What sound card do you use?

[singhcr]

Originally Posted by pentatonic

Agreed and for many, headphones is the only way to get real hi-fi at low prices, but you need good DACs and amp for that, onboard just usually doesn't cut it (though they have improved a lot)

Yep, the onboards have been getting a lot better over the years in terms of both sound performance and CPU utilization %, but they pale in comparison to a good dedicated sound card. The Xonar ST is $200. It's expensive, but well worth it in my opinion.

[pentatonic]

Originally Posted by PrivatePixel

It seems that manufacturers are leaning towards Creative Labs to provide audio chips (such as the CA20K2) for their mid- to upper-range motherboards, which I assume is a better alternative to Realtek's HD audio codecs (which I dislike tremendously). I can't comment on their quality as I haven't heard their output, but I'm not a fan of Creative's offerings (due largely to their drivers), so for me, I would opt for a separate PCI/PCI-e solution over an onboard one.

I use an ASUS Xonar DX (PCI-e 1x version) in my current rig and couldn't be happier.

The DX is one of the best bang for the buck there is. Solid hardware, good implementation. For the price of one of these, unless you can't hear the difference or don't care, the step up from most onboard is worth it.

Originally Posted by singhcr

Yep, the onboards have been getting a lot better over the years in terms of both sound performance and CPU utilization %, but they pale in comparison to a good dedicated sound card. The Xonar ST is $200. It's expensive, but well worth it in my opinion.

Actually since it's a very good DAC, decent ADC, impressive headphone amp, at $200 it's cheap.

[drummerboy]

I am using the Auzen X-fi 7.1 home theatre hd i especially like the dtsma via hdmi and get an awesome sound when run to the denon avpa1hd processor.Between the two its hard pressed to beat.

[Goat1]

I'm using a Soundcore 3D fatality right now,but when this comes out in Dec I'll own it..
http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/16/c...-z-soundcards/

[Nick The Slick]

I just use my Radeon HD 6870 (video card) for audio output through HDMI. It evens outputs at 24/192 (with a change of a simple setting) so my FLAC music (all at various bit depths and sample rates) can be played to it's full potential. Sound cards are definitely a must in a studio situation or a non-home theater related use, but for HT a dedicated video card with HDMI out can't be beat, audio and video in one package~

[pentatonic]

Originally Posted by Goat1

I'm using a Soundcore 3D fatality right now,but when this comes out in Dec I'll own it..
http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/16/c...-z-soundcards/

Didn't really read more than horizontally but the specs look good. But I would never ever buy a Creative product, their support is one of the worst in the industry. It takes them forever to issue drivers for new os. And they're not known to support for a long time neither.

Originally Posted by Nick The Slick

I just use my Radeon HD 6870 (video card) for audio output through HDMI. It evens outputs at 24/192 (with a change of a simple setting) so my FLAC music (all at various bit depths and sample rates) can be played to it's full potential. Sound cards are definitely a must in a studio situation or a non-home theater related use, but for HT a dedicated video card with HDMI out can't be beat, audio and video in one package~

Def the way to go if you don't need analog out and feed an avr.

[Johnny Vinyl]

Originally Posted by Goat1

I'm using a Soundcore 3D fatality right now,but when this comes out in Dec I'll own it..
http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/16/c...-z-soundcards/

Creative makes a nice product for sure. However......

Originally Posted by pentatonic

Didn't really read more than horizontally but the specs look good. But I would never ever buy a Creative product, their support is one of the worst in the industry. It takes them forever to issue drivers for new os. And they're not known to support for a long time neither.

Pat is right. It took over 2 years for them to finally release a Vista driver for my X-Fi Music Card. And don't trust their Beta drivers either.

[Goat1]

I've never had a problem with creative products. I've owned lots of sound blasters. You can go on 3D guru and find Daniel K's sound blaster drivers. Most people swear by them. So how often do you expect new drivers? If it isn't broken don't fix it. If your talking about the popping issues,it wasn't creatives deal,it was only doing it with certain mother boards.. I've had a razer Barracuda ac-1 also,very nice card..I still have it.

[Johnny Vinyl]

Originally Posted by Goat1

I've never had a problem with creative products. I've owned lots of sound blasters. You can go on 3D guru and find Daniel K's sound blaster drivers. Most people swear by them. So how often do you expect new drivers? If it isn't broken don't fix it. If your talking about the popping issues,it wasn't creatives deal,it was only doing it with certain mother boards.. I've had a razer Barracuda ac-1 also,very nice card..I still have it.

I expect a new driver when a new OS is released...that's called support. I couldn't use the CL software once I upgraded to Vista. Like I said, it took 2 years for them to finally issue a proper driver. That's bullshit.

[Goat1]

Or people don't know what the hell they are doing.. Like I said,I had zero issues with Creative. When Microsoft throws the audio companies a curve ball by taking out the sound abstraction layer,that puts everyone in a bind. I had my Barracuda back then too,guess what,I had to wait 3 months for drivers that even worked. My Xf-i xtreme music worked perfect. To me Vista was a lot more solid than XP.. From a computer techs point of view it sucked.. More BSOD on that platform than any other. Not to mention all my friends and myself had to reformat 2-3 times a year. Once we switched to Vista,we never had to. We never had to with Win 7 either.. Asus cards are far from perfect also.

[Johnny Vinyl]

Originally Posted by Goat1

Or people don't know what the hell they are doing.. Like I said,I had zero issues with Creative. When Microsoft throws the audio companies a curve ball by taking out the sound abstraction layer,that puts everyone in a bind. I had my Barracuda back then too,guess what,I had to wait 3 months for drivers that even worked. My Xf-i xtreme music worked perfect. To me Vista was a lot more solid than XP.. From a computer techs point of view it sucked.. More BSOD on that platform than any other. Not to mention all my friends and myself had to reformat 2-3 times a year. Once we switched to Vista,we never had to. We never had to with Win 7 either.. Asus cards are far from perfect also.

I hope that's not a veil shot, so I'll leave it.

Whether or not MS leaves something out or adds something in, it's up to the third party suppliers to make sure their products work within a reasonable time frame. CL didn't do that.

Most people that buy these cards aren't PC Tech's , they just want them to work and expect support. If you are able to work around those issues, then good for you. And yes, Asus cards are not perfect either.

[Goat1]

What are you talking about creative didn't do that. They even added in alchemy to restore the direct x extensions.. Do you even know what your talking about?

[Johnny Vinyl]

Originally Posted by Goat1

What are you talking about creative didn't do that. They even added in alchemy to restore the direct x extensions.. Do you even know what your talking about?

My opinion is based on a user opinion and one who is NOT a PC Tech. All I know is that when I upgraded the OS my CL software stopped working. After I inquired about it all I got was that we will have a new driver available soon to rectify the issue. That took 2 years. That's BS and I don't care which way you slice it.

I am NOT a PC Tech and thereby not inclined to find workaround solutions as I'm not comfortable doing that. So sue me. If that makes me ignorant in your eyes then that's your problem, not mine.

And one last thing. People come on here to assist each other, not to question others and minimize their input simply because they don't agree with yours.

BTW...my lowly Yamaha HTR-6190 only had YPAO...I still preferred it.

[Goat1]

Your wrong. Vista came out in Jan 07. The 1st update for the xf-i was may 07. I know because I had to pull out my razer barracuda,why,no vista drivers. The xfi xtreme music worked just fine.. Don't be a hater!

[pentatonic]

Originally Posted by Goat1

What are you talking about creative didn't do that. They even added in alchemy to restore the direct x extensions.. Do you even know what your talking about?

All I can say is my own experience and that of friends. We are not saying the product isn't good, we're talking about support for their customers. I own an E-Mu pro card, love it, but as soon as Creative bought E-Mu, support went out the Windows pun intended (either Vista or 7). Because they finally came out with Beta drivers who are sketchy at best I had to reinstall 7 fresh and in a specific order drivers wise. Yes I know what I'm doing, but it shouldn't be like that. I own some Logitech stuff and never had a problem support wise.

[Johnny Vinyl]

Originally Posted by Goat1

Your wrong. Vista came out in Jan 07. The 1st update for the xf-i was may 07. I know because I had to pull out my razer barracuda,why,no vista drivers. The xfi xtreme music worked just fine.. Don't be a hater!

That driver, as far as I know, was in Beta and stayed that way for 2 years. I couldn't get the software to work during that time. This is/was my only beef. I am not a hater at all, but I expect support. I need support in fact, as I'm not a tech and don't know the first thing about messing around with drivers or other files.

I'm glad you're happy with your choice, as that is the only thing that matters. Enjoy it!

[prerich]

Originally Posted by Johnny Vinyl

I considered an outboard DAC, but after reading the reviews of the built-in headphone amp on STX I went with it. 124dB S/N ratio What's not to love? I'm very happy with this card!

I'm getting ready to go all in with the HT Omega Claro Halo XT 7.1 wih daughter card.

[Johnny Vinyl]

Originally Posted by prerich

I'm getting ready to go all in with the HT Omega Claro Halo XT 7.1 wih daughter card.

I read that in your PC Prepro thread. I'm reading it, but can't comment as I'm lost....LOL!

[Goat1]

This is my next card..
http://www.slashgear.com/creative-la...-pcs-16243079/

[Johnny Vinyl]

Originally Posted by Goat1

This is my next card..
http://www.slashgear.com/creative-la...-pcs-16243079/

Which of those 3 cards are you getting?