New Soundcard/maybe headphones?

N

Nimrod

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jan 14, 2005
Messages
244
Alright i'm not really happy with my sound currently. I'm not sure if I would be better off with better headphones or sound card? I'm using onboard audio from a Asus P5Q Deluxe and I have some SB45 headphones. So Which would be better a sound card or headphones? I'm thinking I'll buy a different sound card but not really sure what to get any ideas for gaming? I want to be able to hear my enemy's footsteps and know where they are.

Budget is around $100, looking for best bang for buck.
 
Definitely get a sound card first....even a cheap $30 Audigy SE is better than the crappy sound on that Asus...for headphones anyway.
 
I'll spend $100 or so on just a sound card and if I'm still not happy, I'll probably spend another $100 on headphones.

Which of these you think would be good to get? Would I really be able to tell the difference between any of them or is there any others you guys would recommend?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102007

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102006

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102024

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102005
 
Do not get the Xtreme Audio, it is a software card. The other 3 you linked to should sound the same, the only difference is interface (PCIE or PCI), connections, and amount of XRAM for games. If you can spend a little more, get the Auzentech Prelude instead:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829156005&Tpk=prelude

It has nicer (replaceable) output opamps which improves the sound quality over the stock X-Fi's.
 
kniah said:
Do not get the Xtreme Audio, it is a software card. The other 3 you linked to should sound the same, the only difference is interface (PCIE or PCI), connections, and amount of XRAM for games. If you can spend a little more, get the Auzentech Prelude instead:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829156005&Tpk=prelude

It has nicer (replaceable) output opamps which improves the sound quality over the stock X-Fi's.
Click to expand...

So if I spend that much will I still be able to notice the sound difference with $40 headphones (Koss SB45's) ?

I mainly play Americas Army and I just want something good to wear I can hear where my enemy's are.

Plus I think the static I hear occasionally coming from my speakers is because of the onboard sound lol, and its getting kind of annoying.
 
If you're just using the card for gaming (not music) and not planning on upgrading to better headphones in the future, then you probably won't notice a difference with the Prelude. I would recommend the PCIE X-Fi Titanium that you linked to if this is the case. It has more output options than the half-height gamer for about the same price. Unless you want a PCI card, the extra ram on the Fatal1ty version isn't worth it. I don't think many games support the ram anyway.

On another note, are you using XP or Vista? I'm using the Fatal1ty card in XP and haven't had any driver issues, but it may be a different story with Vista. If you're using Vista, I would do a little digging to see what experiences others have had regarding drivers before buying.
 
I'm using Vista 64 but I guess if I have any problems I can go back to XP.

So you think I should get the X-Fi Titanium? If I'm still not happy with the sound I would probably pair it up with some Sennheiser HD-555 as it seems I hear a lot of good things about those headphones?
 
Avoid creative shit if you are using Vista. Worst driver release sets I've ever seen.
 
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