[howL_]

What I feared has occured: I'm hearing a lot of little squeeky noises when moving my mouse with my new cans hooked up to my computer.

Would moving to a dedicated card (I'm thinking X-Fi Xtreme Music since I do some gaming as well) solve that or am I doomed to hear them with anything inside the case?

I suppose I could buy an external DAC like the Headroom Micro DAC or Corda Aria but even then I'm going to have to do some saving so a $100 soundcard sounds a lot more appealing at the moment. Are there any other options? Hell, is there a setting in Windows that I'm missing that could eliminate (or even minimize) the interferance I'm getting?

Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[AzNwiLD0]

If you have good (120+ usd) headphones, I would take the plunge and get a DAC. Otherwise, if they're just merely decent, any soundcard AFAIK will eliminate the electrical noises you hear. I know my Revolution 5.1 does the job. The noise will go away and the music will be much much clearer. Your ears will thank you. And you'll feel dirty afterwards about not spending the money earlier.

 

[jagorev]

External DAC or USB soundcard is the best solution. M-Audio Transit, Sonica, and Audiophile USB are all good options. The Transit and Sonica are in the $100 range, and can provide a clean source for a DAC or amp.

 

[howL_]

Thanks for the replies. I think I'm going to shop around for a good price on a X-Fi to start with and have a look at an external DAC after my checking account recovers from this month's shopping spree.