onboard sound vs new sound card ---> does this really make a difference?

Jul 27, 2006 at 10:48 AM Post #16 of 20
well you do have a very good point. It just how you see it. Some people will spend a lot more money on the source than on amplification or headphones/speakers while others do it the other way around.

I am not that bothered about the sound of the xfi for music replay purposes. I only want it for games and movies.

I could suppose hook it up to an offboard dac using the digital connections therefore using the PC as a transport, but at this time it's not a viable option for me.

I mean I am using them with a really cheapie set of creative labs speakers which are far inferior sounding to the ibuds, so I would not see any improvements if I used a expensive dac or amps. Why would I spend all that money on something if there was only a very slight difference. At least if I have a nice set of speakers then I would want to partner it with something which allows the ability of the speakers to show thorugh. Seeming as I am using a @$100 soundcard I will use a $40 speaker set.
 
Jul 27, 2006 at 5:56 PM Post #17 of 20
Yes, this is much my point. My original question was whether I should be buying a sound card at all. Newer motherboards appear to be shipping with onboard audio solutions that aren't too bad. RealTek's newest ALC885 chipset evidently has S/N ratio's of better than 100db via the analog outs. This is probably approaching the quality of soundcards of just a few years back. It's also HDCP complaint and 100% certified with Windows Vista.

Again, going to one of these Super T-Amp's or using the digital out to go to one of these basic home AV receivers I just don't know how much the averge person who wants above average sound is going to notice the difference when driving either a 2.1 or 2.0 setup that costs in the $200 - $500 range.

Does anybody have some direct comparisons out there?
 
Aug 10, 2006 at 9:03 AM Post #19 of 20
Quote:

Originally Posted by DrDobs
Yes, this is much my point. My original question was whether I should be buying a sound card at all. Newer motherboards appear to be shipping with onboard audio solutions that aren't too bad. RealTek's newest ALC885 chipset evidently has S/N ratio's of better than 100db via the analog outs. This is probably approaching the quality of soundcards of just a few years back. It's also HDCP complaint and 100% certified with Windows Vista.

Again, going to one of these Super T-Amp's or using the digital out to go to one of these basic home AV receivers I just don't know how much the averge person who wants above average sound is going to notice the difference when driving either a 2.1 or 2.0 setup that costs in the $200 - $500 range.

Does anybody have some direct comparisons out there?



the realtek is ok of ur going bookshelf speakers... but for phones or higher end HT/Music stuff you need a better dedicated card. My realtek was fine pluged into my PC HK speakers, but there is a world of difference with Grados.
 
Aug 10, 2006 at 5:11 PM Post #20 of 20
Thanks for replying here. I suppose it may also depend on what type of bookshelf speakers we are referring to though as well.

I've been convinced to go with a dedicated solution, so I bought the Juli@ PCI card. I'll report back my thoughts when it all gets going.
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