Debating buying a new sound card

BababooeyHTJ · May 5, 2011, 10:26 PM

Well, I'm currently using an X-fi Xtreme gamer. When it works is works just fine but I have been having the occasional issue where the driver stops detecting that anything is hooked up to it. I end up having to reinstall the driver to fix the problem.

I would also like to move to a pci-e card anyways so that I could slap an aftermarket cooler onto my bottom card. I'm debating the Xonar DX. On the other hand I could pick up a used Auzen Prelude. I know next to nothing about computer audio so any input would be appreciated. I'm really not looking to spend too much.

MxPhenom 216 · May 5, 2011, 11:00 PM

Xonar DX is all you will ever need. Go for it

FreedomEclipse · May 5, 2011, 11:07 PM

If your gonna go down the xonar route, i recommend using rhese unified drivers over asus's own. driver support for the xonars is poor at http://best.brainbit.wordpress.com/2...ified-drivers/

BababooeyHTJ · May 5, 2011, 11:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FreedomEclipse

If your gonna go down the xonar route, i recommend using rhese unified drivers over asus's own. driver support for the xonars is poor at best brainbit.wordpress.com/2010/07/19/asus-xonar-unified-drivers/

This is what is swaying me from the Xonar. Asus isn't exactly famous for their software support.

erocker · May 5, 2011, 11:15 PM

Speaker setup? Headphones? Auzentech is the way to go.

BababooeyHTJ · May 5, 2011, 11:18 PM

The vast majority of the time I use my M-audio AV-40s.

FreedomEclipse · May 5, 2011, 11:31 PM

The unified drivers sorted out a lot of bugs. theres no reason why not to go with the asus

sy5tem · May 6, 2011, 12:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BababooeyHTJ

Well, I'm currently using an X-fi Xtreme gamer. When it works is works just fine but I have been having the occasional issue where the driver stops detecting that anything is hooked up to it. I end up having to reinstall the driver to fix the problem.

I would also like to move to a pci-e card anyways so that I could slap an aftermarket cooler onto my bottom card. I'm debating the Xonar DX. On the other hand I could pick up a used Auzen Prelude. I know next to nothing about computer audio so any input would be appreciated. I'm really not looking to spend too much.

are you using 5.1 or 7.1 ? or playing with headphone?

both your 6950 have audio out !

also you probably have an on-board audio depends what kind of sound quality your looking for.

i also ad the same problem with x-fi . now using 6950 HDMI on my asus with headphone ... no more problem.

BababooeyHTJ · May 6, 2011, 12:04 AM

I never used the onboard up until recently and when I tried it out for some reason the left channel didn't seem to work. So, on board is out of the question. Like I said the vast majority of the time I'll be using my m-audio av40 which is just 2.0. I rarely use headphones.

sy5tem · May 6, 2011, 12:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BababooeyHTJ

I never used the onboard up until recently and when I tried it out for some reason the left channel didn't seem to work. So, on board is out of the question. Like I said the vast majority of the time I'll be using my m-audio av40 which is just 2.0. I rarely use headphones.

too bad you can use your 6950 audio then!

BababooeyHTJ · May 6, 2011, 12:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sy5tem

too bad you can use your 6950 audio then!

I know that I can use it over hdmi but I need some sort of analog output for my speakers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by FreedomEclipse

The unified drivers sorted out a lot of bugs. theres no reason why not to go with the asus

Thats good to know.

I have to admit that the need for a four pin floppy for power is another strike for the Xonar. It is at a pretty reasonable price though.

MxPhenom 216 · May 6, 2011, 12:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by erocker

Speaker setup? Headphones? Auzentech is the way to go.

why do you say that erocker??

Also OP check out the HT Omega Striker

hat · May 6, 2011, 01:10 AM

It seems that these days sound cards are all merely mediums to install software with a certain feature set to. It depends on what kind of connectivity you want (S/PDIF, HDMI, shit like that), and what kind of features you want. They produce better analog quality, but digital will sound the same (there's no better format than digital; as it's a perfect replication of the audio in the original file). You'll need a good ear and a good set of speakers/headphones to tell the difference. For me, coming off my onboard to my Xonar DG, the audio sounded a little louder, clearer, and more defined than the onboard. The optical connection is a nice bonus too, but for serious home theater enthusiasts, HDMI is the way to go.

May 5, 2011, 10:26 PM	#1
BababooeyHTJ Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 868 (0.58/day) Thanks: 165 Thanked 84 Times in 81 Posts System Specs	Debating buying a new sound card Well, I'm currently using an X-fi Xtreme gamer. When it works is works just fine but I have been having the occasional issue where the driver stops detecting that anything is hooked up to it. I end up having to reinstall the driver to fix the problem. I would also like to move to a pci-e card anyways so that I could slap an aftermarket cooler onto my bottom card. I'm debating the Xonar DX. On the other hand I could pick up a used Auzen Prelude. I know next to nothing about computer audio so any input would be appreciated. I'm really not looking to spend too much.

Processor:	i5 3570k
Motherboard:	Gigabyte Z77 UD5h
Cooling:	XSPC Raystrom
Memory:	4x4GB DDR3 1600mhz
Video Card:	7950 crossfire
Hard Disk:	a few
CRT/LCD Model:	27" Catleap
Case:	Xigmatek Elysium
Sound Card:	Xonar STX
PSU:	Seasonic X1050
Software:	Windows 7 X64

May 5, 2011, 11:00 PM	#2
MxPhenom 216 Knowledgeable Posting Whore Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 5,725 (5.77/day) Thanks: 1,264 Thanked 1,074 Times in 827 Posts System Specs	Xonar DX is all you will ever need. Go for it __________________ Motocross is not just a sport, it's a lifestyle. File Server: Intel Pentium G630, 8GB PNY 1600, AsRock H77M Micro, Corsair CX430M, Vertex 2 90GB (OS), 2x WD Red 2TB in RAID1 “We will never know our full potential, unless we push ourselves to find it. -Travis Rice”

System Name:	My System
Processor:	Intel Core i5 2500k @ 4.5GHZ 1.36v
Motherboard:	AsRock Extreme4 Gen3 P67
Cooling:	Prolimatech Megahalem w/ Push/Pull Corsair SP120s and H2O GPU
Memory:	Corsair Dominator Plats 8GB 4GBx2 2133mhz 1.5v
Video Card:	Evga Geforce GTX680 Signature 2 @ 1260/6308 H2O EK Block
Hard Disk:	Samsung 830 128GB SSD, Corsair Neutron 240GB, Samsung F3 500GB
Optical Drive:	Asus 24x SATA DVD
CRT/LCD Model:	Dell U2412M IPS 24" 1920 x 1200
Case:	Corsair Carbide Series 500r w/ 2x Corsair AF120 fans
Sound Card:	HT Omega Striker 7.1
PSU:	Corsair HX850 Gen1 Silver
Software:	Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit SP1
Benchmarks:	P33304 Vantage

May 5, 2011, 11:07 PM	#3
FreedomEclipse Crazy Dogmatic Bullsh!t! Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: (British Born Chinese) London, United Kingdom Posts: 7,516 (3.38/day) Thanks: 823 Thanked 1,598 Times in 1,281 Posts System Specs	If your gonna go down the xonar route, i recommend using rhese unified drivers over asus's own. driver support for the xonars is poor at http://best.brainbit.wordpress.com/2...ified-drivers/ __________________ “I used to be a serial upgrader like you, then i took a downgrade to the knee” -FreedomEclipse Last edited by FreedomEclipse; May 6, 2011 at 05:04 PM.

System Name:	Codename: Rapture X {MoonPig Edition}
Processor:	Intel 3930k@4.6Ghz
Motherboard:	Asus P9X79 PRO
Cooling:	Corsair H80i {2xScythe G.T AP-15}
Memory:	16GB DDR3 Kingston Hyper X 2133Mhz {4x4GB}
Video Card:	2xMSI GTX680 Twin Frozr OC {SLi}
Hard Disk:	256GB Plextor M5 Pro Xtreme (Boot) \|WD: 2x1.5TB FAEX\|1x2TB EARS\|1x1.5TB Samsung F4EG
Optical Drive:	N/A
CRT/LCD Model:	NEC MultiSync EA231WMi 23" {Black}
Case:	Fractal Define XL {3x140mm,1x180mm Silverstone A.P'}
Sound Card:	Creative SB Z {Speakers: Logitech Z-5500 }
PSU:	Corsair HX1050 Bro'fessional
Software:	Windows 7 7600 x64
Benchmarks:	(╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻

May 5, 2011, 11:15 PM	#5
erocker Senior Moderator Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Milwaukee, WI. Posts: 31,880 (12.77/day) Thanks: 2,779 Thanked 12,253 Times in 7,806 Posts System Specs	Speaker setup? Headphones? Auzentech is the way to go.

Processor:	Intel i7 3770K @ 4.6ghz 1.256v
Motherboard:	Asus Maximus V Formula
Cooling:	Water
Memory:	2x4gb Patriot Viper 2133mhz 10-11-10-25 2T 1.55v
Video Card:	Sapphire HD 7970 1125/1575 1.14v
Hard Disk:	Crucial M4 128Gb / Corsair Force 3 120Gb / Samsung 240Gb / 2Tb Seagate
Optical Drive:	None
CRT/LCD Model:	Acheiva Shimian 27" IPS 2560x1440
Case:	Corsair 500R White
Sound Card:	Onboard
PSU:	NZXT Hale90 1Kw
Software:	Windows 8 x64

May 5, 2011, 11:18 PM	#6
BababooeyHTJ Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 868 (0.58/day) Thanks: 165 Thanked 84 Times in 81 Posts System Specs	The vast majority of the time I use my M-audio AV-40s.

May 5, 2011, 11:31 PM	#7
FreedomEclipse Crazy Dogmatic Bullsh!t! Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: (British Born Chinese) London, United Kingdom Posts: 7,516 (3.38/day) Thanks: 823 Thanked 1,598 Times in 1,281 Posts System Specs	The unified drivers sorted out a lot of bugs. theres no reason why not to go with the asus __________________ “I used to be a serial upgrader like you, then i took a downgrade to the knee” -FreedomEclipse

System Name:	Custom DIY
Processor:	Intel i7 2600K @ 4.8 Turbo 1.4v
Motherboard:	Asus P8Z68-V Pro 8801
Cooling:	XSPC RS240 + 120mm Rad/fan
Memory:	Corsair 1866 Vangence 9-10-9-27-2T
Video Card:	2X EVGA GTX570 SLI
Hard Disk:	OCZ Revodrive 110GB + 2x1TB seagate
Optical Drive:	SATA TSSTcorp SH-S223C SB03ROM
CRT/LCD Model:	ASUS MT276HE
Case:	CoolerMaster Sniper
Sound Card:	X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series
PSU:	ANTEC TP-750 Blue 750Watts
Software:	win7 64
Benchmarks:	http://3dmark.com/3dm11/1347866

May 6, 2011, 12:04 AM	#9
BababooeyHTJ Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 868 (0.58/day) Thanks: 165 Thanked 84 Times in 81 Posts System Specs	I never used the onboard up until recently and when I tried it out for some reason the left channel didn't seem to work. So, on board is out of the question. Like I said the vast majority of the time I'll be using my m-audio av40 which is just 2.0. I rarely use headphones.

May 6, 2011, 01:10 AM	#13
hat Maximum Overclocker Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Ohio Posts: 12,236 (5.16/day) Thanks: 2,054 Thanked 2,039 Times in 1,549 Posts System Specs	It seems that these days sound cards are all merely mediums to install software with a certain feature set to. It depends on what kind of connectivity you want (S/PDIF, HDMI, shit like that), and what kind of features you want. They produce better analog quality, but digital will sound the same (there's no better format than digital; as it's a perfect replication of the audio in the original file). You'll need a good ear and a good set of speakers/headphones to tell the difference. For me, coming off my onboard to my Xonar DG, the audio sounded a little louder, clearer, and more defined than the onboard. The optical connection is a nice bonus too, but for serious home theater enthusiasts, HDMI is the way to go. __________________ My Heatware “Inb4 smartphone LN2 overclocking.” -radrok

System Name:	Starlifter // Dragonfly
Processor:	(lapped) i7 920 4GHz 1.3v // 1090T 3.6GHz 1.3v
Motherboard:	Asus Rampage III // Gigabyte GA-770T-USB3
Cooling:	(lapped) Corsair H70 // (lapped) TT Big Typhoon
Memory:	3x2GB DDR3 1600 10-10-10-30-128-1T 1.5v // 2x2GB DDR3 1333 9-9-9-24-1T 1.5v
Video Card:	HIS Radeon 5870 // BFG Maxcore 55 GTX260
Hard Disk:	Plextor M5S 128GB + 512GB OCZ Agility 4 + 2TB WD20EARS // WDC Black 500GB
Optical Drive:	SATA DVD-RW // IDE CD-RW
CRT/LCD Model:	Dell/Alienware AW2310 + 19" HDTV // 19" HDTV
Case:	Antec SOHO 1030B // some really old white case... but it's decent
Sound Card:	Creative X-Fi Fatality Professional // onboard (disabled)
PSU:	Antec NeoHe 550W // Corsair CX600w
Software:	Windows 7 Home Premium x64 // Windows 7 Home Premium x64
Benchmarks:	zunn zunnzunn zunn zunn

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