1
* Auzentech X-Studio 5.1
* Auzentech X-Raider 7.1 PCI

cheers and thanks for the help

edit: im new to all this sound card stuff, can anyone point me to something that explains more about those creative chips and how they sound?

 

[FasterThanEver]

The AudioTrak Prodigy HD2 is under $ 100. I don't know about Win 7 64 bit drivers but on a Win XP system the ASIO and DirectSound support has been flawless.

Bill

 

[ROBSCIX]

Try looking through the buy and sell forums.

 

[ppau0822]

thanks but can someone point me to a comparison or tell me how they sound?

 

[kite7]

Do not get the X-Fi Audio or sound blaster, not a big upgrade from onboard sound found in motherboards today. im' not sure about the Auzentech cards but have you looked into Asus Xonar sound cards? I'm not sure if you have PCI-E slots available on your motherboard but there are quite a few Xonar cards to choose from.

 

[Commanderloochy]

Might wanna check out the udac, it retails for $99 and its supposed to sound almost as good as dacs in the $300 dollar price range

 

[ppau0822]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kite7 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Do not get the X-Fi Audio or sound blaster, not a big upgrade from onboard sound found in motherboards today. im' not sure about the Auzentech cards but have you looked into Asus Xonar sound cards? I'm not sure if you have PCI-E slots available on your motherboard but there are quite a few Xonar cards to choose from.

yeah i have a pic-e slot so no worries. its interesting that you say that the creative cards arent as much as a step up from on board cards. ok so im gonna take a look at the Xonar cards properly and see what is within my budget.

 

[Uroboros]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FasterThanEver /img/forum/go_quote.gif The AudioTrak Prodigy HD2 is under $ 100. I don't know about Win 7 64 bit drivers but on a Win XP system the ASIO and DirectSound support has been flawless. Bill

As a point of interest; there are Windows 7 drivers for the card here...

AUDIOTRAK Downloads

Doesn't specifically say 64 bit; but I got to assume they are in as they were covered in previous version of the drivers on that page.

 

[ppau0822]

well decided to get the Asus Essence STX. twice as expensive as my budget but i will have to count it as an investment

 

[kite7]

You know you would upgrade later so might as well make a big jump now

 

[FasterThanEver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Uroboros /img/forum/go_quote.gif As a point of interest; there are Windows 7 drivers for the card here... AUDIOTRAK Downloads Doesn't specifically say 64 bit; but I got to assume they are in as they were covered in previous version of the drivers on that page.

One caution: The link you gave is apparently provided by Gyrocom which sells the fancier versions of the Audiotrak Prodigy HD2 outside the USA. (Gold and Advance I think.) I know that one of the two fancy versions has different firmware than the plain Prodigy HD2 card. I don't know about the other fancy version's firmware.

Here is a link for the ESI web pages with Audiotrak driver downloads:

AUDIOTRAK - Download

If you buy a plain Prodigy HD2 from a US seller such as Florida Music Company or DJ Deals, you might try the ESI downloads first.

I've been using the ESI provided XP drivers for several years. The ASIO driver has been rock-solid for me. DirectSound works fine too.

Bill

 

[ROBSCIX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ppau0822 /img/forum/go_quote.gif well decided to get the Asus Essence STX. twice as expensive as my budget but i will have to count it as an investment

I think most would suggest you up your budget if you can and go for mid to high level instead of the entry level. Usually the Entry level assumes your going to be upgrading again shortly. Why not just grab a good card now if you have the money and you won't have to worry about a new one for atleast a few more PC builds. Soundcards do not advance the same way other PC hardware does.
If you get a great sounding card, it will still be great sounding a few years from now. What you choose is based on what you need.

 

[Uroboros]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FasterThanEver /img/forum/go_quote.gif One caution: The link you gave is apparently provided by Gyrocom which sells the fancier versions of the Audiotrak Prodigy HD2 outside the USA. (Gold and Advance I think.) I know that one of the two fancy versions has different firmware than the plain Prodigy HD2 card. I don't know about the other fancy version's firmware. Here is a link for the ESI web pages with Audiotrak driver downloads: AUDIOTRAK - Download If you buy a plain Prodigy HD2 from a US seller such as Florida Music Company or DJ Deals, you might try the ESI downloads first. I've been using the ESI provided XP drivers for several years. The ASIO driver has been rock-solid for me. DirectSound works fine too. Bill

Well that makes more sense.

Hadn't realized they actually updated the drivers on that page.

 

[ppau0822]

yeah i agree with ROBSCIX and kite7. thats why im going with the essence...or is their a better card in that price range?

 

[germanium]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ppau0822 /img/forum/go_quote.gif yeah i agree with ROBSCIX and kite7. thats why im going with the essence...or is their a better card in that price range?

You made a good choice as the Essense STX is a very fine sounding card. Very detailed yet very organic at the same time. You really feel as though you are listening to the live band on good recordings. Word of caution though, forget those low bitrate recordings as you will hear thier artifacts & be annoyed by them. Minimum lossy recording should be at 256Kb/s & nothing lower. I use lossless on my computer.