Soundcards - what do I get?

gillon

Sweden1578 Posts

June 20 2010 23:09 GMT

So recently I've been looking at the new Sennheiser PC-360 headset. While being quite expensive it has some very impressive specifications and the early reviews are looking very good. However, I've heard that if I'm getting a headset of this quality I really should be having a 'decent' soundcard aswell.

Now, since I've never used _anything_ except onboard sound, I am completely lost on the topic.

I just want sound quality to be overall good - gaming, music and movies.

I'm guessing I don't need a soundcard that has all the fancy studio recording features or whatever but it should be enough to make use of my new headset.

And so, TL, I turn to you and your wisdom. Do you have any tips on a soundcard that would fit what I described?

Pakje

Belgium288 Posts

June 20 2010 23:16 GMT

On-board soundcard should suffice

semantics

10040 Posts

June 20 2010 23:17 GMT

if you have a motherboard made in the past 2 years you porb have sufficient sound quality with onboard.

hellsan631

United States695 Posts

June 20 2010 23:20 GMT

go with the new asus cards.

i have an asus xonar essence ST, and it works wonderfully. i use it with the HD650's, and its pretty much the only soundcard that i have tried (out of the creative x-fi fatality, ht omega claro+, and the auzentech x-fi). The sound for what ever it be, is amazing. Music and movies really shine on this card.

If its not within your budget, then i would look toward the other soundcards asus has to offer. they are really really well designed from an audiophile point of view, and deliver exceptional quality for the price.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829132006

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829132014

as for motherboard sound, i find it quite bland. its put there to be a jack of all trades type thing. almost like having onboard video, but with no performance loss represented by fps.

T.O.P.

Hong Kong4685 Posts

June 20 2010 23:28 GMT

IMO, soundcards are unnecessary for today's computers. Modern motherboards have decent DAC and amp. You're probably better off spending your extra money on a better headphone. But if your built in audio has static, then getting a soundcard is a good idea.

You might want to read the forums here: http://www.head-fi.org

AyeH

United States534 Posts

June 20 2010 23:29 GMT

i used to have a fata1ity sound card. sounded the same as my mobo when i took it out. don't get a sound card unless you are truly an audiophile.

sound systems make a bigger difference.

gillon

Sweden1578 Posts

June 20 2010 23:32 GMT

The headset I'm getting is pretty much the latest thing on the market I believe - with a price to match: http://www.sennheisernordic.com/nordic/home_en.nsf/root/private_headsets_pc_pro-gaming_504122?Open&row=2

While not having as good sound quality as some headphones, it's pretty much the best headset I've found.

My motherboard is a Gigabyte GA-P55-UD3; I have no idea wether or not the onboard sound is good enough for this headset.

I should also mention that the headset is all I'll be using for sound, I have no speaker setup whatsoever.

EDIT: This is what I found out the the Gigabyte site regarding onboard sound for my mobo:

Audio
Realtek ALC888 codec
High Definition Audio
2/4/5.1/7.1-channel
Support for S/PDIF In/Out
Support for CD In

However, I am pretty clueless as to what this actually means quality-wise, and if I'd get any real difference from getting a soundcard.

semantics

10040 Posts

June 20 2010 23:34 GMT

Sounds card job is to process data and turn it into a signal for an audio device. Modern motherboards do this wonderfully, and so do cheap soundcards.

High end sound cards are more for studio work, usually able to take in more then one signal at a time etc with slighly better amp and SNR.

The belief in high end sound cards come from when cpu's where 1 core and on board sound was shit. So if you wanted 5.1 surround or if you just wanted to play a game without loosing fps you got an daughter board sound.

Now of days cpus are robust and sound card chips are cheap and effective.

R1CH

Netherlands10342 Posts

June 20 2010 23:41 GMT

Have you guys replying ever owned any decent headphones before? Onboard sound sucks, there's a shitload of EMI interference introduced due to the fact it's integrated into the board. You may not notice this with your $10 headphones but any decent pair of cans will make it very obvious. I can even hear the interference caused by moving my mouse with my onboard sound.

For gaming and movies etc you probably won't notice the interference since the other sounds will drown it out, but if you really want the best quality you need a dedicated sound card. I'd recommend anything with a C-Media chip.

T.O.P.

Hong Kong4685 Posts

June 21 2010 00:01 GMT

#10

If you buy a internal PCI Soundcard, you'll get EMI interference as well as noise due to uneven power from your power supply.

What headphones do you have RICH?

@gillon The real question is are you satisfied with your on-board sound? Do you hear the EMI interference?

For Example: I think the onboard sound on my Desktop is terrible. But I'm happy with the sound on my laptop.

semantics

10040 Posts

June 21 2010 00:16 GMT

#11

R1CH's prob could depend on a ton of factors, who shares bandwidth with the chip, what is his chip, where is it etc.

But gillion has a decent chip on a great motherboard.

Wangsta

United States776 Posts

June 21 2010 00:59 GMT

#12

i'd recommend a nuforce udac. its $80-100, but its an external DAC of very high quality that also has a decent headphone amp. more importantly though, it has a clean line-level output which will allow you to hook up some serious audio gear in future if you ever want to go that route

R1CH

Netherlands10342 Posts

June 21 2010 01:02 GMT

#13

On June 21 2010 09:01 T.O.P. wrote:
If you buy a internal PCI Soundcard, you'll get EMI interference as well as noise due to uneven power from your power supply.

What headphones do you have RICH?

I have HD 595s, this happens on at least two different PCs with different motherboards.

Sadistx

Zimbabwe5568 Posts

June 21 2010 01:34 GMT

#14

On June 21 2010 10:02 R1CH wrote:

Show nested quote +

I have HD 595s, this happens on at least two different PCs with different motherboards.

You don't even need to have high end headphones to hear the interference. I have had it on ALC 661, Connexant laptop audio and the old AC'97 integrated audio.

Pretty much every integrated audio chip I've tried has this annoying screeching (im assuming that's interference) that my sound card does not.

I could hear it with HD 280's as well as Creative EP-630 plugs, so it's not a headphone problem.

People say it's fine, but I'm never gonna use integrated again, unless I'm forced to on a laptop.

Gandalf

Pakistan1905 Posts

June 21 2010 01:37 GMT

#15

I've always used an integrated sound card, and I felt a pretty big difference in sound quality going from cheap headphones to a pair of HD555s. Maybe getting a dedicated sound card would still increase quality, but I'm not sure if its really necessary.

Sadistx

Zimbabwe5568 Posts

June 21 2010 01:39 GMT

#16

On June 21 2010 10:37 Gandalf wrote:
I've always used an integrated sound card, and I felt a pretty big difference in sound quality going from cheap headphones to a pair of HD555s. Maybe getting a dedicated sound card would still increase quality, but I'm not sure if its really necessary.

You can't say until you've tried it. Integrated audio is garbage. I admit it's much better than 5 years ago, but it's still bad compared to even a dedicated 50$ sound card.

Wr3k

Canada2533 Posts

June 21 2010 02:10 GMT

#17

On June 21 2010 08:41 R1CH wrote:
Have you guys replying ever owned any decent headphones before? Onboard sound sucks, there's a shitload of EMI interference introduced due to the fact it's integrated into the board. You may not notice this with your $10 headphones but any decent pair of cans will make it very obvious. I can even hear the interference caused by moving my mouse with my onboard sound.

For gaming and movies etc you probably won't notice the interference since the other sounds will drown it out, but if you really want the best quality you need a dedicated sound card. I'd recommend anything with a C-Media chip.

Yeah, onboard sound almost always does this. Depending on how you have your levels set you can avoid it somewhat but not entirely. i.e. keep your systems master volume low and increase the volume in the application so that the audio signal is stronger in comparison to the EMI.

If you are an audiophile or produce any kind of audio then you are going to want a sound card, but otherwise this issue is only slightly noticeable with a proper setup and really shouldn't be a problem for your average consumer. Personally I have a very expensive DJ mixer that can act as my sound card, but usually while gaming and whatnot I don't bother turning it on because the onboard sound is good enough.

AyeH

United States534 Posts

June 21 2010 02:13 GMT

#18

I use bose headphones and have never had a problem.

NonY

8751 Posts

June 21 2010 02:23 GMT

#19

I have Shure SE530 earphones (they changed my life) and listening to music on my computer via Xonar DX sound card blows onboard sound out of the water (and it's much better than listening from an iPod too).

I don't know what particular sound card to recommend you but I agree you should get a dedicated card. Try to find some reviews and skip all the parts about features and connectivity and whatnot and go straight to how it sounds.

Myrmidon

United States9452 Posts

June 21 2010 02:50 GMT

#20

There's always a debate over how much objective measurements of audio quality correlate with the subjective listening experience, but here is an RMAA test comparison of your onboard audio chip with a couple of respected Asus sound cards (the cheaper DX is around $80):

http://hothardware.com/Reviews/ASUS-Xonar-DX-PCI-Express-71-Audio-Card/?page=4

edit: I use the X-Fi Surround 5.1 USB sound card, though I don't particularly recommend it and don't use any of Creative's special processing effects. For $50 it's certainly way way better than my laptop Conexant onboard audio with my Klipsch Custom-2 earphones.

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